From DEATH to LIFE

“Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify Thy name? For Thou only art holy" (Rev. 15:4). When talking or writing about God, and his relationship to man, his holiness must always be first in the speaker or writer's mind. Moses declares holiness as the excellency of the divine nature; our God is "glorious in holiness" (Exodus 15:11). This is behind the prophet Habakkuk's statement, "Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look upon iniquity," (Habakkuk 1:13). This is not to suggest that God's holiness is superior to his other attributes. Such a statement would not only be in error, but destroys the reality of his unitary nature. Instead, the intended truth is to highlight the fact that this particular attribute is "The glory of all the rest: as it is the glory of the Godhead". (Pink 1975) Holiness is a “transcendental attribute” that “runs through the rest, and cast luster upon then. It is an attribute of attributes”. (Pink 1975) No other attribute sets God apart from all else more than his holiness. However, though it accentuates them, we must never separated it or portray it as working apart from God‘s other attributes. Without holiness, God would still be almighty, all wise, all knowing, and sovereign over all creation. But how would such a being respond to his creatures? I’m reminded of the characterization of the mystical Greek god Zeus, who always acted impulsively to achieve his purposes. He had little or no consideration for the needs of those in the world. The people were mere puppets in his hands, with no distinctions made between good or evil, right or wrong! That’s the picture of a god without holiness! Holiness: The chief Attribute of God? On this attribute’s importance, Arthur Pink provides this quote from the great seventh century Puritan, Stephen Charnock, “As sincerity is the luster of every grace in a Christian, so is purity the splendor of every attribute in the Godhead. His justice is a holy justice, his wisdom a holy wisdom, his arm of power a “holy power” (Psalms 98:1), his truth or promises are “holy promise” (Psalms 105:42), and most important of all, his name is, “holy” (1 Chronicles 16:10, 35; Psalms 99:3; 106:47). (Pink 1975) God’s holiness and its significance are what sets him apart from his creatures, he is “holy, holy, holy” (Isaiah 6:3). Unlike the gods conjured up by men, he is goodness, purity and perfection in its purest form; so much so that out of all the names given to him in Scripture, holiness trumps them all. He is the “Holy one of Israel”, the “Holy one (2 Kings 19:22; Job 6:10; Psalms 16:10; 22:3; 71:22; 89:18; Isaiah 1:4; 5:19), and his name is “holy” (1 Chronicles 16:10, 35; Psalms 99:3; 106:47). Not only does holiness characterize his person, it also characterizes objects, buildings and people set apart unto him; they are all regarded as “holy things” (Exodus 29:29; 30:25; Leviticus 16:4; 27:28, 32), his people are a holy nation, a holy people and a royal priesthood (Leviticus 11:44; 20:7; Deuteronomy 7:6; 14:2; I Peter 1:15,16; 2:5:9). These are but a few examples of Scripture treatment of God’s holiness. There are many more just as specific and just as direct, with the specific intent of setting before us this specific attribute of God (Isaiah 10:17; 41:14; 43:3, 14, 16, 20; Jeremiah 51:5; Ezekiel 39:7; Daniel 4:24; Hosea 11:9; Habakkuk 1:12; 3:3). Not only does God’s holiness highlights his perfect purity in all his actions, it is “the very antithesis of all moral blemish or defilement”. (Pink 1975) There is no hint or possibility of evil ever being part of His Character. As the Apostle John declares, he “is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (I John 1:5). Therefore, of necessity he must hate and punish all sin, regardless of its form or intent (Proverbs 3:32; 15:26; Nahum 1:2). The Righteous Demands of Holiness We see the seriousness of God’s hatred for sin in Adam and Eve’s banishment from their perfect habitation; not for committing many sins, but for committing one sin! This is not the only incident where God’s holiness and hatred of sin is highlighted. For example, for one sin, Moses lost the opportunity to enter Canaan; Elisha’s servant was smitten with leprosy and Ananias and his wife Sapphira was struck dead for lying to the Holy Spirit! (Pink 1975) And who can forget poor Uzzah, who with the sincerest of intent and motivation dared touch God’s holy ark, an act paid for with his life. These illustrations of God’s holiness and intolerance of sin are different from the picture portrayed by the unsaved and many Christians today. To them, God is tolerant, understanding of our weaknesses and simply overlooks sin. However, many forget that though all these are true of him, he is above all holy and, “a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:28, 29). No one can approach or view him in their defiled and corrupt state because he is unlike fallen humanity, in character and disposition (Psalms 50:21)!