The first principle we studied emphasised that the primary responsibility of every Christian is to “STUDY GOD”, to find out from the Scriptures what God is like and, on the basis of what we learn, to get TO KNOW HIM personally.
In the five principles which followed , we studied several of God’s many attributes, qualities or characteristics and we learned that God is sovereign, that He is wise, that He is faithful and that He is good and loving. This present principle takes us a step further and looks at, examines, and studies the wonderful truth of GOD’S HOLINESS.
God is Holy
God is called THE HOLY ONE fifty five times in the Bible, and on two occasions (Isaiah 6:3, Revelation 4:8) heavenly creatures emphasize His holiness by the three-fold repetition of, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts…. Lord God Almighty”. In the Bible, God the Father is called holy (John 17:11), God the Son is called holy (Hebrews 7:26) and the Spirit of God is called the Holy Spirit throughout Scripture.
But God’s holiness is not, strictly speaking, one of His attributes. It is more than that. His holiness embraces and governs all His attributes. His love is holy love; His wisdom is holy wisdom, His faithfulness is holy faithfulness and His sovereignty is holy sovereignty. Someone has describes God’s holiness as “the pure white light formed out of the blending of the whole spectrum of God’s attributes”.
What is God’s Holiness?
The Bible applies the word “holiness” to God in two ways;
HE IS SEPARATE. The basic meaning of the word “holy” as used in the Bible is to be separate. And so God is separate , superior and above all that He has created. He is “the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, Whose Name is Holy” (Isaiah 57;15a)
HE IS PURE AND SINLESS, separate and set apart totally from sin and from all that is unclean. “O Lord my God, my Holy One…You are of purer eyes than to behold evil” (Hab. 1:12.13)
What is our response to God’s holiness?
- WE ARE TO BE HOLY. God’s will for every believer is that we should live holy lives (1 Thess:4:3, 5:22, 23; 2 Tim 2;21). 1 Peter 1;16 makes a CLEAR STATEMENT about our God: “He Who called you is holy…it is written ‘I (God) am holy’.” This verse also gives a CLEAR COMMAND to us; “You also be holy in all your conduct…. it is written ‘be holy.’ God specifically says to us “Be holy for I am holy.” We are to be holy because He is holy. We can never be holy in the sense that God is holy; but we are to make His holiness our aim and goal. The Lord Jesus Christ is the express image of God (Hebrews 1:3, John 14:9). In 1 Peter 2:21,22 we read that He, the Son of God, displayed God’s Holiness , that He is our example and that we should follow His steps. The Bible teaches us, over and over again, that our goal should be to “imitate” the Lord Jesus and be like Him (John 13:15, Phil 2:5, Romans 8:29), and that the Holy Spirit will help us become, step by step, more holy and more like Him ( 2 Cor 3:18).
- WE ARE TO PRAISE HIM AND WORSHIP HIM FOR HIS HOLINESS. God wants us to worship Him and is “seeking” for those who will do so (John 4:23). But how do we worship God? The Lord Jesus tells us that we should “worship the Father in spirit and truth” (John 4; 23, 24). Spiritual worship is based upon truth. When we learn a truth about God from His Word, we should praise Him and worship Him for THAT TRUTH. We could do this in our Quiet Time, basing our short time of worship on the truth which God has shown us that day in His Word, and worship like the Psalmist in Psalm 99, as he worships the Lord on the basis of His holiness. “Exalt the Lord our God and worship at His footstool and His holy Hill for THE LORD OUR GOD IS HOLY” (verses 5, 9) May God help us to “WORSHIP THE LORD IN THE BEAUTY OF HOLINESS” (1 Chron. 16:29,Psalm 29:2, Psalm 96:9)
When we understand God’s holiness we kneel in WORSHIP and we WALK in the light as He is in the light (1 John 1:7)
