21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before Him.

Colossians 1:21-22 English Standard Version

Though pain and suffering are part of the Christian life, we must not equate pain and suffering with holiness. This approach reveals a deep imbalance and misunderstanding of God’s heart. While the impact of pain and suffering may heighten our need for God and dependency on Him, it is the peace and joy of the Holy Spirit that enables us to endure and persevere through anything.

We will face tough times and hard challenges, but pain is not God’s way of making us holy. In fact, even though Jesus’ suffering and death were essential, they were not the high point of His finished work—His resurrection was always the most important thing.

Holiness is nothing less than conformity to the character of Jesus. It is the fruit of our salvation, and not an achievement of our self-effort. By God’s grace we can live a holy life because we have been made holy and blameless and beyond reproach before God. And God who initiates and begins this good work of salvation in us will complete it for us.

God wants us to be holy because He wants to transform us to be His Son and that should be our desire as well. In this sense, holiness goes beyond being moral and ethical. A holy life is to reveal and reflect Christ in all our thoughts, our words, and our actions. It is to say that Christ is truly alive and is living in us.

Holiness flows from the presence and power of Christ’s resurrection life working in and through us as we yield ourselves to His Spirit. If you understand this well, you will realise Christ’s resurrection life is not about you trying harder to do better, but for you to be transformed through the power of the Holy Spirit from the inside out.