The Splendor of His Holiness

Our God, in His very nature, is infinite. He is an eternal, self-existing God and by nature, beyond our imagination and comprehension.

His thoughts transcend our own. His power transcends our power, his ways eclipse our ways and His wisdom by far outmatches our wisdom. The fullness of His essence surpasses any human experience.

This is the nature of our God that makes Him deserving of all adoration and the glory in our praises. Our association with this greatness places upon us a special responsibility to proclaim His name, to praise Him, to edify the world and to lead the people to adore Him.

His love and grace, His justice and majesty are nothing short of beautiful. It is, without doubt, a terror to the wicked, but to the righteous it is a treasure. An irresistible drawing power that calls us from the darkest of valleys into an endless admiration. A constant delight for the heart that has tasted of the beauty of the Lord’s holiness.

Our consciousness to the sublimeness and the splendor of His beauty becomes an invariable, a constant quality in our songs, in our lives, in what we say, and in the design of our worship.

It is this awareness that we see in David’s words in 1 Chronicles 16:27-30, when he says: Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy are in his dwelling place. Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before him. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness. Tremble before him, all the earth! The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved.

As we begin the series we’re calling “The Splendor of His Holiness”, we are going to dwell pretty much on this aspect of the Lord’s essence or nature and we will seek to understand what the Bible means by this phrase. You know, how does our own experience of this beauty influence our worship? How are we supposed to experience this beauty and how should this experience help us render to the Lord worship that is genuine and relevant, and transformative in our lives? How can we as believers transcend the mundane, fleshly realm of worship into the realm of the Lords splendor?

You see, we must rise above the realm of earthly blessings and realities. Above the visual and musical aspects of worship. Above the sounds and motions around us and into the realm of stillness where we can focus and behold the one on the seat of mercy in the fullness of His glory and strength. It’s only when we dive that deep in our worship, deep enough that we feel light enough to let go of everything that tethers us to the world, only then do we experience the splendor of His holiness in full.

It is only when we reach into this realm that our reservations are broken and the conflicts within us resolved and only then can we say with the conviction that David had, that splendor and majesty are before our God. That strength and joy are indeed in His dwelling place. Because it is no longer a rumor. It is no longer something we have heard someone say. It is no longer something we read in the Bible; it is something we have beheld, an intimacy we have experienced.

You know, sometimes we read the Bible and imagine that such intense intimacy and experiences with God are mysteries of the servants and prophets of old and apostles like John the revelator. But the fact is, a way into this realm was opened for us when the Lord Jesus became flesh. A way that is lit by a worship rendered in spirit and in truth and we really are capable of experiencing this holiness the way they did. And when we embrace and appreciate the beauty and magnificence of it, how could we not be prompted to cry out with the heavenly beings that Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty?

We are not called to mere outward actions but to explore an even greater depth of worship. To reorganize our attitudes and submit to a higher standard of holiness and worship that makes it possible to walk in the footsteps of our Lord Jesus and eligible to stand in the presence of a holy God. To comprehend His transcendent sovereignty and to appreciate His irreproachable purity.

For how else are we to experience His potent, overwhelming presence other than by dwelling in it? How else are we to experience the all-powerful God than by dwelling where He is exalted upon His throne? How could we understand the eternal consistence and infinite holiness of our God if we do not ourselves walk in holiness?

There is an old Irish saying, that “You do not know someone until you have lived with them.” And I dare say that this goes for our relationship with God too. We cannot fully appreciate what we have not experienced. We cannot understand God’s nature and the splendor of His holiness if we keep Him at arm’s length or avoid intimacy and contact with Him. We can never appreciate how deserving of our adoration and praise our God is until we let go of ourselves and immerse ourselves without reservations into His worship. Until we rid ourselves of all what holds us back. Until we’re light enough to be readily drawn into His presence by the beauty of it.

©️Pastor Lucy Paynter

Daily Insights Podcast