H. O. L. Y.
The mere mention of the word conjures up pictures in peoples’ minds.
MONKS IN ROBES.
STAINED GLASS WINDOWS.
OUT-OF-STYLE DRESS
BIZARRE BEHAVIOR
WILD & CRAZY WORSHIP GATHERINGS
PIOUS, HOLIER-THAN-THOU ATTITUDES
There are more, I am sure, but you get the point. Trying to pin down holiness in the minds of most people, even people who claim to follow Christ, is like trying to pin the tail on the donkey. Stab here. Stab there. Ouch! Take another stab.
Describing God’s holiness becomes an interesting study in man’s inability to define the Divine. There is no doubt in my mind that if there is one attribute of God that many misunderstand, and therefore, fail to grasp its significance, it is God’s holiness. You see, if we truly understood the holiness of God, it would radically change the way we live, move, breathe, and do. Plain and simple: our lives would be so permanently affected that we would never be the same again.
As I continue my sermon series on God: Unmasked, (which is stoking the fire for God in me big time), I am going to talk about God is Holy this Sunday. I think it would awesome to have an Isaiah 6 moment as we come face-to-face with a holy God. I also plan to show the video from this post. I would like to ask you to pray for that specifically this Sunday, that we would be so overwhelmed with the holiness of God that we would fall Face Down (as Matt Redman’s song says). Thanks ahead of time for your prayers. How can I pray for you this weekend? Feel free to request away!
Holiness. One of the most amazing qualities of our God and King. This is one of the reasons why God can never tolerate sin. One of the reasons why hell exists. His holiness despises sin, it can’t bear it.
Thank God for Jesus, who took our sins and nailed them to the cross, so that through Him we may also be Holy.
Praying for a holy-filled weekend. 🙂
You are absolutely right Moe. What a difference it would make in us if we really grasped that! Thanks for your prayers Moe. Much appreciated.
Certainly am praying that way for you all this weekend. Praying something powerful happens!
Pray for us as I start into 2nd Samuel 11 and we face our sinfulness head on. It is about understanding that if a man after God’s own heart can have an affair and murder someone then we too can do some pretty horrendous things so instead of pointing fingers we should confess and repent before God.
Will also be praying for you Jim. Thanks.
I’ll be praying for you and the service. Their is nothing greater then Gods holiness. As we seek His face he will be faithful in shining his life and power into our lives.
Thanks for your prayers Dan. You are right about our reaction to God’s holiness.
…never be the same again.
Praying for that this weekend, Bill.
Thanks Dustin. …never be the same for sure.
Hi Bill,
The Matt Redman song is beautiful. I love his use of nature in the music video to show us how great and amazing and magnificant our God is. What an awesome creation!!
At the first we did not sin either. But we are different from his other creation. We are able to be tempted and we are able to sin.
Creation is waiting. Creation is made subject to man’s sin. Until the manifestation of the Sons of God.
In creation we see how good God is. His wisdom, his beauty, his graciousness, his righteousness.
How can we not bow our faces down and surrender to Him? How can we not give him control of our sinful lives? Can we be all we were meant to be without Him? NO.
It is clear and apparent to all who live on the earht that without God we are sinful, depraved, and evil throughout.
We must walk with God and that walk includes making righteous and moral decisions in our daily lives in the power of God’s Holy Spirit. This is a tremendous wittness to those around us who do not possess this power.
It is a witness to those around us when we allow God’s righteousness to control us. Thanks Linda.
Hi Bill,
I would so appreciate your prayers for me and my daughter. We have some ongoing issue that has kept us apart by her instructions to me. We are supposed to get together with the grandkids on Saturday. I have not heard back from her to confirm that we are still doing this.
I pray for you daily Linda and will be glad to pray for you and your daughter and a solution to the issues that separate you. Thanks for your prayers for me.
Hi Bill,
My daughter and I did get together with the 2 kids on Saturday. We spent a few hours together at the beach and had a good day.
Thank you for your prayers.
Glad to hear it Linda. Hope it continues to grow. Thanks for keeping me updated.
Holiness…something definitely misunderstood. It’s something that I’m continuing to grasp and learn more and more each day.
Will be praying for you and your church community and for God to stir hearts.
O..this is one of my favorite redman songs.
It will be something you will keep learning on a daily basis Jon. Excited to see you with that attitude. Glad you like that song. 🙂 One of my favorites also.
Hey everyone! Thanks for being patient for my approval and comments. I had lunch about 2 hours away with my best male friend from college. Pizza was good.
I’ll be praying for you and the church community, Bill. I’d like you to pray to God to heal me of the severe headache I have now and give me strength.
I love the song. Thanks for sharing.
Prayer said Mercy. Thanks for praying for us.
Bill, definitely will pray (and love that song). I only ask the same for us this direction. 🙂 Be blessed.
You have my prayer Jason. Thanks for praying for us.
As always praying for you Bill for another inspired message. Perhaps some day we can meet.
Thanks Larry. Hope your tests went well. Please keep me posted.
God being “holy” primarily means- no one is like the Lord. God is not quanitatively larger than man…He is qualitatively “different”. It is in this.. that we find all of His attributes.
BTW….looks like the Pirates are for real.
Good words Ike. I also believe it is the one attribute that “contains” them all.
Hope so. time will tell. But I am going to enjoy it while it lasts. 🙂