I had just been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. The disease became so severe that I had to take time off from graduate school. I felt lost and alone. I knew I needed to take the time out to face the past pain of being sexually abused as a child and my brother’s suicide. I had turned my back after my brother’s suicide. However, at the age of 25, I knew I could not do this in my own strength. I cried out to God for help for the first time in years. God met me right where I was at and I felt God’s presence in the room. It was both comforting and holy. God did indeed help me face my past emotional pain little by little in the years to come. I praised God as the one and only Holy God.
MEMORY VERSE
“Your ways, God, are holy. What god is as great as our God?” (Psalm 77:13, NIV).
WHAT’S IN A WORD?
Holy…
Holy is “spiritually perfect or pure; untainted by evil or sin; sinless” (Webster’s New World College Dictionary). It is “exalted or complete devotion as one perfect in goodness and righteousness” (Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary). It is “sanctity…of God” (Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words).
HIDDEN GEMS
Our God is indeed a Holy God. Many people will see God as their pal. However, we must exalt God and lift His name on high. When we do so, we will fear the Lord, which means to hold God up in awe and reverence for the Holy God that He is.
“Who among the gods is like you, Lord? Who is like you – majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders” (Exodus 15:11, NIV).
Read Exodus 15:11. What question begins this verse?
What is God majestic in?
What is God awesome in?
What does God work?
God is indeed an awesome God. God works wonders too high for our finite minds to comprehend. The Lord desires that we praise His name as a Holy God.
“There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God” (1 Samuel 2:2, NIV).
Read 1 Samuel 2:2. What is no one holy like?
What is none like our God?
Our God is our solid rock on which we stand. We may feel like we our sinking in the midst of trials and hardship but God is always there for us. We can worship God and give thanks for God who does mighty things and changes us from the inside out.
“And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord” (Ezekiel 38:23, NIV).
Read Ezekiel 38:23. What two things will God show?
Who will God show these two things to?
What will the nations then know?
God is great and holy. God desires for us to hold Him up in awe and reverence. God will make Himself known to us when we seek Him in the fear and reverence required for our Holy God.
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship” (Romans 12:1, NIV).
Read Romans 12:1. In view of what did Paul urge his fellow believers?
What are we to offer our bodies as?
What two things will these be to God?
What type of worship will this be?
We worship and adore God alone. We offer our bodies as a living sacrifice. This will in turn be holy and pleasing to God.
YOUR HEART’S DESIRE
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory” (Isaiah 6:3, NIV). God is majestic in His holiness. We should give all glory and praise to God. When we fear God as a holy God, we will be filled with His wisdom as we ask Him.
Name a time when you felt alone.
How did you cry out to God?
How did God show His holiness to you?
What Scripture spoke to you during this time?
How did you praise God for the Holy God that He is?
“Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name” (Psalm 103:1, NIV). Praising God throughout the day lifts our spirits as we place God in first place in our everyday lives. Our deepest inmost being can praise His holy name.
PRAYER
Dear Heavenly Father, I worship You and lift Your name on high as my Holy God. I stand in awe of Your mighty presence. I pray that You be with me throughout this day. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
NUGGETS OF WISDOM
A true love of God must begin with a delight in his holiness. Jonathan Edwards
The pursuit of holiness is a joint venture between God and the Christian. Jerry Bridges
The Bible as a whole speaks more of God’s holiness than of His love. Walter Chantry
Holiness involves friendship with God. Basil Hume
The stiff and wooden quality about our religious lives is a result of our lack of holy desire. A.W. Tozer
Inner Beauty Bible Study 