Truth And Holiness 1st June
Truth And Holiness 1st June
Is 6:1-4 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!” And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.
Re 4:2-3 Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne. And He who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald.
Ps 99:5 Exalt the Lord our God, And worship at His footstool— He is holy.
Just before Jesus was to fulfill His earthly ministry – He prayed the great prayer of John 17 and in that prayer He asks His Father : -- Jn 17:5 And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was. -- I don’t know that we can imagine what it was like before God created time and placed mankind in it! The Father the Son and the Holy Spirit uncreated without creation – glory upon glory upon glory – Holy, Holy, Holy!
God created out of His love not His need – all creation is an expression of His grace and glory – His Love, for God is Love – but He didn’t need creation to fulfill Him or complete Him – God IS! He is complete and infinitely glorious – this glory, the Divine essence of God, is the single most important thing to God for it is His very God-ness if you like. God the Father is glorious and the Holy Spirit is glorious – and Jesus was glorious in the same manner – fully God!
Then Jesus, at the request of His Father confined Himself to the form of His own creation and gave up the fullness of that glory that He was from everlasting past – from eternity past, if there is such a thing as eternity past, because eternity is timeless as we know time. But God in three persons WAS and in the Uncreated Eternal Place existed in all glory. Before heaven was, God was – then God created a beginning! Time! And in the first moment of time God created heaven and earth!
Heaven does not confine God, it does not contain Him – but it is His Throne and His habitation beyond time – it is another wonderful mystery – but Jesus longed for heaven when He was on earth He longed to return to the fullness of His glory. Heaven is magnificent, glorious, radiant and indescribably beautiful – in fact heaven is so beyond our comprehension that God after taking the Apostle Paul there to see it – forbade Him to talk of it – he could never do it justice.
I think it would have been a blasphemy for a mortal, temporal, passing away human-being to try and describe the indescribable Majesty of God – I don’t think any mortal could possibly describe immortality and Holiness and true Glory – and in trying to do so that description would have been far, far less than who God is. It would have diminished the truth of His Holy Glory that caused those few mortals who have seen it to fall on their faces and cry out in fear!
Heaven is beyond description save those few glimpses we are given in scripture (few) – but it is the habitation of God and the Throne of Christ and there is nothing – not one thing that can compare to this – Oh that we might long for heaven and seek to make sure we are going to get there. Heaven is our home. This earth is only the place of our sojourning, our journey – this is simply the place we are passing through to reach eternity. Listen to the voice of God speaking to you this morning : --
Heb 1:10-12 And: “You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You remain; And they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will fold them up, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not fail.”
Eph 1:3-5 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
There is a most wonderful mystery between God’s eternity and mankind’s dimension of time. It is something I don’t think we really comprehend – timelessness, everlasting life. But God in His Majesty and Glory has chosen that the very best thing for us, as individuals and as the human race, is to give us the option to abandon this temporal, time constrained life and it’s inevitable death – and join Him in His eternal, heavenly, everlasting, glorious, Holy eternity!!
This is why Jesus came, to reconcile us to God. God did not come down to us to be reconciled to us on earth! Jesus came to take us to Him! Jesus who is God gave up the fullness of His Deity, (not that He ever ceased being God) – but He gave up the glory of the Uncreated Majesty and as God came down to earth – confined Himself into the form of man, creation – fully God and fully man – God became like us that He might reach us and reconcile us to Himself.
2 Co 5:18-21 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Jesus in order to bring about the reconciliation between man and God – had to provide the appeasement for the wrath and judgment of God brought about by our sin – the death we deserved for our sinfulness – that appeasement had to be perfect, God cannot accept anything tarnished, impure, or defiled as a sacrifice – or an offering. For a sacrifice for sin the offering had to perfect without blemish – there was only one living being who was without sin and that was God Himself.
All of “creation” was affected by the fall and groans and waits for the reconciliation to be complete – so the only living being in all of creation was God Himself --- God is Holy and cannot deny Himself – not even His own rules, as it were –
Le 22:18-21“Speak to Aaron and his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘Whatever man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers in Israel, who offers his sacrifice for any of his vows or for any of his freewill offerings, which they offer to the Lord as a burnt offering— you shall offer of your own free will a male without blemish from the cattle, from the sheep, or from the goats. Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer, for it shall not be acceptable on your behalf. And whoever offers a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, to fulfill his vow, or a freewill offering from the cattle or the sheep, it must be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no defect in it.
Mal 1:14“But cursed be the deceiver Who has in his flock a male, And takes a vow, But sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished— For I am a great King,” Says the Lord of hosts, “And My name is to be feared among the nations.
So the only perfect, unblemished and sufficient sacrifice for us, for our sin and to save us from eternal death, was God Himself according to His own stated and declared decrees and laws. It is incredibly important for us to own this truth and see it and stand upon it no matter what – God will NEVER not in any way, bend, distort, twist or break His own covenant with us which is the W.O.G. in its entirety – the Bible is absolute and God will not defile it even to His own cost as it were.
So the only possible sacrifice had to be Himself according to His own demands for sinless, perfect atonement. Now consider this --- the whole purpose of this sacrifice was reconciliation of man to God so that man could enter eternity to be with God forever – now for God to desire us to live with Him for all eternity in heaven – for God to die, in order to get us there, this heaven, this eternity must be a truly glorious and magnificent place.
Remember God does not NEED us – He has no needs He is God complete and glorious – But for God to choose this pathway of death on our behalf – actually giving up His glory so that He could become like us, to die the perfect sacrifice on our behalf to get us into heaven –
Then what must heaven be like!! How glorious and exciting must this heaven be? Man cannot describe this glory – it is eternal and the temporal mortal cannot comprehend it. That is why God forbade Paul, and Jesus said to the 3 on the Mount of transfiguration – don’t try and tell people about eternal heavenly things – you can’t describe it, and they can’t hear it, and so that robs Majesty from God – it steals away Godly things, glorious things that man should believe by faith!
Do you know every time we read or hear some man’s description of some supposed journey into the heavenly realms we begin to form a shape and an imagination of what heaven is going to be like – as soon as we begin to do that we no longer rely upon faith, but testimony. I don’t know that there was ever a greater human being than the Apostle Paul – God loved Him and called him out, Jesus presented Himself to Paul – you know Paul says the Lord stood at my right hand –
The Holy Spirit took Paul to heaven, gave him visions, miracles and great signs – but the Bible never describes what Paul saw or experienced and it is the W.O.G. – do you not think that if God wanted us to know about these things they would have been conveyed to us through Paul, or Moses, or Elijah – or even Enoch – God has not given us a description because we cannot contain it – we cannot comprehend it – we cannot see it at all –
1 Co 2:9-12 But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
These things are not supposed to be seen or heard or talked about they are Spiritual, they are the deep things of God we get as hope in our hearts. There are just so many people claiming to have been to heaven now, so many people and ministries stating they can take us there for spiritual experiences – so many books of God encounters and testimonies – but can you see they are at best fleshly and maybe demonic to take us away –
We are living in this age of enlightenment, post modernism and emergent church – a new type of church that denies the absolutes of God, that denies the inerrancy of Scripture – in fact that adds to the W.O.G. an interpretation to fit its own desires. There is an impatience – and an arrogance that says by its practice that God is not doing enough and so we will do it for Him. If God won’t give us revival I will go up to heaven myself!
Ge 11:3-4 Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar. And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.”
So they are building a tower of miracles and healing and journeys to heaven – not once or twice but at will, these men and women can ascend into the spirit realm – they have learned how to do it and they have been assigned angels to guide them – But listen if it is not directly, clearly and easily understood to be in the W.O.G. – if it is not there in such a manner that the simplest among us might say I am going to do what God tells me in this verse – we must discard it!
No matter how attractive and appealing it might seem to be. No one, not one of us as Christians or even in the world would be fooled by the devil and the demonic if what he presents to us was not attractive – if he appeared to us as an ugly, evil, death bringing, pain inflicting, smelly breathed obvious deceiver – stinking of sulfur and hatred – everyone would reject him – in fact we would mock and ridicule such attempts – but he comes as an angel of light!
There are no shortcuts to revival – the path is narrow and difficult – but it leads to God.
Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Heb 10:35-39 Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: “For yet a little while, And He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.” But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul.
He is a rewarder of the diligent – we have need of endurance – we must not cast away our confidence, we must live by faith, not by sight, not by miracle, not by sign or wonder, or vision or spiritual experience, not by angel or even healing – we must not draw back to a works based experience, event centered Christianity that denies the W.O.G. – God has no pleasure in these things but He rejoices in those who believe to the saving of their souls –
God is waiting for us to join Him in eternity – this whole life is simply to prepare us and get us ready and PROVE us worthy to receive the Lamb who was slain from the foundation of the world – this life is to ensure our names are written in His book – and listen YOU were chosen in Him before the foundation of the world – before the beginning! In eternity God chose YOU before time – as old as this world might be and longer than time – God has prepared a place for YOU with Him in eternity!
You don’t need a sign to prove this – you don’t need a miracle, you don’t need anything except to in all humility acknowledge Him and believe by faith.
Eph 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
Ro 12:1-2 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Eph 4:20-24 But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
Heb 12:14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:
Ga 6:7-8 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.
There must be joy unspeakable and full of glory in holiness when all sin is washed away, when darkness is removed. Be holy for I am holy.
Great joy in holiness, magnificent freedom in Holiness, lightness, glory honour to God.
No man can lay hands on you and impart holiness it has to be a pursuit of the heart.
No fear, no anger, no doubt, no confusion, no jealousy, no destruction in holiness.