The Lord said to Moses, 2“Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.
~ Leviticus 19:1-2
What does it mean to be holy?
Over 200 times in Scripture, God is referred to as holy. The concept of holiness is separation, being separate or cut off. God is separate from everything that is sinful or evil. God cannot tolerate sin.
John wrote:
This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all ~ 1 John 1:5.
In Scripture the Hebrew word “kadesh” is the word for holiness, meaning something cut off, separate or set apart, something that is out of the realm of the ordinary. In the New Testament the Greek word “hagios” is use to mean set apart or in a class by itself.
As followers of Christ we are called to be set apart.
On this, the first Monday of Lent, reflect on these thoughts regarding holiness.
Holiness does not consist in doing extraordinary things. It consists in accepting, with a smile, what Jesus sends us. It consists in accepting and following the will of God.
― Mother Teresa, Mother Teresa: In My Own Words
Holiness, as taught in the Scriptures, is not based upon knowledge on our part. Rather, it is based upon the resurrected Christ in-dwelling us and changing us into His likeness.
― A.W. Tozer, Preparing for Jesus' Return: Daily Live the Blessed Hope
A holy life will make the deepest impression. Lighthouses blow no horns, they just shine.
It is a great deal better to live a holy life than to talk about it. We are told to let our light shine, and if it does we won’t need to tell anybody it does. The light will be its own witness. Lighthouses don’t ring bells and fire cannon to call attention to their shining—they just shine.
Dwight L. Moody
Holy, Holy, Holy
Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee;
Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!
God in three Persons, blessèd Trinity!
Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore Thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee,
Who was, and is, and evermore shall be.Holy, holy, holy! though the darkness hide Thee,
Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see;
Only Thou art holy; there is none beside Thee,
Perfect in power, in love, and purity.
Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All Thy works shall praise Thy Name, in earth, and sky, and sea;
Holy, holy, holy; merciful and mighty!
God in three Persons, blessèd Trinity!Reginald Heber wrote this hymn for Trinity Sunday while he was Vicar of Hodnet, Shropshire, England. (1826)
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