Be That Generation
- By John Piper
- Published 01/24/2007
- The Heart
-
Rating:
Few of Us Know What the Holiness of God Is
One thing is this: very few Christians know what the holiness of God is. It is sung about much and understood little. And there is a good reason for that.
Definitions depend on similarities. They depend on putting things into classes. But God is one of a kind. You can't put him into any class. For example. If I say, What is a rabbit? You might say, "It's an animal" and that helps because I know other animals. You might say, "It's a small furry mammal." And that helps because I know fur and small and mammal from other animals. You might say, "It has long ears and chews a cud." And that helps because I have ears and I know cows chew the cud.
But when it comes to defining God there are no analogies. He is in a class by himself. His goodness and righteousness and justice and truth and wisdom and grace and love and power may have echoes in his creatures, but in the end we are defined by him, not him by us. He is absolute, and we are contingent. He is utterly independent and without origin, we are utterly dependent and have our origin in him.
The final and ultimate meaning of goodness and righteousness and justice and truth and wisdom and grace and love and power come not from us but from him. That is why he is so hard to define. He isn't defined; he defines. In fact, it would be fair and biblical to say that the holiness of God is his "absolute uniqueness" (Gustav Oehler) which makes him the definer of all things and not the defined by any but himself. Another way to say it would be that God is incomparable.
He said in Isaiah 40:25, "'To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him?' says the Holy One." The Holy One is incomparable. One of a kind. In a class by himself. This is the way Hannah saw it in 1 Samuel 2:2, "There is none holy like the LORD; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God."
There is none besides you-that is what it means to be holy. Absolutely unique. Separate from all that is not God. Creating, sustaining, and defining all reality. Created by nothing. Sustained by nothing. Defined by nothing. He is absolute reality, and all other reality is real as he holds it in being.
An Absolutely Unique, Morally Perfect, Permanent Accessible Person
But more must be said. To say God's holiness is his "absolute uniqueness" and his "incomparableness" doesn't give his holiness any moral meaning.
But God's holiness in the Bible is a qualitative concept; it has moral content. If we ask: His holiness is unique in what, or incomparable in
what? the answer would be in moral perfection. His goodness is holy goodness because it is absolutely unique and incomparable in divine moral perfection.
His grace is holy grace because it is absolutely unique and incomparable in divine moral perfection. His wisdom is holy wisdom because it is absolutely unique and incomparable in divine moral perfection. His love is holy love because it is absolutely unique and incomparable in divine moral perfection.
God's holiness is his absolutely unique divine moral perfection. But there is another implication of uniqueness that must be drawn out of God's holiness. I asked my wife Friday night, "Why is gold so valuable? Why is it the standard of monetary value?" She said, "Because its rare." That's true and crucial. But I suggested that there are very rare fish that are just as hard to come by as gold. So she added, "Gold has some permanence. It doesn't rot and get smelly." Yes. And I would add one more thing: the value of gold is accessible. You can get at it.
There may be metals and stones deep in the earth more rare than gold, but they can never function as a standard of worth for us because we can't get at them. All three of these features of gold are implied in the biblical picture of God's holiness.
1. Since he is absolutely unique in divine moral perfection, he is rare-the rarest of all realities. There is only one of him, and nothing else is like him, and all else depends on him.
2. Not only is he rare, but he is also permanent. From everlasting to everlasting you are God (Psalm 90:2).
3. And not only is he rare and permanent, he has made himself accessible. "For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: 'I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit'" (Isaiah 57:15). Jesus is God's holiness made accessible and endurable.
Putting it all together, now we may say what is of the most powerful significance for our lives: Since God is absolutely unique in divine moral perfection, and is therefore the rarest of all reality, and permanent, and accessible, therefore he is of infinite value. More valuable than gold or silver or any precious stone or all the wealth in the universe, or any other created thing or quantity of things or any other person or groups of persons.
God's holiness is his infinite value as the absolutely unique, morally perfect, permanent person that he is, who by grace made himself accessible in Jesus Christ. Now we can see that when your generation wakens to a passion for God's holiness, it will be a passion for God's infinite value.
When your generation sees God as infinite more valuable than anything else in life, then everything will change. I ask again: What stands in the way?
One thing is this: very few Christians know what the holiness of God is. It is sung about much and understood little. And there is a good reason for that.
Definitions depend on similarities. They depend on putting things into classes. But God is one of a kind. You can't put him into any class. For example. If I say, What is a rabbit? You might say, "It's an animal" and that helps because I know other animals. You might say, "It's a small furry mammal." And that helps because I know fur and small and mammal from other animals. You might say, "It has long ears and chews a cud." And that helps because I have ears and I know cows chew the cud.
But when it comes to defining God there are no analogies. He is in a class by himself. His goodness and righteousness and justice and truth and wisdom and grace and love and power may have echoes in his creatures, but in the end we are defined by him, not him by us. He is absolute, and we are contingent. He is utterly independent and without origin, we are utterly dependent and have our origin in him.
The final and ultimate meaning of goodness and righteousness and justice and truth and wisdom and grace and love and power come not from us but from him. That is why he is so hard to define. He isn't defined; he defines. In fact, it would be fair and biblical to say that the holiness of God is his "absolute uniqueness" (Gustav Oehler) which makes him the definer of all things and not the defined by any but himself. Another way to say it would be that God is incomparable.
He said in Isaiah 40:25, "'To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him?' says the Holy One." The Holy One is incomparable. One of a kind. In a class by himself. This is the way Hannah saw it in 1 Samuel 2:2, "There is none holy like the LORD; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God."
There is none besides you-that is what it means to be holy. Absolutely unique. Separate from all that is not God. Creating, sustaining, and defining all reality. Created by nothing. Sustained by nothing. Defined by nothing. He is absolute reality, and all other reality is real as he holds it in being.
An Absolutely Unique, Morally Perfect, Permanent Accessible Person
But more must be said. To say God's holiness is his "absolute uniqueness" and his "incomparableness" doesn't give his holiness any moral meaning.
But God's holiness in the Bible is a qualitative concept; it has moral content. If we ask: His holiness is unique in what, or incomparable in
His grace is holy grace because it is absolutely unique and incomparable in divine moral perfection. His wisdom is holy wisdom because it is absolutely unique and incomparable in divine moral perfection. His love is holy love because it is absolutely unique and incomparable in divine moral perfection.
God's holiness is his absolutely unique divine moral perfection. But there is another implication of uniqueness that must be drawn out of God's holiness. I asked my wife Friday night, "Why is gold so valuable? Why is it the standard of monetary value?" She said, "Because its rare." That's true and crucial. But I suggested that there are very rare fish that are just as hard to come by as gold. So she added, "Gold has some permanence. It doesn't rot and get smelly." Yes. And I would add one more thing: the value of gold is accessible. You can get at it.
There may be metals and stones deep in the earth more rare than gold, but they can never function as a standard of worth for us because we can't get at them. All three of these features of gold are implied in the biblical picture of God's holiness.
1. Since he is absolutely unique in divine moral perfection, he is rare-the rarest of all realities. There is only one of him, and nothing else is like him, and all else depends on him.
2. Not only is he rare, but he is also permanent. From everlasting to everlasting you are God (Psalm 90:2).
3. And not only is he rare and permanent, he has made himself accessible. "For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: 'I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit'" (Isaiah 57:15). Jesus is God's holiness made accessible and endurable.
Putting it all together, now we may say what is of the most powerful significance for our lives: Since God is absolutely unique in divine moral perfection, and is therefore the rarest of all reality, and permanent, and accessible, therefore he is of infinite value. More valuable than gold or silver or any precious stone or all the wealth in the universe, or any other created thing or quantity of things or any other person or groups of persons.
God's holiness is his infinite value as the absolutely unique, morally perfect, permanent person that he is, who by grace made himself accessible in Jesus Christ. Now we can see that when your generation wakens to a passion for God's holiness, it will be a passion for God's infinite value.
When your generation sees God as infinite more valuable than anything else in life, then everything will change. I ask again: What stands in the way?