May 19, 2023
By Elijah McSwain, Sr.
The notion of trying to express who God is cannot be explained in our entirety. In attempting to understand God, we put forth a great deal of effort to comprehend and explain Him as He has revealed Himself. Our understanding of God is given in bite size portions as we try our best to describe Him to the same degree in those bite size portions.
God is indescribable in His totality.
However, this blog will attempt to reveal who He is in relation to His holiness and worthiness.
The Holiness of God
The dictionary defines the word holy as having a spiritually pure quality. 7 God is depicted as being holy as a result of Him being ethically pure and morally upright. Exodus 15:11 exclaims “who is like You, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like You, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?” God is characterized by being holy which means that He is free from defilement, not tainted by sin, not corrupted by wickedness as He is sinless, and He is not under the influential power of sin.
God is the standard by which creation is measured.
As a result, He cannot operate outside of His own standard resultant upon His holiness and the reality that sin does not have dominion over Him. Therefore, He is perfect in all of His ways. Jerry Bridges asserts “as used in Scripture, holiness describes both the majesty of God and the purity and moral perfection of His nature. Holiness is one of His attributes; that is, holiness is an essential part of the nature of God. His holiness is as necessary as His existence, or as necessary, for example, as His wisdom or omniscience. Just as He cannot but know what is right, so He cannot but do what is right.” 1 1 Samuel 2:2 makes the declaration that “no one is holy like the Lord, for there is none besides You, nor is there any rock like our God.”
God is the embodiment of perfection.
Matthew 5:48 proclaims that believers are to be perfect, just as our Father in heaven is perfect. The perfected state of God showcases the he does not have any mishaps, any misfortunes, any slip ups, any flaws, any hang ups or the like contingent upon His holiness and unblemished being.
God is excellent. The Bible demonstrates this in many ways. One way in particular in which this is seen, is based upon the essence of Him being considered as light in 1 John 1:5, which states “God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.” Light is often spoken of biblically as the symbolism of truth and purity. Light in this sense is deemed pure because it is not mixed with contagions. It is free from foreign or inappropriate elements. Hence, it is a illuminating agent that is freed from hindrances or things that causes blemishes.
Paul Little echoed the following words, “since holiness embraces every distinctive attribute of the Godhead, it may be defined as the outshines of all that God is. As the sun’s rays, combining all the colors of the spectrum, come together in the shining sun and blending into light, so in God’s self-manifestation all the attributes of God come together and blend into holiness. Holiness has, for that reason, been called “the attributes of attributes” that which lends unity to all the attributes of God." 5
God is not hindered by any foreign element. There is nothing that can penetrate the holiness of God in an effort to make Him unholy. Sin does not abide in God. Iniquity does not abide in God. Waywardness does not abide in God. As aforementioned, God cannot deviate from His standard as He is the standard. William Evans in his book entitled The Great Doctrines of the Bible, penned that “the holiness of God is the message of the entire Old Testament. To the prophets God was the absolutely Holy One; the One with eyes too pure to behold evil; the One swift to punish iniquity. God is entirely apart from that which is evil and from all that defiles both in Himself and in relation to all His creatures. By the holiness of God is meant the consummate holiness, perfection, purity, and absolute sanctity of His nature. There is absolutely nothing unholy in Him. 4 Paul Little further adds, “holiness is a moral attribute of God. Holiness is the sum total perfection of God, perhaps the most comprehensive of all of God’s attributes. It is a term for the moral excellence of God and His freedom from all limitations to His moral perfection. Only God is holy. He is therefore the standard of ethical purity by which His creatures are measured. 5
Furthermore, the holiness of God can be kept in view to what has been ascribed unto His name. The purpose of a name is given to identify someone or something. Names are often given as a reflection of the individual in many cases. God’s name is a reflection of His ethical and moral disposition. As it has been seen from the canvas of Scripture in relation to His interaction with humanity, His name is associated with authority and His authority demands that He be addressed and reverenced in a holy manner. Isaiah 57:15 emphasizes that “His name is holy.”
His name projects forth that everything God does is right.
Respectively, His name informs us of His character and being. The name of the Lord gives inference to His divine being. The name of God is so sacred that it is not to be used in vain (cf. Ex. 20:7). The notion of using His name in vain undermines His name in connection with His holiness. To do so suggests that the person of God is associated with things that are vile and wicked. There is nothing vile about the person of God, His character, or any of His attributes. Therefore, nothing of negative connotation should ever be ascribed or linked unto God in those manners because He is holy.
John Gill made the affirmation that making use of the name Lord or God, or any other name and epithet of His divine being, in a light and trifling way, without any show of reverence of Him, and affection to Him is a serious disregard and offense to God. The name of God ought never to be mentioned but in a grave and serious manner, and with an awe of the greatness of His majesty upon the mind. The idea of swearing lightly, rashly, or falsely is forbidden, as all profane oaths; imprecations, and curses by the name of God should not proceed from anyone’s mouth or even enter a person’s thoughts. For swearing even by the name of the Lord should not be used. Great care should be taken into consideration that a person swears to that which is true, and not false; for false swearing, or perjury, is a very grievous sin, and as it is strictly forbidden, it is severely punished by the Lord. 8
The Worthiness of God
God is worthy for a vast number of reasons. As alluded to earlier, He is worthy for His name sake. He is worthy because of who He is. His worthiness stems from His grace and mercy. He is worthy because of His power. He is worthy because of His love. He is worthy because of His greatness and splendor. He is worthy for His forgiveness. He is worthy for His provision. He is worthy for His protection and for a vast number of other reasons that cannot be written in words or described fully in our vocal expression of Him. However, our inability to display a full showing of gratitude should not stop us from rendering worthiness unto God continuously throughout our lifetime.
In his book, The Life of Worship (Rethink, Reform, Renew), Mark Sooy states “our actions flow from our beliefs. Scripture regularly points out that our actions are the result of our thinking.” 6
The very essence of what we believe about God is a determining factor in how we perceive His worthiness. If we grasp the proper belief system surrounding God then our view of Him will be visible as it pertains to the lifestyle that we live before Him, the manner in which we approach Him, and the proper posture or mindset that we will display toward God. With this in mind, our cognitive ability to comprehend the greatness of God will develop a desire to worship Him, revere Him, exalt Him, give Him glory, give Him honor and continual offer the sacrifice of praise with the fruit of our lips unto Him. The way that we rationalize God will be evident in our action or way of life. When we understand just how worthy God is and reflect upon His goodness toward us; we cannot help but to be in awe of the greatness of His being. God is deserving of our admiration as we should rightfully confer upon Him the honor that is due to His name. Psalm 29:1-2 records that we are to “give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.” Psalm 99:9 reveals that the Lord our God should be exalted and worshipped at His holy hill; for the Lord our God is holy. God is worthy to be praised, extolled, loved, admired, and followed.
Additionally, God is well deserving of honor and to be esteemed as worthy because all things were created by Him. He is the source of everything that is in existence. Revelation 4:11 puts it this way, “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created.” God is the reason that all things exist. Even things that are made today are a product of the resources that God has placed within the earth for our good at the onset of creation. The has demonstrated Himself worthy of all the honor and praise that should project forth from our being for His provisionary means.
Moreover, as it relates to creation, the worthiness of God entails that He is the reason that we live, have our mobility and our being (Acts 17:28). He is the reason why the world was framed by the word of His mouth (Hebrews 11:3). He is the reason why we experience common grace, the bestowal of blessings upon the just and the unjust. For believers, He is the reason why we experience special grace as it pertains to all the benefits that are granted unto us as a measure of saving faith. He is the source of it all.
Dr. Grant Richison stated “since God is the Creator of the universe, He possesses prerogatives of sovereignty. We need to recognize God’s superintendence over the universe and that He is absolutely supreme over the universe. Worship of God pivots around His eternal person and work. God receives all the glory because He does the work.” 2
He is to be lauded as He is the cause and originator of all things that are good.
God is worthy because there is no one else like Him. 1 Chronicles 16:25 is written “for the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; He is also to be feared above all gods.” The gods who people attempt to compare unto the God of heaven and earth are the works of men’s hands. This comparison is outlandish since the very nature of these artificial gods are crafted out of wood, silver, or gold and only possess the “so called” abilities granted unto them by their makers. Consequently, who can compare to God’s splendor, His majesty, His awesomeness, His radiance, His loving-kindness, His graciousness and mercifulness, His tenderness, His omnipotence, His omniscience, His omnipresence, His immutability, His wisdom, His faithfulness, His unblemished record of being sinless, His justness, His compassion, His glorious nature and so many other things that are associated with the being of God that points to His worthiness.
James Smith referred to the realism that God through Jesus died for our sins, is therefore worthy to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. We can never ascribe too much to God. He is worthy also to be believed, to be trusted with all, for all, before all; to be loved more than any other, in opposition to any that would rival Him. He is to be followed, wherever He may lead us. He is to be preferred over ease, pleasure, wealth, health or anything and everything that attempts to be exalted over Him or to the same degree as Him. God is worthy to be our example, our confidant, our King, and our all. He is worthy of all He requires and all that we can give. 3
References
https://gracequotes.org/topic/god-holiness/
https://versebyversecommentary.com/1998/12/03/revelation-411/
https://www.sermonsearch.com/sermon-illustrations/3910/jesus-is-worthy/
William Evans. The Great Doctrines of the Bible.
Paul Little. Know What You Believe.
Mark Sooy. The Life of Worship (Rethink, Reform, Renew).
Dictionary.com
John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible