Yield To The Desires Of The Holy Spirit

But be holy in all you do, just as God, the One who called you, is holy. It is written in the Scriptures: "You must be holy, because I am holy." (1 Peter 1:15-16 NCV)

Holiness is one of the marks of a believer’s life. But we can never be holy by following rules because holiness begins on the inside of us. Oh, we could look holy and righteous on the outside all the while we could be full of jealousy, anger, and pride, etc. on the inside. Outward conformity can never accomplish God’s will because it doesn’t change the inner person’s thoughts and desires. The end result of following rules is hypocrisy because the inside of us doesn’t match the outside.

And Jesus rebuked the religious leaders of His day saying, "You are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy -- full of greed and self-indulgence!... First wash the inside of the cup, and then the outside will become clean, too.” (Matthew 23:23-26 NLT) What Jesus was saying to those Pharisees is that the only way a person can become holy is by cleaning up the inside of the cup (i.e., a person’s desires and thought life) and not the other way around. And the only solution is to gain a new nature on the inside – a nature that desires to live godly and holy. I’m referring to new birth and the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:6 (NLT) says, “If your sinful nature controls your mind, there is death. But if the Holy Spirit controls your mind, there is life and peace.”

When you yield to the desires of the Holy Spirit rather than your fleshly desires you will experience the results of a transformed life!