What A Holy God

Isaiah 6:1-3---In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory." (NIV)
                                  I Peter 1:16---for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." (NIV)

 I've often wondered how we would respond or react if we could get a glimpse of the Lord like  Isaiah did. When we realize just how holy He is, and how unholy we are, would we fall on our  face and cry out to the Lord like Isaiah, or would we turn away from the Lord in disdain? Would  we volunteer for the mission God had for us, or would we walk away with indifference in our  heart?

 So many people have no reverence or fear of the Lord. They don't regard Him as holy, or in any  case, you sure don't see any evidence that they do by the way that they live their lives. Many  don't feel that they need a relationship with God. They don't particularly worry about the  afterlife because they think that they are pretty good people. Some have been mislead by the  erroneous concept that their good deeds are going to be weighed against their bad deeds, and if  the good outweighs the bad, then they will be able to go to heaven. They compare themselves to  others, and say "Hey, I'm not a rapist or a killer or anything, so I'm a pretty good person. I'm a  much nicer and better person than a lot of people I've seen, so I think I'll be okay. I'll take my  chances when it comes to what's after this life, because God knows that I'm not nearly as bad as  others."

 They forget that Jesus said that the man who looks at a woman with lust is the same as an  adulterer, and that the one who hates his brother is the same as a murderer. They have no  understanding of how holy God is. They don't grasp the idea that if God is perfect in  holiness(which He is), then we can't come into His presence because of our sinful nature. The  best we could ever hope to do falls way short of the mark. In fact, God's Word states that "even  our righteousness is like filthy rags" (Isa. 64:6) when we compare it to how pure and holy God is.  We can never be good enough, or do enough good things in this lifetime to earn or work our way  into heaven. Unfortunately there are many mislead cults that strive to do just that. They think  that if they give a certain number of years of their life to witnessing or teaching or helping the  poor, etc., that they will be able to earn what God has already provided through the only means  possible: the sacrifice of His only Son--Jesus. Jesus was the only perfect man Who ever lived. He 

 is the only One Who can give us hope of an eternity in heaven because He alone lived a truly holy  life. No one else who has ever lived on this earth was without sin. Jesus alone met that mark set  by our Father in heaven. Only by Jesus taking the penalty for our sins, could we ever hope to be  reconciled with a holy God.

  Let's see some of the scripture references to how holy God is from the New Living Translation    (NLT):

• Ps. 77:13--O God, your ways are holy
• Ps. 99:3--Your name is holy!
• Ps. 99:9--for the Lord our God is holy!
• Ps. 111:9--What a holy, awe-sinpiring name he has!
• Isa. 57:15--The high and lofty one who inhabits eternity, the Holy One
• Lev. 11:44--You must be holy because I am holy
• 1 Sam. 2:2--No one is holy like the Lord!
• Isa. 40:25--"To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?" asks the Holy One
• 1 Pet. 1:15--just as God-who chose you to be his children-is holy

  There are also verses in the (NLT) which mention God's holiness:

• Ex. 15:11--Who is glorious in holiness like you
• Ps. 29:2--Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness
• Ps. 96:9--Worship the Lord in all his holy splendor
• Isa. 5:16--The holiness of God is displayed by his righteousness
• Ez. 28:25--I will reveal to the nations of the world my holiness among my people
• Heb. 12:10--we will share in his holiness

 As Christians, we are called to be holy and to live a life of holiness which sets us apart from the  world. We are referred to as a peculiar people, a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation.  (1 Pet. 2:9)We are to be a reflection of the goodness and purity of God. Here's some scriptures  from the (NIV) that testify to that fact:

• Ex. 19:6--holy nation
• Ex. 20:8--Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy
• Lev. 20:7--Consecrate yourselves and be holy
• Lev. 20:26--You are to be holy to me
• Rom. 12:1--holy and pleasing to God
• Eph. 5:3--improper for God's holy people
• 2 Thess. 1:10--to be glorified in his holy people
• 2 Tim. 1:9--saved us and called us to a holy life
• Titus 1:8--upright, holy and disciplined
• 2 Pet. 3:11--holy and godly lives
• Rom. 6:9--righteousness leading to holiness
• 2 Cor. 7:1--perfecting holiness out of reverence
• Eph. 4:24--God in true righteousness and holiness

 Let's think of that vision of Isaiah's as we consider God's holiness. Isaiah said, "I saw the Lord  seated on a high and lofty throne, and His robe filled the temple." (Isa. 6:1)(HCSB) God is high  and lifted up. He is holy and pure and true; before Him we are like nothing. Isaiah realized that  when He said in Isa. 6:5--"Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips and  live among a people of unclean lips, and because my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of  Hosts." God is holy and His thoughts and ways are much higher than ours. "For as heaven is  higher than earth, so My ways are higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts."  (Isa. 55:9)(HCSB) 

 When we come to the place in our walk with God that we truly understand in our limited  capacity(with just a glimpse of His true perfection) how holy He really is, we should have a  response similar to Isaiah's. We should get an increased and better perception of how utterly  lowly and unrighteous we are in comparison to His perfect holiness. And then we should want to  live a life that reflects those higher qualities of our Lord. We need to be careful to watch what  we see and hear and say. We should live to a higher standard, shunning the wicked things that  this world promotes, craves and seeks. We can only do that through the power of the Holy Spirit  living in and through us. Remember that we are wearing His name, so let's strive with all we  have to be holy, for ... HE IS HOLY!

 Singing His Praises,
 Joey C.