Weird Ideas: Holy ChurchExemplo

When we talk about weird ideas, one is that the church is “holy.” The Nicene Creed describes the Church in four ways: one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. Last week we talked about the Church being “one.” This week we’ll talk about the Church being “holy.”

“Holy” is a church word. Churches, especially liturgical churches, use the word “holy” a lot: Holy Spirit, holy communion, holy baptism, hymns like “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty”… The list goes on.

The word “holy” conjures up an image for most people. It has the sense of someone (or something) being sacred, imbued with God’s presence, or better-than-ordinary people because holy people live lives that are more righteous and pleasing to God. We might imagine their faces glowing, halos around their heads, sunbeams from heaven shining on them, and an innocent purity about them. Sometimes it becomes a point of mockery, as when we think of a person being “holier than thou.”

The Church falls short of this. It’s often marked by wrong priorities, lukewarm and apathetic believers, a lack of love, a laziness towards sin, and sometimes even corruption and mismanagement. Holiness should express itself in some of the ways we imagine it; often, it doesn’t. Which is why it might seem weird to call the Church “holy.” But at its core, holiness is something different than what many envision. To be holy is to be set apart by God for some special purpose. What makes the church “holy” is God.

It is a holy Church because of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God sets it apart and fills it in some way. For better or worse, God has chosen to work through his Church. He’s chosen to work in it and through it, despite the fact that they are often self-seeking and sinful, common and ordinary, incompetent and weak. Despite all of that, he’s set them apart for a special purpose. And that purpose is to be his agents bringing his presence and gospel to the world. That purpose and God’s choosing is what makes the Church holy.

This week we’ll explore holiness more. Today, read a few examples of God setting apart his people.