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The Presence of God

A friend of mine coaches amateur sports. He told me about one day when his team was particularly enthusiastic. They were running faster, playing more aggressively and generally working harder than he had ever seen before. There was no need for him to threaten anyone with extra laps or pushups to get them to perform at their best. He was pleased, but uncertain about what had caused this sudden transformation.

Then, he turned from the bench and looked behind him. Up on the stands was a row of young women. They were booked for cheerleading practice after the boys were finished on the field. His guess that the presence of the girls was the big motivator for the boys was confirmed at the next practice when the cheerleaders were not there and he had to resort to his usual drill-sergeant tactics.

Throughout life, the presence of certain persons affects how we act - whether it’s the policeman following our car, the boss walking past our desk or the cheerleaders in the stands. It occurs to me that the Bible indicates that we live out our entire lives in the presence of God. From Psalm 139, we understand that God is present everywhere throughout his creation. There is no place we can go and God is not there. Proverbs 15:3 states specifically “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, Keeping watch on the evil and the good.” Since we live constantly under the watchful eyes of God and in the presence of his eternal Spirit, it is a good idea to find out what He is like so we can act appropriately.

When we think about the things God has revealed about Himself, we see many characteristics which might affect our behaviour at any given moment. However, one exceeds all the rest. I recently heard a preacher say that references to God's holiness out number references to all of his other attributes put together. I haven't taken time to verify that, but it doesn't surprise me. One of the key things to note is that God's holiness conditions many of the other things we know about him.

Let's look at just one example. God is merciful. That means he does not always punish people directly and proportionately to their sins. If God's mercy were not holy, it would be possible for Him to let sinners escape without the due price of their sins being paid. But it is holy. God's mercy toward sinners rests on the foundation of the price his Son paid for our sin. His justice is satisfied by the death of his Son, so His mercy is available to us.

There are many passages which move the holiness of God into the realm of absolute certainty. One of the ways God's people of the Old Testament referred to Him was simply as "the Holy One." For instance, Proverbs 9:10 tells us: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

How holy is God? Absolutely. In Him there is not even the faintest hint of anything that is not entirely and utterly pure. The very word "holy" carries the idea of separation and, indeed, God is separate from us. While present throughout his creation, He is not part of it. Nor is he contaminated by it. He is holy. He is separate. God is so holy that the sinless angels in his presence cover their faces. Isaiah reports in chapter 6 of his self-titled book that when he had a glimpse inside heaven, he saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood magnificent angels who covered their faces and cried out to each other: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!" as the temple shook and filled with smoke. [Isaiah 6:1-4]

These holy heavenly beings who have never been defiled by sin, are humble in the presence of the One who is absolutely holy. Not only that, but they cry out to one another proclaiming the holiness of the Lord sitting upon the throne. When we think about how the angels respond to the holiness of God, it leads us to consider our own response to God. Since we are, in a sense, living constantly in the presence of God, the Holy One, how ought we behave? How should we live? What should be our response?

Ron Hughes
© January 2008