Suddenly, unexpectedly, seemingly out of the blue – a question dropped into my mind. I recognized the Source and it captivated my thoughts throughout the evening and night. I could not give a clear answer so I took the advice of James 1:5 and asked the Lord to tell me the answer. This was the question - - What does it mean to worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness? Early in the morning several scripture verses tumbled into my head – so close to one another they bumped into each other as they entered. I combined (1 Chronicles 16:29 and Psalms 96:8-9) (Amplified Bible). “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His Name. Bring an offering and come before Him; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness and holy array. Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; tremble before Him and reverently fear Him”. Then I dissected this to dig into the meaning of each command.
Ascribe to the Lord His due glory: - I doubt if we could ever give God all the glory that is due Him but (1 Corinthians 10:31) we are very foolish to take any credit for anything God does in and through us – what He alone can do.
Holy array: - the dictionary says array means arrangement or order and also rich clothing. Everything to be done (1 Corinthians 14:40) decently and in orderly fashion. Then we must come humbly – clothed in Christ’s righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30, 2Cor.5:21) and not tainted with self-righteousness. Holiness and beauty cannot live with pride.
Bring an offering: That could be giving all we have to God and being fully content to be His faithful stewards. Or it could be the daily personal – choice – reminder that whatever this day holds, we are here for God’s will and purpose. Also there is another offering we can bring to worship the Lord. Whoever offers praise (Psalms 50:23) glorifies Me. How come? Follow the steps. Offer the sacrifice of praise (Hebrews 13:15) at all times. Why would praise be a sacrifice and how can we glorify God then when it is? - -? There are times of pain – sorrow – grief – great difficulty and confusion – what seems like the worst of times - - if we – by our disciplined will determine to keep our focus on God and not on our circumstances – just because we love and trust Him – He is honoured and glorified in us. He always knows and does the very best for us. Our praise to the Lord is a declaration to the world, the flesh and the devil that nothing can diminish our love and adoration for Jesus. In fact our temporary circumstances may increase our faith and love because we confidently look forward to (Isaiah 64:4, 1 Corinthians 2:9) what we know is just up ahead for us. Remember that it is a sacred privilege for a redeemed sinner on earth to glorify the Almighty Sovereign God in heaven.
Tremble before Him and reverently fear Him: - I don’t think genuine worship is possible without holy fear and reverential awe. As we meditate on Who – What – All that God is – beyond – the beyond of our minds - - planets, trillions of stars, a moon that controls the tides and men have walked on it and so much more. And with all that it seems unbelievable that the same Almighty Sovereign God is interested and concerned for the smallest detail or need of my life and is so loving and kind that I call Him – Dear, Dear Precious Father. How can I bring that vast scope together? I can’t but it fills me with awe and wonder-filled gratitude that makes me tremble.
Personal commands for us: I am the Lord your God (Leviticus 11:44) so consecrate yourselves to be holy for I am holy. As the One Who called you is holy (1 Peter 1:15) you yourselves also be holy in your conduct and manner of living.
We know that holiness is beautiful and that only God is intrinsically holy in His very Person – Himself.
We can with joy (Psalms 27:4) behold and gaze upon the beauty, the sweet attractiveness and the delightful loveliness of the Lord and meditate in His Presence. But we need to dig still deeper for the answer we want. It is much more than admiration. There can be no true worship apart from obedience. Offerings – sacrifices mean less than nothing – in fact they can be an offence to God (1 Samuel 15:22-23) without obedience.
What is the beauty of holiness? First – what is the holiness of God? It is His absolute righteousness, justice and purity. God is Light (1 John 1:5) and there is no darkness in Him in any way. He lives in unapproachable light (1 Timothy 6:16) the brilliant, blinding, killing light of His holiness.
God so loved you and me, His love for us was so great that He was willing to break His own heart to forgive us. BUT – BUT – BUT –God could not forgive us and still remain holy. God’s HOLINESS demanded JUSTICE. His HOLINESS commanded that JUSTICE be fully avenged and completely satisfied. So – what? – how?
When a master painter or sculptor begins a work, it’s not much to look at in the early stages, but when it’s completed we can see and appreciate the beauty of a masterpiece.
When Jesus came not many (Isaiah 53:2) saw any beauty to suit their desires. But when He had completed the stunning work of Atonement and Redemption - - Justice married Love and produced Grace. The Beauty of God’s holiness – is JESUS.
The ongoing Beauty of God’s holiness is still JESUS - - incarnate in you and me. That’s the only way we can have (Psalms 90:17) the Beauty of our God upon us and within us. It is only because we are “in Beauty Himself” – “in Christ” that we can pray in the spirit and live in the victory of a life that is (Colossians 3:3) hidden with Christ in God.
“My heart awakening cries – May Jesus Christ be praised.”
