What exactly are you saying when you call God ‘Holy’? It’s one of those “church-words” that we’re so use to saying we forget to ask what we mean by it.
The Hebrew
The Hebrew word is Kadosh and it means ‘to be set apart.’ When you call God ‘holy’ you are actually declaring that God is unique, set apart, separate. He is different from you. He is other than you. You are stating that God is different even from all of His creation.
When you call God ‘holy’ you are making the statement that He is God, and He is God alone.
The Dilemma
Which can sometimes make worship difficult because it can be hard to worship what you don’t understand. It can be hard to praise someone that is so other than you, so different from you.
But I think that’s actually the point.
The Reason
One of the amazing aspects of worship is being reminded who God truly is. When you focus on God high and lifted up, or when you read in Revelation where it talks about thunder and lightning surrounding the throne of God as He just sits there… it invites us to pause and consider.
To stop and reflect.
He’s God.
He’s outside of time and space.
He is Creator.
He is Sustainer.
He is in control.
He is sovereign.
He is perfect.
He is boundless and measureless.
He is more awesome than even His holy places the psalmist declared.
He is the Holy One of Israel before whom all creation will bow.
It’s good to be reminded that words cannot fully describe Him and we cannot completely comprehend Him. He is unique. In fact, the best we can do is to say He is God, indeed a holy holy holy God. Truly there is none like Him.
The Prayer
Believer, may you be reminded this morning how big your God really is. May you begin to see Him as holy, separate, set-apart. May you begin to grasp the awesome grandeur that is your God. And as you see His holiness, may this bring you to your knees in awe, in wonder, in worship.