God Calls Us to Holiness,
Not Happiness
God calls us to holiness, not happiness:
But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15-16 NIV)
He never says "be happy (or blessed), because I am happy (or blessed). Both in the Old Testament and the New Testament, the respective words "esher" H835, and "makarios" G3107 mean "happy or blessed".
Does Jesus want us to be blessed? Of course He does but not at the expense of not being holy, that is, pure, morally blameless, consecrated to God, a saint (G40). Look at the verses below from the Sermon on the Mount. It is obvious He wants us to be Christians first and foremost and then we will be blessed. Without striving every day of our lives to be holy, doing the will of God, it is impossible to be a Christian.
Matthew 5:2-11 From the Sermon on the Mount
2. And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
3. Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
7. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
8. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
9. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
10. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Some Other Biblical Examples
Do you think Jeremiah was happy when he was the laughing stock of the community (Jeremiah 20:7 NET) or put in a cistern of mud? (Jeremiah 38:6 NET).
Do you think Elijah was happy when Jezebel desired to kill him (1 Kings 19:4).
Do you think Job was happy when his friends came to comfort him? (Job 16:2).
Do you think John the Baptist was happy when he was in prison just before he had his head cut off? (Luke 7:20)
Do you think the Apostle Paul was always happy with his circumstances? (2 Corinthians 11:23-27)
Do you think Jesus was happy when He knew He had to be crucified? (Matthew 26:39).
Of course, none of them were happy but they remained consecrated to God, doing His will. They were separated from the world in their holiness.
Conclusion
The Bible teaches us that without holiness we will not see the Lord Jesus:
Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14).
It also teaches us that we must be born again, born of water and Spirit to see the kingdom of God:
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God (John 3:3-5).
And without the Spirit, we are not of Jesus:
But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His (Romans 8:9).
Clearly, being holy and being born again, having the Spirit of God, go hand in hand. We all need to obey the Gospel of Jesus Christ by obeying the only salvation doctrine in the Bible (Acts 2:38), to repent, to be baptized in the name of Jesus for remission of sins and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost (Holy Spirit), to be born of water and Spirit. One knows that he/she has the Holy Ghost (Holy Spirit) when the person speaks in tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance (Acts 2:4) (Acts 10:45-46) Acts 19:6).
Then when we lead and live a Christian and Repentant lifestyle, we will have done the best we can to be holy, and consequently being happy, and in the end, be able to walk on the street of gold, worshipping Jesus for eternity.
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