“The idea that holiness is received, not achieved, shouldn’t come as a shock. Every one of us does the same thing with ordinary objects. Take a toothbrush, for example. It’s an ordinary object that has dozens of potential uses. Yet once you put it in your mouth, you’re protective of anyone else using it for anything else. Or take an ordinary bolt of white linen fabric, fashion it into a garment, drape it on a bride, and it becomes unthinkable to wear it on a morning jog. Why? Because when ordinary objects are sanctified for special service, they become “out of bounds”—or to use biblical terminology, “holy.” Just to ensure we’re on the same page before moving on, let me restate this as clearly as I can: You are holy not because of your performance but because of God’s proclamation. You don’t become holy though religious rites. You don’t develop holiness through sheer discipline. You become holy the millisecond God places his hand on you and says “Mine.”