Holy: October 16, 2012

TODAYS WORD FOR TUESDAY OCTOBER 16, 2012.

HOLY

DEFINITION:

Worthy of worship; sacred; characteristic of God; spiritually pure; devoted to the service of God; religious; devout.

 SCRIPTURE:

"Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory." Isaiah 6:3

Exalt the Lord our God and worship at His Holy Hill; for the Lord our God is holy. Psalm 99:9

It is written, "Be holy, for I am holy." I Peter 1:16

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

When people hear about something out of the ordinary, we often hear them say, "holy smoke," or "holy moley," or "holy mackerel" to indicate that they are surprised to hear it. We also have often heard the term, "holy terror" to describe an out of control child. When these expressions are used there is really nothing "holy" about what is being referred to as "holy."

Only God is truly holy. God is perfect in goodness and righteousness and without sin. He alone is worthy of our worship and devotion. As the psalmist says, we exalt the Lord our God and worship Him because He is our God and He is holy. In reality the word "holy" should only be used to refer to God Himself and His Holy Word and to those things that relate to God.

The word "HOLY" also means to be dedicated or set apart. When applying the word "HOLY" to places, persons or things it means being set apart for the service of God and thus sacred and removed from the realm of ordinary. In the Old Testament everything associated with worship was set apart in this manner, and thus was considered sacred or "holy." "HOLY" is God's realm and God was to be honored supremely so everything designated as "HOLY" was to be treated with the utmost of respect and care.

God’s purpose of His laws and regulations in the Old Testament was to set His people apart from the pagan nations of the world. He wanted them to separate from the corruption of the world and be holy, because He is holy. Leviticus 11:45.

Since the death and resurrection of Jesus, we no longer worship God with the Old Testament rituals. These Old Testament rituals were regarded as "HOLY" because of their association with God. These rituals of worship were led by the priests.

Today we, as believers who are in Christ, are called to His royal priesthood and serve as His priests to carry on His ministry. God has the same desire for us today as He did for the Israelites. He wants us to be holy and set apart from the world. In the verse above from I Peter the same commandments given in Leviticus is given to us: “Be Holy for I am holy.”

So how do we who are unholy become holy? The believer in Jesus Christ becomes holy by being obedient to all of God's commandments and following Christ's example. As believers it is necessary to separate ourselves from the evil ways of the world. We should "stand out in the crowd' because our life exemplifies Christ-like qualities. As believers we are set apart from this world and should be totally dedicated to serving our "HOLY" God.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in John 8:32.

And you will know the truth and the truth will make you free.

PRAYER:

Help me to be aware daily that I serve a "HOLY" God. Keep me faithful so that I set myself apart from the things of this world so that I can serve You in all that I do. Help me to be obedient to Your commandments and to live my life according to Christ's example.