When Was the Last Time you Thought About the Holiness of God

and reflected on how it should affect the way you look at life? Mary in her song of praise in Luke 1:49 refers to God as being holy. Holiness is at the very centre of the nature of God. Yet it is something that we seem to take so much for granted today. Many are willing to acknowledge the love and compassion of God. It is, however, no longer politically correct to focus on his holiness because it has the potential to make us feel uncomfortable.

The problem with this perspective is that refusing to think about it does not negate the reality of this central characteristic of God. We are to stand in awe of the holiness of God. It is to have a powerful effect upon how we live our lives.

During their years of wandering in the wilderness, Moses and Aaron were commanded by the Lord to tell the Israelites that they "must be holy because I am holy" (Lev 11:45). God gave them no room for compromise in this regard. This truth is also taught in the New Testament by the Apostle Peter. In his first letter he tells his readers "you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy" (1 Peter 1:15).

The Bible paints a picture of how people in biblical times experienced and reacted to God's holiness. Moses, when confronted by God from the burning bush was told to "Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground" (Exodus 3:5). When the commander of the Lord's army (the pre-incarnate Christ) approached Joshua before the battle for Jericho, the leader of the Israelites' reaction was to "fall with his face to the ground in reverence" and ask "What do you want your servant to do?" (Joshua 5:14).

Scripture teaches that God's holiness, reflected in the brilliance of his being, was something that was to be feared. Moses, at one point, asked God to show him his glorious presence. The Lord responded by indicating that "...you may not look directly at my face, for no one may see me and live" but I will "let you see me from behind. But my face will not be seen." (Ex. 33:20,23). God lives in and radiates incredible holiness and glory.

God's holiness is also the central theme to the angelic hosts. We experience a glimpse of this in the book of Revelation as the angels are involved in heavenly worship. The angelic beings who are serving before the Father are presented as constantly saying "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty --- the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come" (Rev. 4:8).

Why do we feel so uncomfortable regarding God's holiness? It is because holiness is incompatible with sin. This means that God's holiness ultimately demands judgment.

When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden they were expelled from the garden and were cursed by God for their disobedience (Gen 3:16-19). When sin became so great in the time of Noah, God determined to destroy all life by a great flood except for those in the ark. One day in the future, God's judgment will fall upon all of unregenerate humanity during the time of the Great Tribulation. An angel describes God in relation to this Divine wrath as being "just...because you have sent these judgment...your judgments are true and just" (Rev. 16:5,7).

When one finally comes to grips with God's holiness we are confronted with the true essence of his divine nature. The result is a revolutionized understanding of God and how we must relate to him if we are to become more conformed to his holiness.

Copyright. Bruce January 2006

Note: All quotes taken from the New Living Translation Second Edition.