God is Other, Wholly Set Apart: Psalm 99:9, Isaiah 5:15-16

• Holy (Hebrew- ‘qodesh’, Greek- ‘hagios’): set-apart, consecrated, sacred, completely other

• God’s holiness (“otherness”) is a major theme in Scripture as it relates to who God is and who His people are
• God is “other” in His perfection; completely set apart from His creation, which is broken and imperfect

• God is always manifesting His holy presence to His people throughout Scripture

o OT- Pillar of fire/smoke, the Holy of Holies, Holy Spirit empowerment for some
o NT- Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit empowerment for all

• When we encounter God in His holiness, the proper response is worship, reverence, and awe (fear of the Lord): Exodus 3:1-6, 15:11

• The response of worship and the proclamation of God’s holiness will be engaged eternally by all of God’s creation: Isaiah 6:1-3, Revelation 4:1-11
• God is always calling us, His image bearers, to be like Him, to be holy as He is holy (Leviticus 11:44): Matthew 5:48

• We fall short of the standard of God’s holiness because of our sin and brokenness—we cannot be holy on our own
• Jesus came and lived the perfect and holy life, and though wholly other as the Father, died so that we can share in His holiness through the Holy Spirit

Why This Matters

• God is magnificent and worthy of honor and worship because He is different—His difference is His perfection

• Because of His holiness, God’s ways and purposes are perfect and beyond our own: Isaiah 55:6-8
• We don’t always “get it” with what the Lord is up to—we don’t have to; we just need to trust Him in His perfection

• The Lord is the standard of measurement for our lives because of His holiness—what we think doesn’t matter
• While we fall short of that standard, we celebrate that we have Jesus who sacrificed Himself for us: Romans 5:8

• Because God is other and separate, He remains separated from those who don’t belong to Him through Christ
• In God’s love and holiness, He chooses to set His people apart and make us holy as well—more on that next week!

Our Response to God’s Holiness

• Lean into the awe and grandness of God’s holiness—worship Him fully, with everything you have

• Admit your own unholiness, sin and imperfection to the Lord—Repent and receive Christs grace and forgiveness

• Pursue God’s call of you to be holy and set apart just as He is, through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit

• “I will seek to have my whole life become an act of worship” (Romans 12:1-2)—The C.O.D.E.

• Reflect this week on the holiness of God as part of your devotional and worship time

o Reread the passages of Scripture in these notes and from the reading plan

o Prayerfully meditate on the passages and ask the Lord to reveal Himself to you through them

o Journal on what He shows you through the text and reflective prayer