21 Days of Prayer: Day 1

The Holiness of God

“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”

READ ISAIAH 6:1-8… 

“God…” the Eternal One, the Creator and Sustainer, the Almighty, the Re-creator… “God is… God is what?” That is the most important question we could ever ask. We as Christians know that God dwells in eternity, that He created the heavens and the earth, that He rules all creation with unquestionable authority, and that He will one day make all things new… But how do we describe God? What characteristic best describes God? 

We could say that God is love, and that would be true (see 1 Jn. 4:8). We could also say that God is wrathful (see Nah. 1:2). But which one is it? What characterizes God the most?

To answer this question, we look to story of Isaiah the Prophet. Isaiah was an Old Testament person whom the LORD God called to speak to His people. The story found in Isaiah 6 is how the LORD called Isaiah to be a prophet… Isaiah saw a vision of God.

Isaiah saw the temple of God. And there in the midst of the temple was the LORD seated on His throne. The account describes six-winged creatures who encircled the throne – seraphim (serpent-like angels). With two wings the seraphim covered their feet, with two wings they flew, and with two wings they covered their faces… Why did the seraphim cover their faces? Would they not bump into each other?

What the seraphim cried out is telling: “Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts!” The seraphim did not cry out that God is “Love, love, love” or “Wrath, wrath, wrath”, but that He is “Holy, holy, holy!” What does it mean for God to be holy? 

When we hear the term holy, we usually think of the definition, “set apart.” And that is true. That is part of what it means to be holy. But it means so much more. We have a hard time capturing with our words what “holy” is. Our words just don’t quite capture it. Twentieth century researcher Rudolf Otto called this struggle to describe the holy the mysterium tremendum. The late pastor-theologian R.C. Sproul wrote about God’s holiness: “When the Bible calls God holy, it means primarily that he is transcendentally separate.” God is not just separate from us, he is so highly exalted above us in greatness and power and majesty that He almost seems totally foreign to us. 

The repetition of “holy” three times in Scripture is called the Trisagion. It is a repetition of a word for emphasis. It means that whatever is being described is of super-importance. And it is being used to describe God’s holiness! So, the Bible is literally telling us that the most important characteristic of God is His holiness. How does God’s holiness relate to His love and His wrath? God’s love is holy love – there is no love like God’s love. God’s wrath is holy wrath – there is no wrath like God’s wrath. There is no one like God… The seraphim covered their faces because they knew God is holy. And Isaiah knew it.

Isaiah was one of the most righteous men of his time. Yet, when Isaiah saw a holy God, he was paralyzed with fear and cursed himself: “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!” Though Isaiah was a righteous man, he knew he was still sinful. He knew that he deserved God’s wrath for committing sin. Isaiah’s “unclean lips” (sinful words) revealed a deeper sinful heart (see Matt. 12:34). So he cursed himself! Isaiah knew it was better to be cursed that to fall into the wrath of a holy God!

But at this very moment, God atones for (pays for) Isaiah’s sin by sending an angel to touch Isaiah’s lips… This is the only way Isaiah (and we sinners) can stand before a holy God – by our sins being atoned for. God does NOT owe us this. When God atones for our sins, He gives us grace – a gift we did not earn. And God atones for our sins so that we will serve Him…

When God called for someone to go for Him, Isaiah said, “Here I am! Send me” BEFORE he knew what God was calling him to do. And this is our response as well… trembling in humble obedience before a thrice-holy God. God atoned for Isaiah so that Isaiah would serve Him – no questions asked.

Personal Questions:

  1. What does it mean for God to be holy?

  2. Do I tremble before the holy God?

  3. Am I willing to do whatever He calls me to – no questions asked?

Prayer Points:

  • Pray that God would help you and our church to learn what it means for God to be holy.

  • Pray that God would help you and our church to tremble before the thrice-holy God.

  • Pray that God would mold your heart and our church’s heart to serve God in all He calls us to – no questions asked.