The LORD Our God Is Holy

Psalm 99:9 declares “…the LORD our God is holy!” What is the holiness of God? This is a multifaceted subject that would require much more time and space than this blog post can provide. But the holiness of God is more than simply an attribute, though it is not incorrect to call it such. However, God’s holiness is more than an attribute. It is his very essence, and it is from this divine essence that all of his attributes flow. God is self-existent, so he did not derive his holiness from anyone or anything. He is infinitely and intrinsically holy. All of God’s other attributes have their origin in, and flow from, his holiness. Since His actions flow out of His being, there are no contradictions among any of His attributes. All of His acts are consistent with all of His attributes. Holiness is the most fundamental aspect of God’s being. God’s holiness is what sets him so radically apart from everything else. Exodus 15:11 “Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?” These questions are utterly rhetorical! The answer is clear: No one!! God cannot be properly understood if he is not absolutely separated from anything that is impure. Until we begin to grasp the holiness of God, we will never begin to know who God is. It is vital knowledge to know who God is. God is not indifferent to how we regard him. God is not the cosmic softie so much of the church today has painted him to be. He is not an indulgent grandfatherly figure who turns a blind eye to human sin. Much of today’s church worships an idol: a “god” made in the image of man, not the holy God of sacred Scripture. The holiness of God is both fascinating and fearful. It is fascinating because it is what sets God apart. It is fearful because it awakens in us the reality and gravity of our sin. R. C. Sproul (1939-2017) defined sin as “cosmic treason” against the infinitely holy Creator. Every sin, no matter how seemingly insignificant, is an act of rebellion against the sovereign God who reigns and rules over us. Sin is much more than a “slip up,” a “bad choice,” or an “indiscretion.” It is outright rebellion against our Creator. Man, being finite, cannot truly understand the infinite holiness of God. God’s holiness is his “otherness.” It is what makes God, God. Man, being made in the image of God, was, in his original state, upright in holiness, righteousness, and knowledge. Adam’s holiness was derived from God. Adam knew the will of God perfectly, so far as it was revealed to him. Before the fall, Adam’s holiness was as natural to him as unholiness is now natural to us. God, by virtue of his holy nature, must abhor sin. He cannot look at sin. Psalm 5:4 “For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you.” God’s holiness means that he is separated from sin and devoted to seeking his own honor. God’s holiness requires God’s justice. God’s love of holiness cannot be without a hatred of everything that is contrary to it. The Puritan Stephen Charnock (1628-1680) wrote, “Divine holiness is the root of divine justice, and divine justice is the triumph of divine holiness.” Psalm 99 is a psalm about the holiness of God. God’s holiness divides the psalm into three parts (vv 1-3, 4-5, 6-9). Each part ends with a declaration of God’s holiness. Verse 1 sets the tone for the psalm.“The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!” This verse is declaring that God is the sovereign King of all creation. God’s holiness and his sovereignty are inseparably linked. Verse 1 declares, “let the peoples tremble!” Holy fear is the proper response to a holy God. There is little to no fear of God in much of the church today. And why is that? His holiness has been eclipsed. When we forget about the holiness of God, it doesn’t take long to lose our fear of the Lord. Confronting the holiness of God is very threatening and frightening to us because we are not holy. When Isaiah was given his vision of the Lord, high and lifted up, in Isaiah 6, he didn’t remark how amazing and awesome the experience was.  He responded, “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” (Isa. 6:5). It was the most frightening moment of Isaiah’s life, and one he undoubtedly never forgot. Psalm 99 clearly tells us the proper response to encountering God’s holiness is worship. V 3 “Let them praise your great and awesome name! Holy is he!” V 5 “Exalt the LORD our God; worship at his footstool! Holy is he!” V 9 “Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the LORD our God is holy!” Psalm 99 ends by proclaiming, “… the LORD our God is holy!” If we know God, we must worship him. God is holy and awesome, and he is to be worshiped and praised by his people for who he is. Psalm 99 also reminds us that we must be holy. Holiness is not an option for a Christian. 1 Peter 1:15 “as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.” Being made in the image of God, it is incumbent upon man to be holy. Yet because of the ramifications of indwelling sin, man can no more be holy on his own striving that he can grow wings and fly. God created man holy and upright. God’s holiness provides the pattern for his people to imitate; Adam freely chose not to imitate it. Adam’s misguided desire for autonomy was the culprit. His desire for autonomy was greater than his love for God. Thankfully, through the person and work of Jesus Christ, we can be reconciled to God (Rom. 5:1). Man is able to now pursue holiness. The reconciled believer should strive for and pursue holiness of life. The Christian will face great battles and great temptations in a world of godlessness. We live in an environment polluted with idolatry, sensuality, wantonness, and lust, but we must fight this battle diligently. It is through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, the “power at work within us” (Eph. 3:20), that this battle must be fought. It is through this divine power, and obedience to the word of God, that the believer is conformed more and more to the image of Christ. God cannot be the Holy One and remain indifferent to sin. Neither can the disciple of Jesus remain indifferent to sin. John Owen (1616-1683) wrote, “He that hath slight thoughts of sin had never great thoughts of God.” The unbelieving mind does not really believe in the holiness of God. The unbeliever, if he even believes in “god,” cannot have a proper view of who the True Living God is, and the very last thing his “god” would be is holy. But this slanted, watered down view of God has sadly infiltrated much of the professed Christian church today. As the holiness of God has been pushed to the side, ignored, or totally dismissed, much of the professed church has domesticated God. He has been tamed and remade into the image of man. He has been reduced to a cosmic grandfather who loves us, so he would never judge us. Once the holiness of God has been lost, it does not take long for the fear of the Lord to follow suit. Then the church becomes more and more conformed to the world. The word “holy” means “set apart.” The church is called to be set apart from the world. The church is supposed to model holiness to an unholy world. Many, if not all, of the problems in the modern day church can be traced back to this one fatal flaw: the church has lost sight of the holiness of God. Without a central focus on the holiness of God, man cannot have a correct view of who God is. J.I. Packer wrote in his classic book Knowing God: “This is knowledge which Christians today largely lack: and that is one reason why our faith is so feeble and our worship so flabby. We are modern people, and modern people, though they cherish great thoughts of themselves, have as a rule small thoughts of God.” In “A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections,” Jonathan Edwards rightly stated, “A true love for God must begin with a delight in his holiness.” May that delight in God’s holiness return to the church!