Holiness and Obedience

Exodus 19:4-6

4 ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, 6 you[a] will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.”

See, I have done a wonderful thing. I have brought you out of slavery, to worship me on my holy mountain. I have redeemed you and sanctified you. You are mine.

If you choose by your own free will to obey my commands. I will show you my glory and you shall be my most holy nation: You shall be a kingdom of priests and I shall esteem you and value you as my most precious people.

Obedience to God's commands is key to manifesting God's holiness It is the link between holiness and redemption. As we purposeful subjugate our will to His will, He will communicate to us His holiness.

I have the film The Ten Commandments on Youtube. The one with Charlton Heston and Yul Brynner.

My mind is taken to the moment when Moses came down the mountain after spending 40 days in God's most holy presence. The Jews had ruined themselves with drunkenness, orgies, prostitution, and even Aaron built a Golden calf for the people to worship. 

I recall that immortal line "Those who will not live by the law shall die by the law" and he threw the stone tablets hewn by God's own hand into the cliff and they exploded. and the earth shook and open its bowels to swallow the Jewish nation. Yet even here at this time, God relents from His fierce anger when those who repented flocked to Aaron's side. Aaron was filled with remorse and shame.

Will you subjugate your own desires and wants for His Most Holy purpose? 

If yes, then He shall open the door to His most joyful purposes and you will find peace and fulfillment in His will for that is the purpose he created you.

If not, then... "those who will not live by the law will die by the law".

Let the answer be yes. 

Amen 

Holiness and majesty

 Who is like You among the gods, O Lord? Who is like You, majestic in holiness, Awesome in splendor, working wonders? You in Your loving kindness and goodness have led the people whom You have redeemed; In Your strength, You have guided them with care to Your holy habitation. You will bring them [into the land of promise] and plant them on the mountain (Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem) of Your inheritance, The place, O Lord, You have made for Your dwelling [among them], The sanctuary, O Lord, which Your hands have established.

Exodus 15:11‭, ‬13‭, ‬17 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/exo.15.11-17.AMP

God is majestic in holiness, and here God is guiding His once enslaved but now redeemed people into His holiness. The people shall inhabit the place of His holiness. God and His redeemed and now sanctified people shall live in the same place. His sanctuary. 

There I will meet with the Israelites, and the Tent of Meeting shall be sanctified by My glory [the Shekinah, God’s dwelling presence].

Exodus 29:43 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/exo.29.43.AMP

Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord said: ‘I will be treated as holy by those who approach Me, And before all the people I will be honored.’ ” So Aaron, therefore, said nothing.

Leviticus 10:3 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/lev.10.3.AMP

Only the priests could approach God. And it is through the priests that the glory, majesty, and holiness of God, are revealed to His people. 

And one called out to another, saying, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is filled with His glory.”

Isaiah 6:3 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/isa.6.3.AMP

Consider the seraphim singing of God's holiness ...The whole earth is filled with His glory.

The glory, majesty, and holiness of God are made manifest for all to see.  

Our God dwells in a consuming fire and light that are unapproachable. This can be seen in the account of Moses and the burning bush. Both fire and light speak of His holiness. As Moses grew in His faith to approach God He began to carry His presence. So much so that his countenance was changed and his face shone.

Listen to me, my child.

I shall lead you to dwell in my holiness 

I shall be both with you and in you

I shall surround you with my glory, majesty, and holiness.

You shall carry my presence with you wherever you go. 

People will be drawn to you because of me says the Lord.

You shall manifest my holiness before the people. 

The whole earth shall look at you and be amazed.

Through you, I shall be glorified in the whole earth.

Leaders, Cities, Towns, Nations, Kingdoms, and Peoples 

shall be drawn to me in these days for I shall be among my people. 

And they shall manifest my glory, majesty, and holiness

Watch and be amazed at what I am doing among my people and on the earth.

Surely, I shall be honored and glorified by my people 

It is as you lose sight of self, in favour of  me that you manifest my glory

I have redeemed you, you are mine.

You are not your own.

Praise me before men and I shall show both them and you my holiness for I dwell in the praises of my people.

Never before has a generation needed God's holiness like this generation. 

A generation starved of the knowledge of me.

Tell me, who shall tell them and who shall go

What shall be your answer?

Amen

Holiness and redemption

 “Sanctify to Me [that is, set apart for My purpose] every firstborn, the first offspring of every womb among the children of Israel, both of man and of animal; it is Mine.”

Exodus 13:2 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/exo.13.2.AMP

Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Behold, I have taken the Levites from among the sons of Israel instead of and as a substitute for every firstborn, that is, the first that opens the womb among the Israelites. So the Levites shall be Mine, for all the firstborn are Mine. On the day that I killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated for Myself all the firstborn in Israel, both man and animal. They shall be mine; I am the Lord.”

Numbers 3:11‭-‬13 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/num.3.11-13.AMP

For I am the Lord who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God; therefore you shall be holy, for I am holy.’ ”

Leviticus 11:45 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/lev.11.45.AMP

But now, this is what the Lord, your Creator says, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you [from captivity]; I have called you by name; you are Mine!

Isaiah 43:1 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/isa.43.1.AMP

God provides a way out from the curse of the angel of death in that first Passover. It was Pharaoh's own words that were the deciding factor in God sending the angel of death to smite the firstborn of all Egypt. God, reveals himself as Redeemer and Deliverer. And to the Israelites, it was to be the link between the seen and temporal to the unseen and spiritual. 

As soon as the people are taken out and delivered from the oppression of the pharaoh, his very first act is to sanctify to himself every firstborn both human and animal. Not only did God deliver the Israelites from oppression and tyranny. But He delivered them into his all-surpassing holiness. You shall be holy for I am holy was his declaration. 

There can be no holiness without redemption (Isaiah 43:1). First, God redeems then sanctifies and makes holy. Every true Israelite ( and now gentile as we have been grafted in ) has been redeemed and made holy (set apart for his purposes).  

I am the Lord Almighty. 

My dear children, have you heard my voice. I speak to you softly and gently and say to you 'You are mine to use for my purposes'. 

Listen for my voice calling you to holiness. 

I created you. You are mine 

I redeemed you. You are mine 

I sanctified you and made you holy. You are mine.

Learn to live every day under the power of Jesus' precious blood. 

Let it cover your sin and shame. 

Learn to see yourself through God's eyes. As pure and holy.

Let Him who redeemed and sanctified you possess you completely. You are not your own. You belong to Him, to use as He sees fit, for his most holy purpose.

Be amazed at what I will do when you seek me with all your heart.

Come to me and let not your heart be dismayed for I have purchased you at my own cost. 

You are mine.

Surely, I will give you back every stolen blessing and provision. 

The doors to abundance have been opened. 

I will grant you favor from on high.

See, I have sent angels to both protect and minister.

Do you not see them? Or sense their presence?

Ask me and I shall open your eyes to perceive that which is unseen.

You are at His disposal, to do with, as He pleases.

Remember you are His child and He so much desires to share his plans with you. 

You are complete. There is nothing missing. In Him, you live and have your being.

Amen

Holiness and revelation

 And Moses said, “I will turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.” When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here am I.”

Exodus 3:3‭-‬4 RSV

https://bible.com/bible/2020/exo.3.3-4.RSV

Wherever God is present, is hallowed ground, here we have the moment when God reveals His holiness for the first time since God rested from all his work and made the Sabbath day holy.

Here for the first time in history, God reveals himself as God as the holy one. God's holiness can be seen both as a judge and a redeemer.

Moses knew God as God Almighty: the God of Promise(Ex 6:3), but now God reveals to Moses something new about his character. God would now reveal himself as Jehovah the God of fulfillment, especially in the redemption and deliverance of Israel from the oppression of the pharaoh.

Jehovah is the God of redemption and holiness. 

Fire and light are both seen in the burning bush. God's holy fire and purity consume everything, and everything that will not yield itself to His holiness is turned to ashes and smoke, and the rest is transformed into His own nature.

But what about you? 

What does this mean for you?

Holiness is the fire of God. Praise Him that He will burn up the dross and vile and does not leave it undisturbed. Praise God you are on fire but you are not burning up.

If our theology only sees the Love of Christ on the cross, we have missed His Righteousness and Justice, Our God is a consuming fire, in His holiness judgment and mercy meet.

Praise Him that unrepentant sinners are judged and those who offer themselves to Him and let Him do a wonderous redemptive work in their souls are consumed by fire: On fire yet not burned up.

My child, let me transform you.

You shall be a force for good on the earth, through my work within you, you shall be transformed from sinner to saint, a holy one, fit for righteous works.

 God reveals himself as the omnipotent holy one in order that you become His messenger.

Will you accept that mandate to become a messenger to the nations and kingdoms around you of His all-surpassing holiness?

Amen  

And God rested and made the Sabbath holy

 So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it because on it God rested from all his work which he had done in creation.

Genesis 2:3 RSV

https://bible.com/bible/2020/gen.2.3.RSV

“Say to the people of Israel, ‘You shall keep my sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you.

Exodus 31:13 RSV

https://bible.com/bible/2020/exo.31.13.RSV

And God sanctified the Sabbath day to make it holy.

God hath called His creation good and very good, but man was not yet holy, that priceless work of being sanctified in Christ starts here.

Those first six days from when God fashioned the heavens and the earth to when he created man speak of the wonderous power of the Creator.

Up until the 7th day God showed his work of creation. When God rested on the 7th day he showed another side, that of sanctifier. His omnipotence is chief of his natural attributes and His holiness is His first moral attribute. 

He alone is Creator and He alone is Sanctifier.

Blessed are you if you understand and believe this in your heart and mind

Amen.