“There is no one holy like the Lord, indeed, there is no one besides You, Nor is there any rock like our God.” I Samuel 2:2
Throughout Scripture, in both the Old and New Testaments we read that God is holy. Isaiah saw a vision of heaven and the Seraphim that are around His throne praised God for His holiness. John in the book of Revelation has a vision of heaven and sees four living creatures
before God’s throne again praise Him without ceasing – “Holy,
holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and
who is to come”. (Revelation 4:8) Holiness is God’s foremost attribute.
Every other attribute of God is governed by His holiness.
When we think of God’s holiness we tremble. He is so holy He cannot even look at sin. (Habakkuk 1:13) Because of His holiness we cannot enter into His presence. Because of His holiness no sinner can enter His dwelling place. We cannot quit being sinners and God cannot stop being holy. This is why we need salvation for our sin. Without forgiveness for our sin, eternal death – separation from God – is a certainty. God is holy, He sees our sin, He hates our sin and cannot allow it into His presence. Even after salvation through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, we continue to sin against God which hampers our fellowship with Him . This separation causes us to grieve and to mourn in this life, not as an unbeliever does, but as His children who sin against our own Father (Matthew 5:4). The truth is we need to
realize the holiness of God for it shows us our true situation. Without an understanding of the gulf between us and God we would never realize we need a Savior. Comparing ourselves to other sinners instead of a holy God makes us comfortable. When we see ourselves standing as sinners before a holy God, our perception of our desperate need becomes clear. So the fear of God stems from understanding His absolute holiness. It is beneficial for it moves us toward our need for a savior.
But there is a second aspect of God’s holiness that is also beneficial to believers. James tells us God is 100% light, holy, pure. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” (James 1:18) James tells us God’s holiness is absolutely flawless. No matter which way you turn God, no matter how you examine Him, in Him there is not one iota of darkness. He is not 99.999% pure. He is absolutely flawless.
Why is this important for a believer? God’s holiness gives us great confidence and assurance in the One we trust. Think about it. What if there was one miniscule drop of darkness in God? What if a small spot of darkness existed that was so tiny it would only become evident after a trillion, trillion years and it would only last for a second? What would that brief iota of impurity mean to us? If that were true, believers could not trust God to be faithful – to keep the promises He has made to us. Our salvation could be revoked, eternal life in the presence of Jesus Christ could be negated, God’s mercy of forgiveness for sins changed. We would live in fear and dread that a time would come when God could no longer be trusted. The Holy Spirit, through the Lord’s half brother James, wants us to know that this is impossible and can never happen. In God there is absolutely no variation – not even a shadow in the pure light of His holiness. Because of that truth, every other attribute of God can be safely trusted forever. He will always loves us and extend His mercy to us – no variation. He will always be faithful to His word and keep His promises to us – no variation. When God tells us something we can believe Him. He never lies – ever.
What can we learn? Over and over we read the writers in Scripture praising God for His holiness. When we think about how
critical this attribute is to God’s character, we understand their praise. His holiness assures us that our faith is based on certainty. We can trust God’s character and His word “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away”. So take time to praise God for His holiness. It, and He, are the key to an enduring faith in Him throughout all eternity.