"Holiness has been described as ‘a nature that delights in purity, and which repels evil.’ Adam and Eve were ‘innocent,’ not holy; for though they might have delighted in purity, they did not repel the evil of Satan. God is ever holy; in heaven there is no evil to separate from, and He was holy, consistent with His perfection in everything, before there was any evil" (Morrish’s New and Concise Bible Dictionary). Our thoughts as to holiness are very incomplete compared to God’s. We have grown so used to the unholiness in ourselves and all around us that we have little comprehension of what true holiness is. But when we are exhorted to "abhor that which is evil" (Rom. 12:9), we can be sure that holiness goes far beyond the simple absence or avoidance of sin or uncleanness or evil. God is holy; He cannot tolerate sin in His presence (although, praise His name! He is frequently longsuffering toward the sinner); He abhors sin; He is "of purer eyes than to behold evil, and can not look on iniquity" (Hab. 1:13).

God’s holiness is clearly manifested in connection with the atoning death of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. In Psalm 22:1-2 we have, prophetically, Christ crying out:"My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me? why art Thou so far from helping Me, and from the words of My roaring? O My God, I cry in the daytime, but Thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent." Why did God forsake Him? Why did He not hear the cries of His own Son? The answer is found in verse 3:"But Thou art holy, O Thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel." God laid upon His Son_the holy, spotless, sinless Lamb of God_"the iniquity of us all" (Isa. 53:6). God "made [Christ] to be sin for us, who knew no sin" (2 Cor. 5:21). And since God is holy, and "of purer eyes than to behold evil," He had to turn His back on His Son while He was making atonement for our sin. The more we grow in the knowledge of God’s infinite holiness, the more we will come to appreciate His equally infinite love to us in pouring out His holy wrath and judgment upon His own Son and letting us_ the real sinners_go free.

Let us consider some more Scriptures that attest to the holiness of God.

"And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve the Lord, for He is an holy God; He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins. If ye forsake the Lord, and serve strange gods, then He will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that He hath done you good" (Josh. 24:19-20). The people rose to this challenge laid down by their departing leader by responding, "Nay, but we will serve the Lord . . . and His voice will we obey" (verses 21,24).

"There is none holy as the Lord" (1 Sam. 2:2).

"Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness" (Psa. 30:4; also 97:12).

"God reigneth over the heathen; God sitteth upon the throne of His holiness" (Psa. 47:8).

"Once have I sworn by My holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before Me" (Psa. 89:35-36).

"The Lord is great in Zion; and He is high above all the people. Let them praise Thy great and terrible name; for it is holy. . . . Exalt ye the Lord our God, and worship at His footstool; for He is holy" (Psa. 99:2-5,9).

"He sent redemption unto His people; He hath commanded His covenant for ever; holy and reverend is His name" (Psa. 111:9).

"In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims . . . and one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts:the whole earth is full of His glory" (Isa. 6:1-3). And notice the effect this scene had upon the prophet Isaiah:"Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips:for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts" (verse 5). However holy Isaiah may have been in relation to his fellow Israelites, in the presence of God and His holiness he became thoroughly conscious of His own utter unholiness. In a similar way will we gain a more realistic appreciation of our own sinfulness and lack of holiness as we learn to compare ourselves against the standard of God’s perfect holiness.

The Lord Jesus testifies to the holiness of His Father in His prayer:"Holy Father, keep through Thine own name those whom Thou hast given Me" (John 17:11).

The proclamation of the holiness of God will ring out in heaven throughout eternity:"And the four beasts . . . rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come" (Rev. 4:8).

Just as God the Father is holy, so is His Son holy. His holiness as the eternal Son of God did not cease at His incarnation:"And the angel answered and said unto her, . . . that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God" (Luke 1:35). Peter proclaimed to the Jews, "Ye denied the Holy One and the Just" (Acts 3:14). And even the demons recognized who Jesus was:"A man with an unclean spirit. . . cried out, saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with Thee, Thou Jesus of Nazareth? art Thou come to destroy us? I know Thee who Thou art, the Holy One of God" (Mark 1:23,24).

The third person of the Trinity, while possessing the same attributes as God the Father and God the Son, is hardly ever referred to apart from His attribute of being ‘holy.’ Have you ever wondered why He is referred to as the ‘Holy’ Spirit rather than the ‘Loving’ Spirit, the ‘Righteous’ Spirit, the ‘Good’ Spirit, the ‘Truthful’ Spirit, etc.? I would suggest a possible explanation:Since He indwells all believers and communicates with our human spirits, that moral attribute that most sets Him apart from and above our own spirits is his intrinsic holiness. Perhaps another reason is that the primary work of the indwelling Spirit is to produce God’s holiness in us.

This last point brings us to the application of all this to ourselves. Several times in the Scriptures we are exhorted to be holy because God is holy. For example, "I am the Lord your God:ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy" (Lev. 11:44; also 11:45; 19:2; 20:26; 21:8). This is reiterated in the New Testament:"As He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy, for I am holy" (1 Peter 1:15-16). In his second letter, Peter again urges the believers to holy behavior, this time in consideration of the judgment that will soon fall upon the earth:"Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy [behavior] and godliness" (3:11).

We are further exhorted to holiness in the writings of the apostle Paul:"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service" (Rom. 12:1). "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God" (2 Cor. 7:1). "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord" (Heb. 12:14).

Who among us can claim to have attained even one-tenth of God’s standard of holiness? May we all become more concerned about how far short of God’s standard we fall in this regard. Then, let our continual prayer be, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my thoughts; and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting" (Psa. 139:23-24).