THE MEANING OF HOLINESS

LEVITICUS 20:22–26

You are to be holy to Me because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be My own

(Lev. 20:26).

What exactly does the Bible mean by the word holy? Most people think of holiness in terms of moral purity, or righteousness. Holiness, however, is something slightly different. There are two major ideas involved in holiness. The secondary of these two major ideas has to do with moral integrity. The primary one has to do with separateness.

God is holy in an absolute sense, because He is the creator of all things. There is nothing else like Him. In that sense, He is completely “other” from everything in the creation. He is transcendent. In the Bible, what makes a person, a place, a thing, or a time holy is the touch of God upon it. When God sets something apart, it becomes holy.

Israel was a holy nation because God had set them apart to be His. This made them a nation of priests. Simply being set apart does not make something holy; rather, it has to be set apart by God and unto God. Something that is holy is something that manifests God’s holy presence in the midst of life.

God was present with Israel, but His presence was set off by the glory cloud and by the many curtains and walls of the tabernacle and the temple. He was present but separated. The places that God marked off in this way became holy places, and the fear of God was upon them. The people were to experience a sense of mystery and fear in the presence of these holy places.

Pagan man sets things up and calls them holy. He fixes upon things, places, times, and persons the kind of fascination that only God should elicit from us—a fascination mixed with fear. When God Himself draws near, however, all these counterfeits of holiness evaporate. As Christianity goes forth into the world, the false mysteries of the pagans are conquered by the true fear of God.

In the Lord’s Prayer, we are taught to pray that God’s name be treated as holy throughout the world. The third commandment orders that God’s name be respected. Modern man takes God’s name lightly, showing that modern people are essentially profane in their hearts. When men treat God’s name with respect, they will show forth the holiness of God in their lives as well.

CORAM DEO

Joel

List those things mentioned in Colossians 2:16–23 which are powerless to promote holiness. What could you add to Paul’s list? Now begin a list from your experience which, in contrast, promotes true growth in holiness. Choose one or two of these and work to strengthen them.

For further study: 1 Sam. 2:1–10 • Isaiah 40:12–31 • Rev. 15:1–4

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