I always enjoy reading the posts the rest of the guys put on this blog. Last week, Nathan wrote a great devotional about living righteous for God. He made a great point that this does not come through our ability, but through a complete surrender to Christ. It is only through Him that our lives begin to reflect the Light of Jesus. I loved this, Nathan. Thank you for writing the post (Last Tuesday's blog, go back and read it in the archives if you missed it.) Also, thank you for sharing so deeply from your heart.
This really made me think about holy living. It is a command of the Father. The Word says, "But like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy.'" (1 Peter 1:15-16)
and "For this is the will of God, your sanctification (holiness…For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification." (1 Thessalonians 4:3, 7). God even told us how to do this. "So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:6, 7) This is tough. It asks us to do two things that are extremely difficult and uncomfortable for men, be humble and trust someone else.
and "For this is the will of God, your sanctification (holiness…For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification." (1 Thessalonians 4:3, 7). God even told us how to do this. "So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:6, 7) This is tough. It asks us to do two things that are extremely difficult and uncomfortable for men, be humble and trust someone else.
Men don't want to be submissive. It is not a natural reaction for us to admit we are weak, need help, or don't have a handle on life like we think we should. We want to believe that we know more than we do and that our judgment is the best. We tend to think that the only person you can really trust is yourself. These attitudes prohibit us from truly giving ourselves to Christ and keep us from ever really experiencing the wonderful righteousness of God that Nathan talked about. These attitudes come from us having the wrong idea of God. We tend to view God as one of our buddies or partners. We have this image in our brains (whether we want to admit it or not) that God is closer to an equal with us than the Sovereign Lord.
One of the most amazing stories of God's holiness comes from the book of Isaiah. Isaiah was a scribe and probably one of the best guys around, according to the standards of men. He was the kind of person you would want as a role model for your son. People would have said he was living a "righteous life." Then he met God in a very personal way. He realized what holiness is and we see the differencein his life when he truly gives himself to the Lord. Isaiah 6 tells the story that Isaiah saw a vision of the Lord in the temple. The train of his robe completely filled the space in the temple. Angels flew around the throne spoke praise to God in voices like earthquakes that caused the entire building to shake from the foundation up. The room filled with smoke as they cried out, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty. The whole earth is filled with His glory." (Isaiah 6:3) This was their purpose, to praise God because he is deserving of praise. This "good man" Isaiah breaks down. Just at the sight of the hem of God's robe, he catches a glimpse of the holiness of God. He loses himself and cries out, "It's all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people of filthy lips. Yet I have seen the Lord of Heaven's Armies." (Isaiah 6:5) In this moment, Isaiah humbles himself and trusts in God. An angel takes a coal from the alter and touches Isaiah's lips and tells him his guilt is removed and his sins are forgiven.
Isaiah learned that God is holy and sovereign. He humbled himself before God and learned what righteous living really was. We need to catch just a glimpse of God for who He really is; not who we think he should be, or who the media portrays Him to be. We need to understand that He really is an Awesome, Powerful, and Almighty God. It is only then that we begin to understand the fear of the Lord. This is the beginning of wisdom and the first step to us making a true surrender to Him. I challenge you to break into His Word with prayer and look to catch that glimpse of God's glory. It is life shattering and changing.
For His Glory,
Darrell Baty
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