But union with Christ is not only the anchor; it is also the engine of our holiness. The gift of holiness in Christ doesn’t make the pursuit of it unnecessary. We are to be holy as God is holy (Lev. 11:44). That’s a command. We are to “grow in … grace and knowledge” (2 Pet. 3:18); we are to “grow up in every way into him” (Eph. 4:15). We are to be “transformed by the renewal of [our] mind” (Rom. 12:2).
