Thursday, December 5, 2024
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory. Isaiah 6:3Be holy because I am holy. 1 Peter 1:16
Finding Hope in a Holy God
Advent is the season of the year leading up to Christmas, usually beginning with the first Sunday in December . The word advent itself means “arrival” and we use this time as a reflective preparation for the celebration of the first "advent"of the Incarnation - Jesus coming to earth as a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes . The second advent we are preparing for is Jesus' expected return in the Second Coming. During this season we focus on the hope, peace, love and joy that we only have because a Holy God loved us enough to come to earth as a baby to save a broken world.
The chorus below is not a Christmas song, but it is a special song that focuses on the holiness of God.This particular song has not only moved my heart, but it has also given me a whole new vision of the holiness of God. Along with the angels we will fall face down before Him and declare Him holy - after the second advent and we are spending eternity in Heaven.
A million angels fall
Face down on the floor
All to echo, "Holy is the Lord"
My heart can't help but sing
With all of Heaven roar
Forever echo, "Holy is the Lord"
A million angels fall
Face down on the floor
All to echo, "Holy is the Lord"
My heart can't help but sing
With all of Heaven roar
Forever echo, "Holy is the Lord"
(Echo Holy by Red Rocks Worship)
No matter how many times I listen to it, it never gets old. It often brings me to tears and takes my breath away to think of that sight. A million angels falling face down before Him calling Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty. I can only imagine what that day will be like. It has made me think a lot about what I believe about God, and this has led to a deepening and growth in my relationship with Him – a Holy God who cares about me when I am so unworthy of even a thought from Him. We will all be there one day – standing before Him, roaring with all of heaven of His holiness.
Have you ever really thought about the word Holy and what is means? Holiness is one of the attributes of God, which means something about God that is true. They are His inherent qualities. They are who He is. Unless we understand Who He is, we will seek after something else. And once you do understand this about Him, you will know there is nothing else to turn to but Him. Holy means set apart. The holiness of God sets Him apart from everything else. He is sacred and pure, and holiness is His very nature. He doesn’t have to try to be holy – it is who He is.
The magnificence of a Holy God makes me painfully aware of the sin in me. Just looking at myself, my life, my circumstances, this world - there is nothing that brings hope to my heart like Holy God. Because He is holy – pure and eternally incorruptible – He is set apart from our sinful existence. We cannot come to Him the way we are in our unholiness. We are left with no hope if this is the truth. But because Jesus came, because He covers us with His shed blood, and because we are declared holy the moment we accept Him as our Lord and Savior, we can kneel before His throne and freely worship Him forever.
Holiness is the only attribute of God that is repeated three times. That is not a fluke. Everything in God’s word – every numerical pattern – is there for a reason. R.C. Sproul says this about the holiness of God - On a handful of occasions the Bible repeats something to the third degree. To mention something three times in succession is to elevate it to the superlative degree. Only once in Scripture is an attribute of God elevated to the third degree. The Bible says that God is holy, holy, holy. The Bible never says that God is love, love, love or mercy, mercy, mercy or justice, justice, justice.
John Piper has this definition of God’s holiness: God’s holiness is His infinite value as the absolutely unique, morally perfect, permanent person that He is and who by grace made Himself accessible — His infinite value as the absolutely unique, morally perfect, permanent person that He is. Our goal is to be holy as He is holy. We can never be holy like God, but it should be our goal in everything we do to be holy as He is holy.
Jesus was the Promised Hope because without His birth, His life, and His sacrifice, we are still dead in our sin. There is no hope in this world – no hope on earth. The only real hope we have is in our eternal life. No matter what happens, that can never be taken away. Illness can claim our health and our loved ones. Tragedy takes from us and people misuse and abuse us, but the hope we have in Jesus – it is safe forever. He is the Promised One who can defeat death, sin, shame, and guilt, and impart His righteousness to us, so we can go before a Holy God - the only true hope we have.
No matter how many times I listen to it, it never gets old. It often brings me to tears and takes my breath away to think of that sight. A million angels falling face down before Him calling Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty. I can only imagine what that day will be like. It has made me think a lot about what I believe about God, and this has led to a deepening and growth in my relationship with Him – a Holy God who cares about me when I am so unworthy of even a thought from Him. We will all be there one day – standing before Him, roaring with all of heaven of His holiness.
Have you ever really thought about the word Holy and what is means? Holiness is one of the attributes of God, which means something about God that is true. They are His inherent qualities. They are who He is. Unless we understand Who He is, we will seek after something else. And once you do understand this about Him, you will know there is nothing else to turn to but Him. Holy means set apart. The holiness of God sets Him apart from everything else. He is sacred and pure, and holiness is His very nature. He doesn’t have to try to be holy – it is who He is.
The magnificence of a Holy God makes me painfully aware of the sin in me. Just looking at myself, my life, my circumstances, this world - there is nothing that brings hope to my heart like Holy God. Because He is holy – pure and eternally incorruptible – He is set apart from our sinful existence. We cannot come to Him the way we are in our unholiness. We are left with no hope if this is the truth. But because Jesus came, because He covers us with His shed blood, and because we are declared holy the moment we accept Him as our Lord and Savior, we can kneel before His throne and freely worship Him forever.
Holiness is the only attribute of God that is repeated three times. That is not a fluke. Everything in God’s word – every numerical pattern – is there for a reason. R.C. Sproul says this about the holiness of God - On a handful of occasions the Bible repeats something to the third degree. To mention something three times in succession is to elevate it to the superlative degree. Only once in Scripture is an attribute of God elevated to the third degree. The Bible says that God is holy, holy, holy. The Bible never says that God is love, love, love or mercy, mercy, mercy or justice, justice, justice.
John Piper has this definition of God’s holiness: God’s holiness is His infinite value as the absolutely unique, morally perfect, permanent person that He is and who by grace made Himself accessible — His infinite value as the absolutely unique, morally perfect, permanent person that He is. Our goal is to be holy as He is holy. We can never be holy like God, but it should be our goal in everything we do to be holy as He is holy.
Jesus was the Promised Hope because without His birth, His life, and His sacrifice, we are still dead in our sin. There is no hope in this world – no hope on earth. The only real hope we have is in our eternal life. No matter what happens, that can never be taken away. Illness can claim our health and our loved ones. Tragedy takes from us and people misuse and abuse us, but the hope we have in Jesus – it is safe forever. He is the Promised One who can defeat death, sin, shame, and guilt, and impart His righteousness to us, so we can go before a Holy God - the only true hope we have.
In this season of Advent, reflect on the hope you have today because a Holy God, the Promised Hope, fulfilled the prophecy coming to earth as a baby to save us from our sins and give us eternal life.
