Holiness…I believe this is where my Lord wants me to focus my time with Him during 2010. Of course, I want to draw nearer to Him in every way, but lately He has surrounded me passages, devotions, and Bible study regarding His holiness. I know the signs all too well. When the Lord is trying to draw my attention to something it almost always comes to me in a variety of readings and experiences.
We don’t hear as much about holiness these days as perhaps we should. In Leviticus 11:44a, God commands Israel, “For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy.” And in 1Peter 1:15-16, Peter tells us that we can no longer be conformed to the former lusts which marked our pre-conversion lifestyles, “but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior, because it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”
Jehovah Mekadesh is a beautiful name of God that means The Lord Who Sanctifies You. The name is often overlooked because it is not translated in the English Bible in this form. Yet there is no other name for God that more adequately expresses His nature and the requirements He places on His people. It is first found in Leviticus 20:8, “You shall keep My statues, and practice them; I am the LORD [Jehovah Mekadesh] who sanctifies you.” God inspired Moses to write Leviticus. It is often called The Book of Life. It is indeed about the walk and worship of the redeemed people. In The Names of God, Ken Hemphill writes, “At this point in the life of the nation, Israel was a redeemed people. They had been taken from Egyptian captivity and were being prepared to inhabit the Promised Land. What was Israel to be like in their relationship with God? How would they maintain their distinctive qualities as a people related to God when they settled in a land inhabited by pagan nations who did not know God? Sound familiar???? This is as relevant today as it was during the time Moses lived.
Sanctified means to be set apart. Like Israel, we have been set apart as a holy people. Sanctification suggests that we should be like God in our purity and be set apart unto Him for service. God by His very nature is holy. God’s holiness sets Him apart from all other gods. He alone is God. God’s essential attribute is His holiness. Most often we would say that love is God’s primary attribute. This is a strong argument particularly based on 1 John 4:16, “And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” And John 3:16 furthers the compelling argument for God’s love as it declares it was God’s great love that prompted Him to send His only begotten Son for our redemption. Yet, if you follow John’s argument, you will find that the redeeming love of God was to make us fit for His holy presence. God, out of His love, redeemed us so that we could have a relationship with Him.
It is not insignificant that God’s Spirit is referred to as the Holy Spirit. That is not simply a title for the third person of the Trinity; it is a clear recognition that God is a holy God—and when He expresses Himself as Spirit, He is a holy Spirit. Like David I cry out to my Lord, “Do not cast me away from Thy presence, / And do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me.” (Psalm 51:11) To spend one minute without the Holy Spirit by my side is not a thought I relish.
An old Scottish theologian, Nathan Stone, wrote concerning holiness:
“It is the balance…of all the attributes of Deity.
Power without holiness would degenerate into cruelty.
Omniscience without holiness would become craft.
Justice without holiness would degenerate into revenge.
Goodness without holiness would be passionate and intemperate fondness,
doing mischief rather than accomplishing good.
Love without holiness would become little more than anemic sentimentality; and
Freedom without holiness, mere license.
It is the holiness of God that constitutes the perfection of all His attributes.”
The final book of the Bible tells us that the four living creatures will spend eternity praising God. Their song will be, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD God Almighty.” I want to be holy like Him. I challenge you to PURSUE HOLINESS with me!
We don’t hear as much about holiness these days as perhaps we should. In Leviticus 11:44a, God commands Israel, “For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy.” And in 1Peter 1:15-16, Peter tells us that we can no longer be conformed to the former lusts which marked our pre-conversion lifestyles, “but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior, because it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”
Jehovah Mekadesh is a beautiful name of God that means The Lord Who Sanctifies You. The name is often overlooked because it is not translated in the English Bible in this form. Yet there is no other name for God that more adequately expresses His nature and the requirements He places on His people. It is first found in Leviticus 20:8, “You shall keep My statues, and practice them; I am the LORD [Jehovah Mekadesh] who sanctifies you.” God inspired Moses to write Leviticus. It is often called The Book of Life. It is indeed about the walk and worship of the redeemed people. In The Names of God, Ken Hemphill writes, “At this point in the life of the nation, Israel was a redeemed people. They had been taken from Egyptian captivity and were being prepared to inhabit the Promised Land. What was Israel to be like in their relationship with God? How would they maintain their distinctive qualities as a people related to God when they settled in a land inhabited by pagan nations who did not know God? Sound familiar???? This is as relevant today as it was during the time Moses lived.
Sanctified means to be set apart. Like Israel, we have been set apart as a holy people. Sanctification suggests that we should be like God in our purity and be set apart unto Him for service. God by His very nature is holy. God’s holiness sets Him apart from all other gods. He alone is God. God’s essential attribute is His holiness. Most often we would say that love is God’s primary attribute. This is a strong argument particularly based on 1 John 4:16, “And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” And John 3:16 furthers the compelling argument for God’s love as it declares it was God’s great love that prompted Him to send His only begotten Son for our redemption. Yet, if you follow John’s argument, you will find that the redeeming love of God was to make us fit for His holy presence. God, out of His love, redeemed us so that we could have a relationship with Him.
It is not insignificant that God’s Spirit is referred to as the Holy Spirit. That is not simply a title for the third person of the Trinity; it is a clear recognition that God is a holy God—and when He expresses Himself as Spirit, He is a holy Spirit. Like David I cry out to my Lord, “Do not cast me away from Thy presence, / And do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me.” (Psalm 51:11) To spend one minute without the Holy Spirit by my side is not a thought I relish.
An old Scottish theologian, Nathan Stone, wrote concerning holiness:
“It is the balance…of all the attributes of Deity.
Power without holiness would degenerate into cruelty.
Omniscience without holiness would become craft.
Justice without holiness would degenerate into revenge.
Goodness without holiness would be passionate and intemperate fondness,
doing mischief rather than accomplishing good.
Love without holiness would become little more than anemic sentimentality; and
Freedom without holiness, mere license.
It is the holiness of God that constitutes the perfection of all His attributes.”
The final book of the Bible tells us that the four living creatures will spend eternity praising God. Their song will be, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD God Almighty.” I want to be holy like Him. I challenge you to PURSUE HOLINESS with me!
(Debbie lives in Dacula with her best friend and husband of 17 years, Sonny, and the love of their life, Bandit!)
Oh Debbie...I hear him saying something in the same family. :) Can not wait for our time together to share more in person. ;)
ReplyDeletesteph.
Hi Debbie,
ReplyDeleteI came over from Stephanie's blog. This is an awesome post. I am writing a Bible study currently in which a week of the study is focused on holiness. I love the quote by Nathan Stone. Would you share the reference for that please? I would love to incorporate it into the Bible study.
Thanks so much.
Leah
Wow. I also came over from Stephanie's and plan to follow your blog. For quite some time God has been showing me this same thing. I can't wait to check out your older posts. Thanks so much.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful post. Reminds me of a statement made by a friend in Bible study: "Holy is holier than we think it is."
ReplyDelete