Attributes of God - The Holiness of God (Exodus 3) (Sermon 11)

There is a Name of God which is mentioned more than any other throughout Scripture:

• The particular word that declares this Glorious Attribute is more affixed as an epithet to the Name of 'God' than any other word in the whole of Scripture.

One writer says:

"There is not a word in Scripture more distinctly Divine in its origin and meaning than

this word. There is not a word that leads us higher into the mystery of Deity, nor deeper

into the privilege & blessedness of God's children" (Andrew Murray).

Listen to what some godly writers have to say about this Supreme Attribute of God:

• "This is the greatest title of honour … it is the splendour of every Attribute in the Godhead …

it is the glory of all the rest … as his power is the strength of them, so this Attribute is the

beauty of them" (Stephen Charnock, c1662).

• "This aspect of God's Nature, as none other, is solemnly celebrated before the throne of

it is a fuller expression of Himself than anything else" (A W Pink).

• "This is a transcendental Attribute that runs through the rest. It is an Attribute of Attributes and so it is the very lustre and glory of His other perfections" (John Howe, 1670).

• "This aspect of His Nature is the foundation of all his Will, Purpose & Decrees … It is the

beauty of God's moral Attributes. No other Attribute is truly lovely without this" (J Edwards).

What are these writers referring to?

• They are all speaking about the Holiness of God.

Throughout Scripture the Lord God is Extolled as the Holy God.

The Apostle John saw a Vision of Four Living Creatures around God's throne, saying:

"Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come" (Rev 4:8).

The Psalmist David exhorts all believers to worship God, saying:

The Lord God promised to keep his Covenant with Israel, saying:

This evening I want us to look at the Holiness of God through the eyes of Moses & Isaiah:

1) God revealed his Holy Character to Moses on a number of occasions

The first time was when God called Moses to Deliver His People from Egypt

• Moses was tending the sheep of Jethro his father-in-law when he saw a burning bush.
• When Moses went to see why the bush did not burn up, God spoke to him:

Note how God taught Moses one aspect of the meaning of the word Holy, saying:

"Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is Holy Ground" (v5).

R C Sproul says:

"The primary meaning of holy is 'separate'. It comes from an ancient word that meant

'to cut, or to separate'. Perhaps even more accurate would be the phrase 'a cut above

something'. When we find a garment or another piece of merchandise that is outstanding, that

has a superior excellence, we use the expression that it is 'a cut above the rest'."

Hence, it indicates apartness & separateness.

The ground on which Moses was standing is called 'Holy Ground'.

• This ground had not always been Holy Ground

• This ground is called 'Holy Ground' because it was separated from its ordinary use and

set apart for God's service.

• This ground was Holy Ground for that present time only, because it had been made so

by this manifestation of the Divine Presence in that place.

• It was the Separateness of God that had caused that area of ground to be separate and

to be set apart for Divine Service.

The word Holy often has this meaning of separateness in the Books of the Law:

• It is used with reference to all kinds of persons and things which have been separated from

their ordinary sphere, and placed in a special relation to God and to his service.

We read about a holy Sabbath (Ex 16:23); a holy nation (19:6); a holy place (29:31);

holy oil (30:25); holy water (Num 5:17); holy censers (Num 16:37) and so on.

When the word Holy is used of God in the sense of Separateness, it is referring to

God's Separateness from Creation & his elevation above it.

• When the Bible calls God Holy it means primarily that God is Transcendentally Separate - because God Alone is Holy.
• God is so far above & beyond us that he seems almost totally foreign to us.
• To be Holy is to be 'other' - to be different in a special way.
• This is why Donald Macleod speaks about The 'Otherness' of God.

God also revealed his Holiness or Separateness when God's People crossed the Red Sea:

"When the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians,

the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant" (Ex 14:31).

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this Song to the Lord:

"I will sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted … Who among the gods is like you,

O Lord? Who is like you - Majestic (or Glorious) in Holiness, awesome in glory,

working wonders?" (Exodus 15:1 & 11).

• God is highly exalted above all other gods and above all his creation.
• His Separateness & Otherness is also described in this phrase Glorious in Holiness.

The Lord God is so Holy that absolutely none can be compared to him:

"To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?' says the Holy One" (Is 40:25).

"There is no one Holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you;

there is no Rock like our God" (1 Samuel 2:2).

• God's transcendence over all creation & over other gods, is directly related to His Holiness.

Richard Strauss says:

"God is the Separated One. But separate from what? God is separate from his creatures.

He is exalted high above them in Infinite Glory & Transcendent Majesty. Isaiah (57:15)

emphasised this aspect of God's Holiness when he declared: 'For thus says the High &

Exalted One Who lives forever, whose Name is Holy, 'I dwell on a high & holy place'."

Isaiah refers to the Lord God as the High & Exalted & Holy One:

• God dwells in a high & holy place.
• He is so Separate that he cannot be confused with any other beings.

• He dwells in Heaven - the place that is represented as being far exalted above the earth.

This is why Isaiah prayed to God, saying:

"Look down from Heaven and see, from your lofty throne, Holy & Glorious" (Is 63:15)

• God is always seated on his Glorious Throne in his Glorious Heaven.

We have seen that God revealed himself to Moses as the Holy One, in the sense of His Separateness, at the Burning Bush & the Crossing of the Red Sea.

Note how God revealed His Holiness in a Second Sense when he gave the Law on Sinai:

• Before God gave the Law to Moses, we read that:

"Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, 'This is

what you are to say to the house of Jacob … 'You yourselves have seen what I did to

Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now if you will

obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all the nations you will be my treasured

possession" (Ex 19:3-5).

• The Lord God was about to reveal the Law, the embodiment of his Standard of Holiness.
• God says that His People must be willing to obey His Law fully.
• God did not give the Law until he made his people aware of the need for obedience.
• The people responded together, saying: "We will do everything the Lord has said" (v8).

• By saying this, the people demonstrated that they were ready to take the next step.

The Lord then told the people to Consecrate themselves:

"Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Go to the people and consecrate them today & tomorrow.

Have them wash their clothes and be ready by the third day, because on that day the Lord

will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people'" (Ex 19:10-11).

• God was telling his people that the Holy Law of their Holy God demanded Their Holiness.
• To Consecrate themselves meant that they were ready to set themselves apart unto holiness.
• Their clean garments were to reflect clean hearts.

• They were to be clean & pure, without & within.

• Wearing clean apparel was to indicate their willingness to obey the commands of God, and to show their desire to be clean in their hearts.

By telling the people to Consecrate themselves, God is reminding them that

Holiness is a Moral Attribute of God:

• The positive sense of this aspect of Holiness is the Absolute Purity of God.
• The negative sense is that God possesses complete freedom from sin.
• In this sense Holiness is a general term for the Moral Excellence of God.

This is what the Prophet Habakkuk meant, when he said about God:

• "Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong" (Hab 1:13).
• God is the Holy One who shrinks from all evil & sin.
• God himself is the Absolute Standard of his Holiness.
• By revealing the Law, God reveals the Purity of his Nature.
• God shows his Holy Character through his Holy Law.

The Psalmist David asks the people of God a vitally important question:

"Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has

clean hands & a pure heart, who does not lift his soul to an idol or swear by what is false.

He will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his Saviour" (Ps 24:3-5).

• The implication of both questions is the same;
• Who is truly worthy of worshipping the Lord God in Heaven?
• Who can gaze upon the Holy One, and can abide in the blaze of his Glory?

The Lord God is separated from his Creation because he is Highly Exalted;

• But, God is also separated in a Moral Sense - God is Separated from All Evil.
• In other words, God CANNOT sin. He can have no association with sin of any kind.
• He is untainted with the slightest trace of iniquity.
• Because God is Holy, those who desire to Worship him around His Throne in Heaven

• must have clean hands & a pure heart. They must be Holy because God is Holy.

We are looking at the Holiness of God through the eyes of Moses & Isaiah:

1) God revealed his Holy Character to Moses on a number of occasions

• God revealed himself to Moses as the Holy One, in the sense of His Separateness,

at the Burning Bush & the Crossing of the Red Sea. He is Glorious in Holiness.

• When Moses received the Law at Sinai, God also revealed His Holiness in the Sense of His Moral Excellence; His Absolute Purity & complete freedom from sin.

2. God revealed the Absolute Nature of his Holiness to Isaiah, as the Thrice Holy God

Think of the Historical Setting of Isaiah's Vision:

• Although Judah was at peace during Uzziah's reign, the nation was marked by moral decay. Because of the people's sin, the death of Uzziah spelled the end of a golden era for Judah.

• Isaiah 6:9-10 indicate that the good times were over; and hard times were about to begin.
• Because of their hardness of heart, these people would never understand Isaiah's preaching. They would hear but not understand.

• Both the prophet himself and his message would be spurned.

What was Isaiah's greatest need at this difficult time?

What would give him a proper perspective and the will to persevere in such hard times?

• In the face of such evil times, there is surely only One Answer to this question:
• Isaiah's Greatest Need was a Vision of the Glory & Holiness of God.

In the year that King Uzziah died Isaiah saw a Vision he would never forget (Isaiah 6:1-5):

Isaiah received the most dramatic revelation of God's Glory & Holiness ever seen.

• He saw the Lord seated on his Heavenly Throne, High & Exalted.

• He saw the Lord God Almighty who possesses Sovereign Power & Authority.
• The word translated as High or Lofty conveys the idea of

bestowed honour OR worthy of honour.

• The word translated as Exalted refers to the literal elevation of an object.

Isaiah was compelled to raise his eyes up toward Heaven to behold this

scene of astonishing Glory & Majesty.

• The Lord was far above Isaiah and his Presence radiated Majesty & Nobility.
• The whole scene was dominated by the Presence of the Lord.
• This was a Vision that would remain at the forefront of his mind throughout his ministry.

Then Isaiah heard the Seraphim calling out to each another & to the Lord God:

"Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory."(v3)

The earth quaked, the temple was filled with smoke, and the whole earth was

filled with the Glory of God.

• The fact that the Seraphim emphasise the Holiness of God indicates that this particular Attribute of God is of paramount importance when it comes to understanding who God is.
• First & foremost the Lord is the God of Holiness; All his other Attributes stem from this.

The repetition of the word Holy emphasises the importance of this Attribute of God:

• This repetition underlines God's absolute distinction from all things & all creatures.
• This is the only Attribute that is ever repeated three times in succession.
• It emphasises the absoluteness & completeness of God's Holiness.
• It underlines the fact that God is Infinitely & Perfectly Holy - he cannot be any more holy.
• It emphasises the fact that Holiness is Greatest Excellency of the Divine Nature.

R C Sproul comments on the repetition of the word Holy, saying:

"The Bible says that God is holy, holy, holy. Not that he is merely holy,

or even holy, holy. He is holy, holy, holy. The Bible never says that God is

love, love, love, or mercy, mercy, mercy, or wrath, wrath, wrath, or justice, justice, justice.

It does say that he is holy, holy, holy, the whole earth is full of his glory."

Look at Isaiah's Response to this Vision of God's Holiness:

• The words of the Seraphim extol God's Majesty & His Moral Excellence.

"Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty"

• But, by implication, this act of worship also says something about the character of those who may be allowed to have communion with the Lord

• The Sinner has no place in the presence of a Holy God.
• The Fire of God's Holiness & wrath would consume the sinner.

Isaiah's Response to this Vision emphasises the Moral Perfection of God.

• This scene underlines God's separateness from creation;

• It teaches us about God's Moral Character - It teaches us about his Absolute Perfection.

• There is not even the minutest trace of sin within the Being of God.

This scene also drives us to the logical conclusion about the Character of Man:

• A right understanding of God's Holiness should drive all men, women & children to a right understanding of the Sinfulness of Human Nature.

• Isaiah's Response to God's Holiness is immediately made clear:

• Isaiah's understanding of God's Holiness brought an overwhelming sense of his own

uncleanness, his own guilt & shame, in the Light of God's Holiness.

Why didn't Isaiah join the Seraphim in Praising God?

• Isaiah did not join the Seraphim because he could not join them.
• He did not rejoice because he could not rejoice.
• All he could do was to acknowledge his sinfulness & wretchedness before a Holy God!
• His response was the only response he could make: "Woe is me, for I am ruined."

Throughout Scripture we see how this is the only valid response to a Vision of God.

Remember the response of the Apostle Paul (Romans 7:24):

"What a wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?"

Remember the response of the people in John's Vision of the Judgement Day

"The kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and

every free man hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the

mountains and the rocks, 'Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the

throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and

who can stand?'" (Rev 6:12-17).

In a sense the whole of Isaiah's message is a response to his Vision of God's Holiness.

• He has more to say about the Messiah, and the need of a Saviour, than any other prophet.

In the very next chapter he speaks of the Coming Messiah:

• The Holy Son of God has come down to earth and maintained his Holiness by

Isaiah goes on to tell us that:

• The Holy One of God has come down into the darkness of this world.

Moral darkness is repelled by the Light of God's Holiness.

• The Messiah was to be called: "The Light of the World. Whoever follows him will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" (John 8:12).

• He will rise like the sun, to diffuse light, & life, & peace, & salvation,

in the midst of a dark sinful world.

• He will cause people to turn from the darkness of sin to the light of salvation,

to repent of their sin and to follow after holiness. and dealt with sin.

Isaiah tells us that God's provision for Cleansing us from sin is the Cross of Christ:

"But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; and by his

wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his

own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all" (Is 53:5-6).

• The Holy God has saved us whilst vindicating his Holy Nature; He has done this by placing the judgement for our sin on his own sinless Son.

Isaiah teaches us that when we confront God's Holiness, it will expose our sinfulness.

• But he also tells us that our sinfulness has been dealt with by his Holy Son on the Cross.

Remember how demons were confronted with the Power & Authority of Christ:

When Jesus was in the synagogue at Capernaum a man possessed by a demon cried out:

"What do you want with us? … Have you come to destroy us?

I know who you are - the Holy One of God" (Luke 4:34).

Remember how Simon Peter was confronted with the Power of Jesus when the disciples caught a miraculous number of fish:

"When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said,

'Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man'" (Luke 5:8).

• The miracles & signs performed during Jesus' earthly ministry point to His Holiness.
• They also point to the sinfulness of men and their need for repentance & forgiveness.

We have looked at the Holiness of God through the eyes of Moses & Isaiah.

2. We must now look at the Challenge of God's Holiness to believers

• When God delivered his people from their Egyptian bondage he gave them his Holy Law.

• At that time, the Lord commanded his people to Obey the Law.

Then God issued a Challenge to his people, saying:

"I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy …

I am the Lord who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy,

because I am holy" (Leviticus 11:44-45).

• God had set apart Israel out of all the nations on earth to be his chosen people.
• Because God is Holy his People must seek after Holiness.
• A Holy God demands a Holy People.

The Apostle Peter gave this Same Challenge to the New Testament Converts.

• He exhorted believers to set themselves apart from the world
• He commanded them not to be conformed to the sinful desires of the flesh.

Then Peter said:

"But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written:

'Be holy, because I am holy'" (1 Peter 1:15).

God's standard for his people in both Old & New Testaments never changes:

• We cannot make the excuse that God's standard is too high or too difficult for us to attain.
• We cannot say that the standard is so high we are wasting our time trying to reach it.
• Neither can we say that God makes us perfectly holy at conversion and there is no further degree of holiness to be attained in this life.

The writer to the Hebrews gives an exhortation to all believers, saying:

Bishop Ryle refers to this verse in the context of a number of questions to God's people:

"Let me ask everyone - Are you holy? Listen to the question I put to you this day. Do you

know anything of holiness? I do not ask whether you attend your church regularly;

whether you have been baptised; and received the Lord's Supper; whether you have the

name of Christian. I ask something more than all this: Are you holy, or are you not?

Although God gives us the Ultimate Standard of Holiness, this cannot be achieved instantly. Paul reminds us that attaining holiness is a life-long process:

"We are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory" (2 Cor 3:18).

We are constantly being sanctified by the Holy Spirit" (Romans 15:16).

• Believers have a constant battle against sin the flesh and the devil.
• The Apostle Paul tells us something about this battle, saying:

Again, the Apostle Paul admitted that he was not perfect, but was striving after holiness:

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press

on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold on me. Brothers, I do not consider

myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and

straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God

has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:12-14).

The Apostle Paul describes Holiness to the Galations both Positively & Negatively:

"Live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature"

"The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity & debauchery,

idolatry & witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions,

factions & envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you … that those who live like

this will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,

faithfulness, gentleness & self-control. Against such things there is no law … Since we

live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit" (Galations 5:16-25).

Holiness may be simply described as Putting Off the Sinful Desires of the Flesh and Putting On the Fruit of the Spirit.

Holiness may also be described as being of one mind with God who is Holy.

• It is cultivating the habit of agreeing with the Holy Standards of God;
• It is hating the sins that God hates, and loving the things that God loves.
• It is measuring the world's standards of morality with God's standards of morality and then seeking to follow after the Standards set out in God's Word.

Holiness involves a desire to shun every known sin, and to keep every known commandment.

• When Paul described his struggle against sin in his life, he had this desire:

• The Psalmist said:

"I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold, and because I consider all

your precepts right, I hate every wrong path" (Ps 119:127-128).

Holiness involves seeking to follow the example of Christ:

• Remember what the writer to the Hebrews said about the Lord Jesus:

• Our aim must be to be conformed to the image of Christ ((Romans 7:29).
• We must forgive others as Christ has forgiven us;
• We must love others as Christ loved us;
• We must seek to do the Father's Will, just as Jesus did.
• We must denounce sin just as Jesus did.
• We must realise that we are in the world but not of the world.
• In every situation we find ourselves in, we must constantly ask ourselves the question:

SUMMARY:

We have looked at the Attribute of Holiness through the eyes of Two of God's people:

1) God revealed his Holy Character to Moses on a number of occasions:

• God revealed himself to Moses as the Holy One, in the sense of His Separateness, at the

Burning Bush & the Crossing of the Red Sea. He is Glorious in Holiness.

• When Moses received the Law at Sinai, God also revealed His Holiness in the Sense of

His Moral Excellence; His Absolute Purity & complete freedom from sin.

2. God revealed the Absolute Nature of his Holiness to Isaiah, as the Thrice Holy God

• He saw a Vision of God's Holiness - a Holiness that fills heaven & earth.
• Isaiah's Response was to cry out "Woe to me for I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips"

• In a sense the whole of Isaiah's message is a response to his Vision of God's Holiness.

• He tells us about the coming of the Messiah, the Holy One of God, the Great Light who is

God's provision for Cleansing us from sin through his Death on the Cross.

2. We have looked at the Challenge of God's Holiness to believers

• God says: Be holy even as I am holy. Without holiness no one will see the Lord.