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What Happened to Holiness?
                     by
                  Josprel

Something has happened to Holiness; she's gone! Search for her! She must groom the Bride for the Bridegroom's coming!

Something has happened to Holiness! In the frenzy of our activities, we don't see her around much anymore. Actually, it seems that she left quite a while ago. We did not’t evict her. However, since we've only recently noticed her absence, it is evident we've neglected her. Yes, our Holiness is missing!

Born Again appears alive and well. Even the Charismatic Gifts clan makes an occasional appearance, but where is Holiness?

Our lamented Holiness is not that frowning-faced, dark-colors-only, hems-to-the-ankle, legalistic impostor, who always yells, "That's worldliness!" even at the healthy fun, laughter and joy displayed by believers. That's not the Holiness we love and for whom we seek. Our sweet, gentle, tenderhearted Holiness graces the Bride of Christ with her vibrant beauty. She encourages the Bride to live as the Bridegroom lived in the world. Her stabilizing influence assures the Bride that she soon shall see her Bridegroom (Heb. 12:14).

Reliable sources report that Holiness left when she felt stripped of her Scriptural essence. Apparently, she felt we had demoted her to the inferior status of a theological anachronism. She was grief-stricken over this, claiming we consider her demeanor unsuitable to our contemporary, integrated lifestyles. The reports conclude that, most likely, Holiness will not return to us until she again is elevated to her former status.

A general feeling of shocked dismay now is discernible among those who once knew Holiness. They had not intended to demote her; they just took her for granted. They now openly proclaim that Holiness is infinitely appropriate to this generation and absolutely essential to its welfare. They claim to miss her and wish to tell her so. They also want her to know of of their assurance that God's Word still remains as immutable as its Author.

Holiness must be informed of this development. She must be notified of those who again desire to lovingly embrace her; she must told of their understanding that, without her, the Bride is in jeopardy of being asleep when her Bridegroom appears. Those who comprise this concerned group also realize that the Beauty of Holiness is essential within their churches; otherwise, without her beauty, they descend to the mundane status of mere organizations, a status they hope to evade.

This group laments grievously because  the Holy Spirit grieves over the absence of Holiness. They understand that she is essential to the Bride's maturity (Rom. 6:19-23; Ep. 4:1-32).

Holiness always has pure intentions. Avoiding complicated theological jargon she clearly defines her mission. Her task is to shield Christ's Bride from the spiritual dangers of a debilitating, iniquitous world and to set her apart for the Bridegroom. Holiness evaluates the Bride's maturity. She insists that only her beautifying care meets the requirements for the Bride to appear before the Bridegroom's Father (Heb. 12:9-14). As the Bride awaits the coming of her Bridegroom, the Spirit and the Beauty of Holiness empowers her to triumph over the trials that are so essential to her maturity (II Chronicles 20:15-22; I Chronicles 16:27-29).

Sadly, the departure of Holiness deprives the Bride of her spiritual "beautician" (Gal. 5:19-26; Ps. 93:4-5; 96:6-9). The Spirit of Truth, who  is commissioned to purify the Bride for the coming of her Bridegroom, has employed Holiness as the agent for this task. He depends to her to beautify the Bride. This she shall accomplish by applying her beauty secrets - cleansing, purifying and transforming the Bride into conformity to the Bridegroom.

It is therefore vital that Holiness be immediately located! She must be allowed to resume her beautification of the Bride as only she can do. She alone understands and can apply the process by which the Holy Spirit  shall transforms the Bride into the image of her Bridegroom. (II Cor. 3:17-18; Rom. 12:1-2).

What happened to Holiness? Where is she? The Bridegroom desires her beautifying attributes in His Bride.

                  -30-

         © Josprel
           josprel@verizon.net[/b]
   
About the Author:

Josprel, who resides in Western New York – just across the Niagara River from Canada - was brought up in a devout Christian family. He rebelled against the Lord at an early age, finally enlisting in the U.S. Air Force in which he served three years, two and one half of them in the Far-East, as a sergeant of operating engineers. Upon returning home, he accepted Christ as his Savior and studied for the ministry and earned a Master of Theology degree He is a prolific writer, with stories and articles appearing in print and on the Web. For some ten years, Josprel pastored in Attica, New York, the site of the nation's worst prison riot. After the riot, at the request of the Attica Prison Administration, Josprel sponsored and conducted three-hour-long weekly Bible studies for the inmates. He is the author of two novels in progress, "Beloved Apostate" and "Kanfal."