The Beauty of Holiness
Lisa Cooke
For many of us, worshiping God is a favorite activity, one mostly experienced through music and singing, or prayer and contemplation. As we grow in spiritual maturity, we realize that worshiping God is not to be one of many activities, but is to be a perpetual, foundational activity in our Christian lives. It is to be the basis of our behavior, attitudes, our purpose and testimony. Everything we do and everything we are can and should be a worshipful response to the Lord our God.
Psalm 29:2 and Psalm 96:9 both say “worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.” Some commentaries indicate the phrase “the beauty of holiness” means “in holy attire,” which prompted me to ask, what are we to “wear” during worship? To worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness speaks to me of two things. First it speaks of the care He has taken through the work of Jesus in His death, burial, and resurrection to prepare us for worship before Him. He wants us to be sanctified worshipers. Second, it reminds me that we are not to “come as we are,” but to come as Jesus is.
Imagine the beauty of the moment when we come before Him fully “dressed” and aware of our righteousness in Christ, fully attired in the armor of God, “putting on the new self, which is being renewed after the image of its Creator” (Col. 3:10). To approach God fully cognizant of who we are in Christ is in itself significant worship. The goal we are all pressing toward is to always be in this moment, fully “dressed” for worship every hour of our lives. Admittedly, this takes much attention to the details of our redemption.
But those details are what inspire us to worship the God who has made us in Christ to be righteous before Him.
1 Peter 1:15-16 says ‘But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”
The Lord has shown us what is good, the beautifully holy qualities that He requires of us throughout scripture. We know that He asks for justice, mercy and humility from our lives in Micah 6:8.
Paul exhorts the Romans in Romans 12:1 (ESV), “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Have you ever considered crucifying your flesh as worship? Most of us will begin worship with being mindful of the things we are thankful for, but what if we entered worship with our bodies “kept under” as Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 9:27? That means we “put to death what is earthly” (See Col. 3:5-9) and it may mean that we come before God in repentance before we come with thanksgiving! He is faithful and just to forgive us each time we ask Him for pardon and we should always take full advantage of this grace as the need arises.
From Colossians 3: 12-15 (ESV) we have these instructions: “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other, as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.”
On a side note, did you notice in the middle of that section of Scripture, that forgiveness is a part of what God asks us to put on? Matthew 5:23 tells us to first be reconciled to our brother before we offer a gift to God. We know our relationship with others is a very high priority to the Father. The lifestyle and behaviors God asks of us have much to do with our associations with people, not just ourselves and our relationship with Him. Good relationships with others are part of the beauty of holiness!
Having the privilege of the presence of God means coming to Him on His terms. The glory of all of this is that God has made every provision for our sanctification through the Blood of Christ, the forgiveness and redemption of all sin that ever intended to keep us apart from God. 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 says, “…Now may the God of peace sanctify you completely…He who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it.”
So what we “wear” to worship does matter to God. But it is not the outward apparel but the hidden person of the heart (1Peter 3:3-4) that is to be beautiful in holiness. Let us allow the renewing of our minds by the Word of God to bring about that holiness which is “our reasonable service” as we honor our God through worship.
For many of us, worshiping God is a favorite activity, one mostly experienced through music and singing, or prayer and contemplation. As we grow in spiritual maturity, we realize that worshiping God is not to be one of many activities, but is to be a perpetual, foundational activity in our Christian lives. It is to be the basis of our behavior, attitudes, our purpose and testimony. Everything we do and everything we are can and should be a worshipful response to the Lord our God.
