Page 7 - Inside Report - 1st Quarter 2016

Holy One of God!” (Luke 4:34). The Bible describes Christ as spirit, which are God’s”

our High Priest,“who is holy, harmless, undeiled, separate from (1 Corinthians 6:19, 20).

sinners, and has become higher than the heavens” (Hebrews 7:26).
Holy Is
God’s law is also called holy.“The law is holy, and the

commandment holy and just and good” (Romans 7:12). One His Name

of the Ten Commandments actually uses the word holy. The
The third
fourth commandment says,“Remember the Sabbath day, to
keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8). (It always amazes me that some commandment

Christians want to get rid of the only commandment with the states,“You shall
not take the name
word holy.) The Sabbath was set apart at creation as holy time.
of the lorD your God
God separated the seventh day and made it distinct from all
other days of the week.We have no right to choose which days in vain, for the lorD
will not hold him
are holy. Rather, God is holy and only He can determine what
guiltless who takes His name in vain” (Exodus 20:7). Why
days are holy or not.
What makes the Bible a holy book? God. It is His message should we not speak the Lord’s name carelessly? Because God’s

to us.What makes the church sanctuary a holy place? God. name is holy. David wrote,“Holy and awesome is His name”
(Psalm 111:9). In the Old Testament sanctuary, the high priest
We come to worship in His presence.And what makes a holy
wore a gold crown with an inscription that read,“Holiness to
person? God. When you invite Jesus into your life, He sets you
the lorD” (Exodus 39:30).

The ancient Jews showed great respect for God’s name
an
d not even utter it. When scribes made copies of the
n nd d d d w w
w wo o o ou
u
ul
l
ld
d

Scriptur
s and came to the name of God, they would set down
re
es

t t t h h h e e e i i i r r r r r re
gular pen and use a separate pen to write His name. eg
Today, people use God’s name in vain all the time. It’s

very sad to see this lost reverence.

Indeed, the misuse of God’s holy name surrounds

us. People often text each other with “OMG,” an
abbreviation for “Oh my God.” But the Christian

w
ll guard against any lllippant misuse of God’s name
wi
il

bec
ca
use He is holy.
au
Billy Graham once said,“When revival comes, I expect

to see t
wo things which we have not seen yet. First, a new
t tw

sense of
the holiness of God on the part of Christians; and
f t

second, a
a new sense of the sinfulness of sin on the part of
Christian
ns
s.”When we see how much Jesus suffered on the cross

i in
for our i
iquities, it helps us understand the deadliness of sin;
ni

i i it t t i i is s s t t to o ox x xi
and will kill us. That’s why we cannot enter heaven
ic
c a

unless G
G Go
od has cleansed us of all unrighteousness. True
repentan
nc
ce happens only when we understand the destructive

nature o
o of
f sin in contrast with the holiness of God.

The
reason we should be especially interested in the holy
e r
n n n a a a m m m e e e o o of
God is because of the connection between His name f G

and those who are set apart at the end of time. John wrote,

“Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, apart for Him. The Bible tells us directly,“Do you not know that

and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom
His Father’s name written on their foreheads” (Revelation
you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were
14:1). Remember how the high priest wore God’s name on his
bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your

7
Inside Report
1Q 2016