This prayer for holiness draws upon the fact that we as believers have already been made positionally holy in Christ, but we are called to work towards practical holiness in the way we conduct ourselves.
Below the prayer are some scripture references for further reading.
Heavenly Father,
You are Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty; the very nature of holiness, which I cannot fully comprehend.
Still, you have made me holy in your eyes through Christ. Thank you for this gift of redemption, and for your Holy Spirit sanctifying me daily, teaching me how to behave more like a child of God.
Lord, build in me a hatred, a disgust, for things that are unholy and unfitting for me as your child so that I can better reflect your true nature. Grow in me a desire and a need for true holiness, and show me daily what this should look like in my life.
Let it be evident to those around me that I have thrown off my old self and continue to do so to become more like you, more holy.
Thank you Father,
Amen
Why should we pray for holiness?
You may wonder why we need to pray for holiness when “we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Heb 10:10).
We have already been made holy through Christ, so how can we become any more holy?
It’s a beautiful truth that when we call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ we are made holy (1 Cor 1:2). Through Christ’s sacrifice, we are adopted as children of God and made holy and blameless in his sight (Eph 1:3-4).
But holiness is not just something that we are given; it’s something that we are called to perfect in ourselves in practical ways.
This command to “Be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy” is found multiple times in the Old Testament (Lev 11:44-45, Lev 19:2, Lev 20:7) and was repeated by Jesus during his Sermon on the Mount: “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mat 5:48).
Peter refers to these scriptures in 1 Peter 1:14-16, telling us not to conform to the evil desires we had when we lived in ignorance, but as obedient children, to be holy as he who called us is holy.
In Hebrews 12:14 we are told to “Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.”
And Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 7:1 that we should “purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God”.
Finally, in 1 Thessalonians 4, Paul reminds us that “God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life” (v7). He mentions that sanctification comes from avoiding sexual immorality, learning to control our bodies in a way that is holy and honorable, and not taking advantage of fellow believers (v3-6).
Paul notes that the church is already living in a way that is pleasing to God and showing love for one another, yet twice he instructs them to do this “more and more” (v1&10).
This should serve as a reminder that no matter how far we have come from our old sinful nature (Eph 4:22), there is always more that we can do to perfect holiness in our lives and better reflect God’s holy nature.
Through his Holy Spirit, God will build in us a love for what is holy and a hatred for what is unholy so that we can be transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory (2 Cor 3:18).
Scriptures to inspire your own prayer for holiness
The prayer I wrote above is just one way you can pray for holiness in your own life. I encourage you to meditate on these scriptures as you spend time with God and reflect on his holy nature, then write your own prayer to reflect what is in your heart.
- Leviticus 19:2
- Isaiah 6:3
- Isaiah 47:4
- Habakkuk 1:13
- Matthew 5:48
- 1 Corinthians 1:2
- 2 Corinthians 3:18
- 2 Corinthians 7:1
- Ephesians 1:3-4
- Ephesians 4:22
- 1 Thessalonians 4:1-10
- Hebrews 10:10
- Hebrews 12:14
- 1 Peter 1:14-16