Are you holy? Do you consider yourself to be holy? Today I want to look at the concept of being holy as we turn our attention to and worship the Holiness of God.
Are you religious? Have you ever been referred to as being religious? When someone says that to me, I almost consider it an insult in a way. Let me explain. There are many religions throughout the world. There are the Muslims, the Unitarian Universalists, the Hare Krishnas, the Mormons, the Jehovah's Witnesses. Even Satanism and Atheism are religions. Yeah, even Satan is religious.
A well-studied man examined each of these religions and he found that there was one primary truth that stands out. The God of the Bible is holy. Holiness is what distinguishes God from all other so-called gods. Let's spend a little time today and take a deep dive and learn more about the only true God. I want to use Psalm 99 as the background for this message. Prayer.
God inspired King David to write Psalm 99. This Psalm is now one of the most popular Psalms, or sacred songs in Scripture. The Psalm writings have been used since the Old Testament days by the people of Israel in devotional and liturgical settings—much like we use our music today to worship God. The Psalms invite us to worship. This worship is to include the adoration of God in private, and personal situations, and in corporate worship. Let's begin with the first three verses of Psalm 99.
Psalm 99 1-3 – “The Lord reigns! Let the peoples tremble. He is enthroned between the cherubim. Let the earth quake. 2 The Lord is great in Zion; he is exalted above all the peoples. 3 Let them praise your great and awe-inspiring name. He is holy.
The Psalm begins with depicting God as King. It speaks of His greatness as the King of kings. As David wrote this song, he had an understanding of what being a king was. After all, David himself enjoyed many of the entitlements of being a king. During this time in history, it wasn't uncommon for earthly kings and Pharaohs to be perceived as divine and to receive worship. But in Scripture, God is utterly set apart from all other sources of human authority. Holiness refers to something that is set apart from the rest, and God is certainly set apart from anything and everything else.
Along that same line, we are set apart for worship when we recognize God's holiness and offer Him our worship. So, are you holy? In the sense of being set apart, yes, we are holy as we set ourselves apart from the world and recognize God's holiness. But David is writing about God's holiness. And that Holiness doesn't even come close to us and our set-spart holiness.
During this time in history, the worship of non-existent, human created gods occurred throughout the geographical area where King David was trying to bring the 12 tribes of Israel into one nation. King David had actually brought the people together under a single government through his political and military expertise. But in these first three verses, David is pointing to the King of kings who was not only to be worshiped by the people of Israel, but by all the tribes and nations on earth.
So in that effort, David presents God as holy, exalted, and set apart. But as we read about this in God's Holy Word, these truths require us to respond in the same way that David instructed Israel to respond by recognizing the Holiness of God and offering a sacrifice of worship.
Now let me clarify something. As we gather and pour our hearts out to God in worship, even this is not enough for us to reach complete, personal purity and righteousness on this side of heaven. No, being in church will not get you to heaven. But one thing it does do, it sets us apart for God's use in advancing His kingdom in the world. Being in church might not get you to heaven, but it will surely show you how to get there.
As we gather each week and join our voices in song, join our hearts in prayer, and join our souls in complete worship to God, we realize that holiness is not just an aspect of God. Holy is who He is through and through. We worship a Holy God.
In these opening verses of this Psalm, David exclaims that God is the One and only God worthy of adoration. He exclaims that everyone owes God worship. He pretty much said so in verse 3 when he said, "Let them praise your great and all inspiring name." Also, in verse 3 it seems that David was anticipating a question that might be on the minds of the people as to why the God of Israel deserves such praise. He responded very simply, "He is holy." Now, let's talk about righteousness.
Psalm 99:4 – “The mighty King loves justice. You have established fairness; you have administered justice and righteousness in Jacob.”
One thing common to Kings across the ages has been the possession of authority and the responsibilities that go along with that. As a king was installed, a charge was issued to the new king to remind him of his sacred duties. This included the admonition to establish peace through upholding the law and administering justice. David had done just that by following God's holy guidance. As a result, God established righteousness in Jacob. (Jacob the Nation) When the tribes of Jacob were divided they were referred to as the tribes of Jacob. God renamed the nation Israel. When speaking of righteousness, I think of:
Matthew 5:6 – “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.” DO YOU HUNGER FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS?
The next question is, "Do you consider yourself to be a righteous person?" As we work toward being more like God in our Christian walk, we are developing a righteousness that sets us apart from the rest of the world. Righteousness characterizes God's people as an extension of the Lord Himself. I guess that's why we sing and sometimes ask the question, do others see Jesus in you?
When we think of greatness in terms of earthly greatness, we think of it in terms of personal strength and demonstration of brute strength, especially military. God clearly possesses all strength and power. But Scripture doesn't direct us to God's power as the primary reason that He is set apart in His glory. Notice that David pointed to God's moral authority as the basis of Him being praiseworthy. In other words, God's identity is based on His personal character. It's God's holiness that makes Him great and sets Him apart from all other earthly kings and so-called gods.
Psalm 99:5 – “Exalt the Lord our God; bow in worship at his footstool. He is holy.”
As the people of Israel entered the Promised Land centuries earlier, they slowly, over time, became a divided nation. That's where we get the 12 tribes of Israel. In fact, there was so much division that the nation eventually divided into the northern and the southern kingdoms. David, as king, was finally able to bring the people together as one United monarchy. This caused David to bring the people together to exalt God and to bow in worship. God never intended for injustice and unfairness to occur among the nation of Israel. But as kings and judges were appointed over the years, that is exactly what happened.
We are seeing a lot of the same thing today in our time. We witness injustice and unfairness by those that are in positions of authority. We're reminded through this that God never intended this to happen. David's Psalm provides the image of a holy God. He is set apart and He executes justice in His greatness. Remember that this story is taking place in the Old Testament times. In the future, the Lord Jesus Christ will occupy the throne of David as the King of kings and the Prince of peace and He will make all things right. That's praiseworthy all by itself.
Psalm 99:6 – “Moses and Aaron were among his priests; Samuel also was among those calling on his name. They called to the Lord and he answered them.”
Now here is where we need to be careful. Because God is utterly holy, apart from Him we have no holiness of our own. In fact, in our natural state, the prophet Isaiah reminds us that we are unclean, and our righteous acts are the equivalent of filthy rags.
Isaiah 64:6 – “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”
What Isaiah was trying to tell us is the degree to which God is set apart from us. In contrast to God, no one is righteous, and we are all under sin. The Apostle Paul said there are none righteous, no not one. We have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. Even though King David was a man who intimately pursued God, he too sometimes failed miserably.
David mentioned Moses, Aaron, and Samuel. In the bible, mediators between God and man are identified as priests and prophets. Moses' brother Aaron represented priests. Samuel represented prophets. Priests served as bridge builders between sinful humanity and a holy God. They would bring people's offerings and sacrifices to God, seeking His mercy, grace, and forgiveness. That's what priests did.
Where priests represented God's people before God, prophets represented God before His people. When priests and Prophets called on God's name, the Lord answered them. This made the relationship between God and humanity possible.
Psalm 99:7-9 – “He spoke to them in a pillar of cloud; they kept his decrees and the statutes he gave them. 8 Lord our God, you answered them. You were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their sinful actions. 9 Exalt the Lord our God; bow in worship at his holy mountain, for the Lord our God is holy.”
What David is saying in these verses is that God is both mysterious and glorious. This is where God's holiness is totally separated from our holiness. David's pointing out how God is set apart from us as human beings. God spoke to His people from a pillar of cloud. This indicates to us the mystery of God that surrounds Him and His unapproachable holiness. His unapproachable holiness.
In Paul's letter to Timothy, he mentioned God's unapproachable light.
1 Timothy 6:16 – “who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see, to him be honor and eternal power. Amen.”
Paul is reminding us in this sense, God's brilliant and blinding glory shines forth to make Him known. We saw a glimpse of God's glory in the occurrence on the Mount of transfiguration, when Christ's face shone like the sun and His clothes became as white as light. The Bible also reminds us in Revelation that the light of God's glory will someday spiritually and physically illuminate heaven on earth, eliminating the need for the sun or the moon. God's glory will be our light. That's how great our God is.
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This message today was more informative than anything else. God wants us to realize how holy He is. Through David's Psalm, we have seen the Holiness and greatness of God and how we should worship Him with all of our being because of who He is.
So we are told that God surrounds Himself with a canopy of mystery and unapproachable holiness. The Apostle Paul described God as an unapproachable light.
The question that came to my mind was if God is so unapproachable, how do we balance a reverence for God with a personal relationship with Him? I answer that with this, THAT'S WHY GOD SENT HIS SON JESUS CHRIST.
Jesus is now our Mediator between us and God. Jesus is our light. That is why it is so essential that we approach God through His Son Jesus Christ. That's why Jesus did what He did for us. He now sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty and intercedes for us. He is the truth. He is the life. He is the way. And no one will get to God unless they go through Jesus Christ.
Do you know him? Do you know my Jesus? When Jesus comes back, and He will come back one day, He promised that He would, will you join Him in the sky? Or will you be one that is left behind?
Jesus is the only way that you will ever get to heaven. You are my family. And I want all of you to join with me as we gather in heaven one day. I want to see you there as well. In order for that to happen, you must know Jesus as your personal Savior.
I am giving you that opportunity right now to know Him in a personal way. If you don't know exactly what that means, I will tell you.
In a moment I'm going to close this message with a prayer. Then I will walk down in front of the pulpit. The music will begin. If God is touching your heart and you know you have a decision to make, then simply step out from where you are and come and tell me so. Tell me that you want Jesus as your Savior.
I will pray with you and you can ask Christ to come into your life. And He will. It's that simple. Then you can be absolutely certain that when you leave this world in death, you will open your eyes in glory and see Jesus face-to-face.
Isn't that something that anyone and everyone would want? If so, then come.
