Exodus 3:5-6
“Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6Then he said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. “At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.”
Reflecting God’s holiness means the putting aside of self and selfishness, for the redemption of others.
Why Should We Be Concerned about Holiness?
Isaiah 6:1-5 “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. 2Above 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. 3And they were calling to one another: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory. 4At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
5″Woe to me! I cried. I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.
1. Holiness characterizes God. I Peter 1:16 for it is written: Be holy, because I am holy.
2. Holiness is single-minded devotion to God.
Hebrews 12:14 “Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.”
What Is Our Response to Godâs Holiness?
1. A zeal for God. Matthew 6:24
“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”
2. A separation from the world. Matthew 5:48
“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
3. A humble attempt to imitate Godâs holiness.
How Then Should We Reflect God’s Holiness?
I Corinthians 1:30
“It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God-that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.”
1. An unconditional hatred of sin. Proverbs 6:16-19
“There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers.”
2. An unconditional love for His people. I John 3:1a ãHow great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God…
3. God’s holiness is reflected in unconditional sacrifice for the welfare of others. John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Sanctification is an act but holiness is a state. We may increase in holiness day by day, and in all the graces of the Spirit. If you do not grow in holiness you will decline in holiness.
-H. Orton Wiley
