H is for Holy

Message for Akron Alliance Fellowship Church, Akron OH, Sunday, September 20, 2026.

I am truly thankful for the wonderful support and encouragement that I have received for my Consecration and Ordination with The Christian and Missionary Alliance.  I am humbled and grateful to be of service for the Lord Jesus Christ, and I appreciate all of the kind words, well-wishes and congratulatory greetings from my family, my church members, and my friends, including my loyal Monday night skaters!

It is a privilege and an honor to have fulfilled the promise that I made to Pastor Gus Brown four years ago.  I never knew at that time how long it would take for me to make good on my promise, but I can readily say that through all of the effort and the struggles over the past four years—especially the past ten months—the completion of the work was satisfying and incredibly life-changing. 

The men and women of The Alliance who have been consecrated and ordained are able to take their credentials to numerous roles as a qualified servant leader for Jesus Christ.  Pastors, chaplains, evangelists, international workers, and various pastoral roles within the body of Christ are the target positions for credentialed workers. 

This has been a humbling and incredible experience.  I was being congratulated often during the conference by many well-wishers with the use of words like, “Congratulations, Reverend!” and “Well done, Preacher Man!”  These comments made me laugh out loud because they were quite surprising!  These kind words, in short order, will soon fade to the background.  The realization of finally receiving the credentials carries with it a huge responsibility.  As far as I am concerned, the work for bringing people into the Kingdom of God now is all the more important, and it is to be taken seriously.

Luke 19:10 NLT

For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.

And for this reason, during the ceremony, our guest speaker, Dr. Ed Mangham, gave a message to the Consecrants/Ordinands about the necessary areas of focus as we move forward in our respective ministries.  He shared with us seven godly action words beginning with “H” that must drive our character as essential life attributes.  I will list them here:

To be helpful, be holy, be honest, be honorable, be hopeful, be hospitable, and to be humble. [1]  

All of these are absolutely important characteristics that would be most apparent as we live wholeheartedly in the Spirit.  These actions are products of the various fruits of the Spirit:

Galatians 5:22-23 NLT

²² But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

To be effective in our roles, we must be Spirit-filled (Ephesians 5:18).  This, of course, also means you!

Now, hopefully you can see is that Dr. Mangham was referring to these acts of the Spirit as a matter of using godly wisdom.  After the event, I looked at his list a little more closely and noted that there is a lot to unpack here.  Some of the “H” words on the list have some overlap, and that’s fine in that there are some areas where believers may be gifted in some ways and less in others, but I concluded that there are some absolutes here that apply to all of us.

As a result, I’ve come up with my list of four “H” words of character attributes with one important addition that will guide us in living our lives for Jesus and help us to be effective witnesses and disciples for Jesus.

Let’s go over these one at a time:

1. Be humble.

All servants of Jesus Christ are to live with humility.  

Proverbs 22:4 NLT

True humility and fear of the Lord

    lead to riches, honor, and long life.

Colossians 3:12 NLT

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.

Ephesians 4:1-2 NLT

¹ Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. ² Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.

Notice how humility covers several of the fruits of the Spirit.  This is a sensible statement in that the opposite of humility is the wrong kind of fruit—pridefulness.

Proverbs 11:2 NLT

Pride leads to disgrace,

    but with humility comes wisdom.

It should go without saying, but we are never to boast or act in a manner that we are better than anyone else.  

Philippians 2:3-4 NLT

³ Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. ⁴ Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

A humble person is, in many ways, more caring, thoughtful and considerate with others.  It requires being a better listener within your communication with others, especially in those one-on-one meetings.  Humility is a requirement for the effective disciple.

James 3:13 NLT

If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom.

A humble person also readily acknowledges need of the presence of Jesus and His healing power.

James 5:16 ESV

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

Next, here is my addition to our list of four attributes:

2. Be hungry (and stay hungry for God’s Word).

I’ve personally gotten more into an all-day breakfast meal.  Steak tips with sunny-side up eggs and wheat toast (and it doesn’t even need to include bacon!).  It makes me hungry to think about it!  With that said, all of our enthusiasm that we may have for a delicious meal also needs to apply to our hunger for daily readingsof God’s Word.

Psalm 34:8 NLT

Taste and see that the Lord is good.

    Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!

Psalm 119:103 ESV

How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

Why is this so important?  It’s important because those of us who have put the time in to study God’s Word would be remiss if we determine that we no longer need to study or learn more from Scripture.  A Spirit-filled relationship with Jesus is one that desiresto know more about our Lord and does NOT desire complacency.  There must be spiritual growth—and having a hunger for God’s Word facilitates the sanctification of every believer.

1 Corinthians 3:2-3 ESV

² I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, ³ for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?

Hebrews 5:12-14 NLT

¹² You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. ¹³ For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. ¹⁴ Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.

Ouch(!) to those who should be further along than they are in their faith.  The food analogies here are aptly descriptive, but Paul is making a point here about the need for believers in Jesus to grow up spiritually.

Our hunger for God’s Word should be fueled by our passion to live for Jesus.  For those who don’t seek Him, He remains largely unknown, and that should never be the case.  This goes back to our first point on humility.  Living in a human manner is not the way to live for Jesus.

Our hunger for the Word of God also requires action—our obedience—to make our faith relevant.

James 1:22 NLT

But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.

Take the time to do an objective analysis of your desire for God’s Word.  If it requires you to repent and seek the Lord for forgiveness, that’s growth in Christ. 

3.  Be helpful.  Serve others without looking for something in return.

Can we eliminate the use of the phrase quid pro quo amongst other believers?  Our level of service should not be hampered or limited because of our latent fleshly desires.  Everything that we do should be out of love for one another—and that’s it.  Our hospitality, our generosity, and our unselfishness should always be foundationally sincere.  If God has gifted you with abilities that can be helpful to others, then by all means offer to help others in need.  Being helpful begins with self-determination to reach out to others who need the help without a prompt.

Now, for those who need the help but don’t accept it, you need to understand that to refuse help may be an issue that teeters on the brink of pridefulness.  Perhaps you feel that accepting help puts you “in debt” to the other person.  Remember, we are not to operate as the world operates.  We are to consider the blessings of being in the midst of believers in the body of Christ that are operating with grace and mercy.  We’re back to the importance of being humble.  In this, you can readily acknowledge the need for help and allow for acceptance with gratitude with the realization that there are indeed no strings attached.

To be helpful is to be Spirit-filled, and we are to rally around those who need it.

Acts 2:44-45 NLT

⁴⁴ And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. ⁴⁵ They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need.

James 2:21-26 NLT

²¹ Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? ²² You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. ²³ And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God. ²⁴ So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.

²⁵ Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road. ²⁶ Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.

Being helpful is a reminder of the role that the Holy Spirit provides to every believer.

John 14:26 ESV

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

As you can see, being helpful is to follow the character traits of the Holy Spirit everywhere you go—to be a reflection of the light of Jesus.

4.  Be holy.  Because He is holy.

1 Peter 1:15-16 NLT

¹⁵ But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. ¹⁶ For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

Being holy covers the points of being honest and honorable.  It’s more than just doing the right thing.  It is living a lifestyle that honors the Lord in words and actions.

2 Corinthians 7:1 NLT

Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

Hebrews 12:14-15 NLT

¹⁴ 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. ¹⁵ Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.

Romans 12:1-2 ESV

¹ I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. ² Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Of the four attributes that we are to follow, holiness involves inner intent to remain obedient to God’s Word, and outward behavior that honors Jesus throughout the day.  We can be holy because of our faith in Jesus that makes us righteous before Him.

Colossians 1:19-22 NLT

¹⁹ For God in all his fullness

    was pleased to live in Christ,

²⁰ and through him God reconciled

    everything to himself.

He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth

    by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.

²¹ This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. ²² Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.

We are to live before Christ in holiness because we serve a holy God.  The call for me and all of the others that have taken the vows of Consecration and Ordination to live in purpose for Jesus and represent His name for His glory:

Be humble.

Be hungry for the Word of God.

Be helpful.

Be holy.

There is much to do, and I sincerely thank you for being an important part of our journey together.

Copyright © 2026 Melvin Gaines.

1 Mangham, E. (2026, September). Seven “h” words. Ontario OH; Consecration and Ordination Ceremony, Central District of the Christian and Missionary Alliance.