The Ballestero Blog

Holiness Thoughts

After I went to bed. I picked up the pad of paper beside my bed and began to write these thoughts down as they came to me.

I had been in a conversation with a life-long friend and he began to say things that scared me. I saw he had made a turn in his thinking, and I couldn’t make the turn with him.  It actually frightened me very much, I wrote for and hour or two, then fell asleep. Three or four times I awakened and continued my writing.

• I even dreamed about it.
• What I don’t know is why I feel Holiness has to be defended.
• It is God’s lowest standard. Israel never complained about all of their holiness requirements and regulations and they didn’t even have the Holy Ghost.
• They didn’t even have a spirit of holiness, they just had law.
• They complained about the food and about their leadership, but never about their holiness.
• That seems to be all that Pentecostals fuss about.

This generation, has the Holy Ghost experience available, yet most of our discussions have to do with negative things about Holiness.

• It’s like we are trying to see how little we can do and still be saved.
• We are attempting to be saved by doing the minimum.
• Saints change churches because they don’t like the Holiness preaching. It was too hard for them.

Wouldn’t it be something if Israel stood up in the Judgment and condemned this generation?

These are the thoughts I have put down as they came to me. They are without organization. They might even be without clarity. All I know is, I felt a touch of God’s Holiness about me before when I finally went to sleep.

1. I like Brooklyn Tabernacle’s song: “Holy Like You”

2. In Isaiah 6, Isaiah was Sanctified before being called or sent.

3. Do I speak “The Language Of Holiness”

4. When I lose Holiness, the Revelation of the Godhead goes too. They are connected.

5. Holy Ghost. How can I have the HOLY Ghost and say I hate HOLY things?

6. I’ve seen new converts changed w/o hearing holiness preached. All by the power of the Holy Ghost.

7. Story of Elizabeth. After being baptized that night, got rid of everything she didn’t think she wanted Jesus to see in her house. Immediately received the Holy Ghost.

8. In Old Testament – Holiness was legislated

9. In New Testament they received the Spirit of Holiness.

10. Holiness includes: purity- heart, modesty-outside, righteousness-conduct.

11. Draw nigh to God.  This was written to those that already had the Holy Ghost.

12. There should be a Quest for Holiness.

13. There’s Safety in Holiness

14. There’s Benefits in Holiness

15. The Why Of Holiness.

1. Why do some want to re-define standards?
2. Why do some want to rebel against what they were taught.
3. When they came into this church it was a Holiness church.
4. They knew that when they came in.
5. Why do they want to change it now?
6. That is like a girl marrying a boy and then wanting him to change.

16. Why do they want to dress that way?

17. Why do they make fun of Holiness.

18. What is wrong with them that makes them have a problem with carefulness about the things of God?

19. Why do they reject preaching on Holiness?

20. Why do they distance themselves from all Holiness preaching?

21. Why do ALL Conservative preachers seem harsh and bitter to them?

22. Why is the word Holiness offensive to them?

23. Why does their church get quiet when the subject gets preached?

24. Who are they trying to please when they let down on the standard? God?

25. What will their permissiveness produce?

26. I know what Holiness produces.

27. “You get what you preach.”

28. List the number of churches that have thrown their convictions and holiness out the door, and then tell me about their amazing church growth and climbing attendance. It don’t see it.

29. They threw away their convictions, lost their revelation and never got much in return.  It wasn’t worth it. All they received was delusion, and there may never be hope of recovery.

30. In the Military – there is extensive recruiting and training

31. In Sports – there is extensive recruiting and training

32. Yes there’s cuts, drop outs, even AWOL

33. All some Churches think is important is the recruiting. They can even recruit a small army.  They wonder why some don’t last. Was it because they were not trained.

34. Some young people have grown up never hearing a sermon on the subject of Holiness.

35. All that we want to hear is Salvation, healing, miracles, faith, and blessings

36. Saints aren’t born, they’re made.  It will take some preaching to make saints out of them.

37. Daddy said to me “if you have a choice between being an Exhorter or a Feeder, be a Feeder.  Feeders build churches.

38. There is a NEED for training.

39. Prov 22:6 Train up a child… etc.  The word train there has to do with touching the palate.

1. Developing a taste in the child’s mouth for the things of God.
2. Flinging a craving on the child for God things.
3. Some try to cram things down people’s throats instead.

40. Why does God want us to be holy?

1. It identifies us
2. It says we know Jesus
3. It says we hate the world.
4. It says we refuse to be called the son of pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather… (Holiness is a choice)
5. It identifies us with Him
6. It is a daily reminder – Israel wore a ribbon of blue

41. Why does God say be ye holy, even as I am holy?

42. Why does God WANT me to be holy?

43. He put His Holy Spirit in me, so why would I Not want to be Holy.

44. If I have the Holy Ghost, why would I be so in love with unholy things?

45. In my opinion, If I was a Holiness Rejecter, I would not be “Enlightened”. I would be backslid.