Part ii: Holier Than You Can Imagine

Part ii

Key Text:

Remember that there are two major parts to the holiness of God:

(1) God is separate from sin

(2) God is devoted to his glory

In this passage we see this prophet being made aware of the immense holiness of God. God is revealing himself to him. It is as if, God has pealed back the curtain of heaven and shown something that he was previously fully unaware of.

Illustration: Zumbo’s just desserts - smallest dessert…example with magnifying glasses.

So it is today that there are some who are not aware of God. Oh, we have an idea about God, but do we really recognize God for how holy he is? Do we recognize God for how worthy he is of praise?

Some never make these comparisons because you are never setting the right standard with time in the scriptures.

Others of you are setting time aside, but you are not really investing yourself.

Practical - Ask, "What does this passage teach me about God?" as you do your reading.

Sample Passage:

Applications from first lesson:

App: implicated: we allow "holy" humans to have equal status with "holy" God

[i.e. we allow humans with status to have equal influence to us as our God]

App: implicated: we think that God is holy in relation to our sinfulness - but this is not the case - God is holy in relation to unfallen creatures too. (v. 2)

Think scripturally through your comparisons.

Some never make these comparisons because you are never setting the right standard with time in the scriptures.

Others of you are setting time aside, but you are not really investing yourself.

Practical - Ask, "What does this passage teach me about God?" as you do your reading.

Sample Passage:

There is more. HAVE YOU EVER TAKEN TIME TO SEE HOW GOD HAS MANIFESTED HIMSELF? Maybe we don’t have the right response towards God because we have never taken time to really consider how God has revealed himself!

When we take time to see how God has revealed Himself, we will see how He is holier than we could ever imagine!

Considering how God manifested himself (v. 4)

“God’s power is sometimes manifested in a physical tremor (cf. ; ) and his presence in a cloud of smoke (cf. ; ). So the God who normally hides himself from the senses occasionally made himself known in a form accessible to them, and he ultimately did so in the consummate unveiling of himself in his Son ().”

God manifests himself in ways that man could understand and in ways that he could relate to man and get man's attention:

Illustration: the game that works with babies all around the world, worked with Cyrus the other day - “Peek-a-boo”

* The presence of God is ultimately manifested in Jesus Christ:

The glory of God is manifested in the Jesus Christ -

The glory of God was veiled, but there were glimpses through miracles -

The holiness of God is seen in the exaltation of Jesus above angels -

The manifestation of the holy God is so that mankind could partake in that holiness - It is an initial sanctification that happens by the word (, , )

Illustration: We play this game called “I Spy” - you never pick a dominant color because it’s usually against the rules of that game. Why? It’s so obvious, it would make the game too hard.

implication: We often miss the most obvious place to look to be wowed by the holiness of God: Jesus Christ. We miss the most relatable way that God has communicated to us His presence. With this, we miss too how he continues to relate to us his presence: the HOLY Spirit.

How can this truth help us see God as more holy than we every though possible?

App:

(1) Be sure that you have believed upon Jesus Christ. He is God's ultimate message to you.

This “holy” God requires holiness to be in his presence.

Jesus Christ, the holy God, took your sin so you could have this holiness.

(2) Intentionally study the life of Christ - asking questions, "How does Jesus reveal that he is God in this passage?"

(3) Living a holy life requires that you willingly yield to the Holy Spirit. How?

Manifest holy living in your physical passions (internally and outwardly)

Manifest holy living in Christian brotherhood ()

Manifest holy living toward the unbelieving world.

Illustration:

The Holy Spirit is the treasure we often forget that we have been entrusted with. This year when I put on my winter coat for the first time, I found something in my pocket. It was 2 Visa gift cards for a total of $200.00.