Tag: holiness

How Omni is God?

When we talk about God’s infinite nature, we usually talk about the three “omnis”: His omniscience (infinite knowledge), omnipotence (infinite power), and His omnipresence (infinite presence).  But other attributes of God are infinite as well: holiness, love, grace/mercy, and eternity, for instance.

Before we get into those, though, I’d like to look again at what infinity is.  There are two types of infinity related to duration: actual and potential infinity.  God is actually infinite.  That is, God has always existed from eternity past and will always exist to eternity future.  You and I are potentially infinite.  We had a beginning, but we will live forever.  There is no end to our existence. 

Where God cannot number His days, we can.  Though there will be no end to our existence, the number of days we exist, assuming time will always be measured in days, will always have a number.  There are about ten to the eightieth power electrons in the universe (ten octodecillion).  While that is a very large number, it is still an actual number that can be divided, added to, subtracted from, and multiplied. 

Infinity is larger than that.  Infinity is a number so large that it cannot change value when you add, multiply, divide, or subtract from it (except to divide or subtract infinity from itself).  It’s really so large, we can’t wrap our heads around it.  Let’s look at an old description of infinity just to add to the confusion:

Imagine a library with an infinite number of books.  In that library, there is an infinite number of red books and an infinite number of black books.  Each book has an infinite number of pages.  With this example, there is the same total number of books as there are red books.  There is the same number of pages in one book as there are pages in all the books combined, and the same total number of books.

It doesn’t make sense to our finite minds, but this is the concept of infinity.

Now, how infinite is God? God is infinite in His power (God doesn’t make logical contradictions such as square circles, but all His purposes are irresistible):

Luke 1:37 (ESV)  For with God nothing will be impossible.

                Job 42:2 (ESV)  “I know that You can do everything, And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.”

God is infinite in His knowledge (all things actual, possible, past present and future):

                Psalm 147:5 (ESV)  Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite.

God is infinitely present (His being is not spread out but the entirety of His being is everywhere):

        Jer. 23:24 (ESV)  Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?” says the Lord; “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the Lord.

God is infinitely Holy (absolute moral perfection and separation from sin)

Isa. 6:3 (ESV)  And one cried to another and said:  “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!”

God’s love is infinite (immeasurable and eternal)

        Eph. 3:19 (ESV)  and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

God’s grace and mercy are infinite (it is eternal)

Psalm 136:1 (ESV)  Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.

God’s duration is infinite (past, present, and future)

       Psalm 90:2 (ESV)  Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

Why is this important?

Our God is infinite beyond all human understanding, but don’t feel inadequate.  We’re not alone in our ignorance. No one understands God except He Himself:

                1 Cor. 2:11 (ESV)  So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

Hopefully, we see from this how truly great and grand the God we serve is.  There is none greater.  He is the one true God and the only God with whom we have to do.

The Holiness of God

The Bible says God is holy. Just what exactly does it mean to be holy?  Let’s look at some of the ways God is holy:

  •   He is set apart, distinct, unlike any other.  He is not just better than creation, He is other than creation.  He is absolutely unique:
    Ex. 15:11 (ESV)  “Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?”

God is above and beyond all created things.

  • He is morally perfect in that He is pure, undefiled, and without sin. 

1 John 1:5 (ESV)   This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

God’s character is unblemished; His moral purity is absolute.

  • God’s essential nature is holy.  It is not just one of His many attributes.  It is the beauty of all His attributes combined:

            Isa. 6:3 (ESV)  And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”

In Hebrew, repeating a word three times expresses perfection and infinite intensity.  God is not just holy, He is perfectly and infinitely holy.

  • God is separate from all evil, He is perfectly opposed to sin.

                Habakkuk 1:13a (ESV)  You who are of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong,

God is morally incapable of tolerating or participating in evil.

Now that we’ve looked at how holy God is, let’s look at the holiness connected with the things and people of God.

  •  Objects, people, and places that are set apart for God’s use are called holy

Lev. 20:26 (ESV)  You shall be holy to me, for I the Lord am holy and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine.

1 Peter 2:9 (ESV)  But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Holy here means to be set apart for God’s purpose.  We are not perfect, but we should practice moral purity, obedience to God, separation from sin, and devotion to Him.  In short, we need to grow in Christlikeness through the Spirit.  Yes, we never truly can reach this holiness on our own, but only in a life transformed by grace.

  •  Lastly, but certainly not least important, is the holiness of God’s covenant with us:

Heb. 10:10 (ESV)  And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

                We are holy and set apart, sanctified, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ forevermore.

Why is this important?

This is important to us as Christians because we need to better know the God with whom we share a personal relationship.  Just as we can learn more about our spouses, children, friends, and even enemies, to understand them and thus relate to them better, we can know the one true God in a very personal.  This is true with God. 

Understanding His holiness gives us insight into how to worship Him more fully.