I continue on this dark, dreaded and scornful topic of sin, not because I find it fascinating or take some perverse delight in doing so, but because I believe that until we begin to comprehend the breadth, length and depth of our sin; how vile and detestable it is in the eyes of God and thus deserving of infinite punishment, as well as how powerless we are in overcoming it in ourselves, we will not be able to comprehend the breadth, length, depth and height of God’s love displayed (Ephesians 3:14-19) in forgiving us of it through Jesus’ death on the cross (Romans 5:8), and in turn, come to love God as He deserves to be loved (Luke 7:44-47).
Notice I did not say sins, but sin, the rejection of God’s purpose for and rule over our lives. What we refer to as sins; lying, stealing, gossip, murder, adultery, disobedience to parents; are just symptoms, outward expressions of this inward condition in our hearts, a condition passed onto all mankind through Adam, wherein we believe that we can find greater joy, greater satisfaction, greater fulfillment in doing what we want to do, independent of God, rather than in trusting and obeying God (Romans 5:12).
John Owen, an old puritan writer who many believe has written the most important commentary on what Christ accomplished on the cross for sinful mankind, titled The Death of Death, in the Death of Christ, summarizes sin in this way:
Sin is essentially the resolve – the mad, utterly blameworthy, but none the less utterly firm resolve (by man) to play God and to fight the real God. Sinners resolve to treat themselves as the center of the universe and so they keep God at bay- at the (edge of) circumference of their lives – or so they think. They won’t allow the Creator to rule over them as He wills to do. If they appeal to God at all, they ask God to act according to their will and for their convenience like a servant who gets them out of trouble and bestows upon them good gifts. They never serve Him from the heart and only resent the claim of dominion over their lives that he makes.
In recent posts I noted God’s hatred and abhorrence of sin; that the Bible reveals sin, in its every expression, form, variation and degree, is experienced by God as vile, detestable and infinitely offensive, the supreme contradiction of His righteous nature and character, justly deserving condemnation and punishment consistent with its degree of offense (Psalm 5:4) (Proverbs 6:16-19).
And the reason it is so is because first and foremost, God is Holy (1 Samuel 2:2). Holy is a Biblical term that God uses to differentiate Himself from all of His creation. In its most literal – most simplistic form, to be holy means to be set apart from or above – to be distinct from.
When used in the Bible in regard to God, the term holy or holiness points to His glorious and mysterious otherness – that which (should) arouse awe and adoration, fear and reverence in our hearts, such that He is the object of our deepest love and sole recipient of our purest worship (Leviticus 10:3).
Holiness speaks to the incomparable and infinite perfections of God’s being, the greatness and immeasurable value of His divine person (Psalm 99:1-9). It posits His exalted position as the eternal, self-existent, self-sufficient, self-determining Creator and Sovereign ruler of the universe. The holiness of God includes His transcendent and infinite goodness, His infinite wisdom and power and most importantly His moral purity (1 John 1:5), all of the excellencies of His person that distinctly make Him God – and us not God.
Isaiah 6:1-6 is seen as the definitive statement in the Bible regarding the holiness of God. Isaiah, a prophet called by God to proclaim God’s glory, is granted an extraordinary vision of the holiness and majesty of God, namely God the Son (Daniel 7:13-14)), sitting on His throne as sovereign ruler and righteous judge of all the nations. Isaiah, who is most likely the Godliest man on earth at that time, stands trembling in fear and dread. Overwhelmed with his unworthiness to be in the presence of this Holy God, Isaiah pronounces a curse upon himself for having been exposed as a sinner to the unveiled glory and beauty of God.
This vision is given to help Isaiah and ultimately all mankind to see the contrast between the holiness of God and our sinfulness, as well as the terror, the overwhelming shame and guilt we will one day experience if we die in our sinful condition and thus stand guilty before the holy and just judge of the universe, condemned to forever be cut off from the glorious life with God for which we were created, no longer the object of His love, but forever the object of his hatred and wrath (Psalm 11:5-6).
However, this passage in Isaiah is also given to help us understand that God alone can forgive and purify us from our sin so that we can one day stand in His unveiled presence without shame or guilt or fear of judgement. And it will be the one sitting on the throne that Isaiah is trembling before, who will leave that throne and veil His majesty; coming into this world as a mortal man, Jesus Christ (Isaiah 53:2) (Philippians 2:5-11). And He will do so to accomplish everything necessary to forgive and purify from their sin all who will entrust their lives to Him, and renew in them the holy image of God that has been corrupted by that sin (2 Corinthians 3:17-18), so that we can be holy as He is holy (Leviticus 11:45), God’s own possession (1 Peter 2:9), finding our greatest joy, pleasure and satisfaction in knowing, loving and being loved by Him forever .
Grace and Truth ×
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