God in the MarketplaceMostra

Foundations of Marketplace Ministers: Holiness

Many times when we think of the word holiness, we might think of a list of things that we shouldn't do or behaviours that we need to stay away from. Whilst there is certainly an aspect of morality and behaviour that is part of being holy, from a biblical perspective holiness also means being set apart for a particular purpose.

In the above scripture, the apostle Paul says to the church in Rome that part of being Holy was their “reasonable service”, meaning there was a mission to it.

As marketplace ministers, most of us will need to operate as sons and daughters of God in civic and workplace environments that aren't always “user friendly” for Christians. Many times things will come across our desks that will not always sit well with our godly conscience and convictions.

The question I get asked a lot is; “how can I walk in holiness in these types of situations”?

My first encouragement to us is to do what we just read in Romans 12 and present our bodies (lives) as a living sacrifice to God. This isn't about our comfort zones or even what is going to suit us best, but our ministry is a beautiful expression of our love for God and for people to come to know Him.

Meaning that sometimes we will have to make our employers, customers or employees uncomfortable by saying no to certain things that they may want us to do because our greater priority is to serve and represent God and His kingdom well.

This leads me to an interesting thought about holiness. To be Holy is to understand that we are crafted for a particular purpose (set apart) and that purpose is to represent what God is like on the earth. When I see Christians using the term holiness to be rude or uncaring towards people who might be presently outside of faith in the marketplace, I struggle to fathom that this is what God would do in those moments.

Jesus was and is the perfect example of what the Father is like, so when I think about how to model holiness in the marketplace I always look to how Jesus behaved and operated in the gospels. I am constantly amazed and humbled by how Jesus modelled holiness amongst people who didn't yet know of the Father's love for them.

Holiness is a core foundation principle as it is fuelled out of deepening intimacy with Christ and an alignment to our kingdom assignments in the marketplace.

Reflection

• How are going to represent the Father's love well in the marketplace this week?