No Raisins, No Haircuts, No Funerals
Is it good or evil?
Is it moral or immoral?
Is it legal or illegal?
Is it wise or foolish?
Those are the four spectrums of decision-making. For Christians (or perhaps religious people, in general) there is one more: Is it holy or common?
Sometimes we run all our terminology together, as though good, right, moral, wise, and holy are all exactly the same thing. Though they may be related, they aren’t identical. This is especially important in understanding the words surrounding the “holiness” spectrum.
“Holiness” involves a chosen separation of oneself to God. The promises of the Nazirite vow (Numbers 6.1-8) are an example. A person who took a Nazirite vow, “separating himself to the LORD” (Numbers 6.2), vowed not to eat grapes or anything made from grapes (including raisins)—not even the seeds or skins—or drink anything made from grapes (grape juice, wine, or vinegar). He vowed to never cut his hair, and he promised not to go near any dead body—not even for a family funeral!
Is there something evil about grapes? Is cutting your hair immoral? Are family funerals wicked? Not at all. All these things are good in and of themselves. But when you took a Nazirite vow, you “swore off” such things as a symbolic separation of yourself—a sort of “fast”—to God. Eating grapes is not an evil, but not keeping your promise to God is.
A Nazirite vow could last a lifetime (e.g. Samson) or for a chosen period of time (e.g. Numbers 6.5, “…until the time is completed for which he separates himself to the LORD, he shall be holy”). The Nazirite wasn’t to condemn the average person for eating grapes, cutting their hair, or being near dead bodies. The average person wasn’t less spiritual or wicked for doing these things. The Nazirite had simply made a special commitment that the average person hadn’t. The Nazirite vow was between self and God, not man and man. The Nazirite respected the average person’s right to eat grapes; the average person respected the Nazirite’s decision not to.
I think Christians today can make decisions for holiness. Fasting from sugar or TV for Lent is a chosen temporary holiness. Some people make lifelong choices to abstain from, say, alcoholic beverages or from eating meat. The biggest danger with such choices is to confuse the holy/common spectrum with the good/evil spectrum, and to see teetotaling or vegetarianism as a matter of good and evil demanded of everyone rather than as a voluntary choice of abstinence from a good in the interests of holiness.
Another holiness choice is the decision to set aside a day to the Lord (or a part of the day, say, committed to personal devotions). This is not a matter of good or evil, but of holiness—sanctifying (or setting apart) the day—making it special for the sake of your relationship to God. It is not a reason to judge everyone else as evil, immoral, or spiritually inferior—as many of the Pharisees did, provoking Jesus’ judgments against them.
If you’ve made such a commitment to holiness, keep it, but don’t condemn others for not making such a commitment or require them to live consistently with your commitment.
If you’re with someone who has made such a commitment to holiness, respect it. Don’t try to tempt them to break it.
“Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.” (Romans 14.5b)
Is it moral or immoral?
Is it legal or illegal?
Is it wise or foolish?
Those are the four spectrums of decision-making. For Christians (or perhaps religious people, in general) there is one more: Is it holy or common?
Sometimes we run all our terminology together, as though good, right, moral, wise, and holy are all exactly the same thing. Though they may be related, they aren’t identical. This is especially important in understanding the words surrounding the “holiness” spectrum.
“Holiness” involves a chosen separation of oneself to God. The promises of the Nazirite vow (Numbers 6.1-8) are an example. A person who took a Nazirite vow, “separating himself to the LORD” (Numbers 6.2), vowed not to eat grapes or anything made from grapes (including raisins)—not even the seeds or skins—or drink anything made from grapes (grape juice, wine, or vinegar). He vowed to never cut his hair, and he promised not to go near any dead body—not even for a family funeral!
Is there something evil about grapes? Is cutting your hair immoral? Are family funerals wicked? Not at all. All these things are good in and of themselves. But when you took a Nazirite vow, you “swore off” such things as a symbolic separation of yourself—a sort of “fast”—to God. Eating grapes is not an evil, but not keeping your promise to God is.
A Nazirite vow could last a lifetime (e.g. Samson) or for a chosen period of time (e.g. Numbers 6.5, “…until the time is completed for which he separates himself to the LORD, he shall be holy”). The Nazirite wasn’t to condemn the average person for eating grapes, cutting their hair, or being near dead bodies. The average person wasn’t less spiritual or wicked for doing these things. The Nazirite had simply made a special commitment that the average person hadn’t. The Nazirite vow was between self and God, not man and man. The Nazirite respected the average person’s right to eat grapes; the average person respected the Nazirite’s decision not to.
I think Christians today can make decisions for holiness. Fasting from sugar or TV for Lent is a chosen temporary holiness. Some people make lifelong choices to abstain from, say, alcoholic beverages or from eating meat. The biggest danger with such choices is to confuse the holy/common spectrum with the good/evil spectrum, and to see teetotaling or vegetarianism as a matter of good and evil demanded of everyone rather than as a voluntary choice of abstinence from a good in the interests of holiness.
Another holiness choice is the decision to set aside a day to the Lord (or a part of the day, say, committed to personal devotions). This is not a matter of good or evil, but of holiness—sanctifying (or setting apart) the day—making it special for the sake of your relationship to God. It is not a reason to judge everyone else as evil, immoral, or spiritually inferior—as many of the Pharisees did, provoking Jesus’ judgments against them.
If you’ve made such a commitment to holiness, keep it, but don’t condemn others for not making such a commitment or require them to live consistently with your commitment.
If you’re with someone who has made such a commitment to holiness, respect it. Don’t try to tempt them to break it.
“Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.” (Romans 14.5b)