Atone: God's Holiness
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Having looked at God’s love we now turn to God’s Holiness.
“Holy” is the most used verb in the bible to describe God.
3 And they were calling out to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Hosts; all the earth is full of His glory.”
15 I am the LORD, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, and your King.”
The word holy means “to be set apart”.
A holy thing is called holy because it is not like other things.
It is different.
God is Holy because there simply is none like Him.
God is holy in power because there is none like Him in power.
God is holy in knowledge because there is none who knows like Him.
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More specific to our study:
God is Holy because there is no sin, wickedness, weakness or fault in Him at all.
God is Holy because God is Perfect.
Holiness brings Justice.
Being Holy, this holiness manifests as justice.
Justice is when people get what they deserve.
God, because He is Holy, is also just and always acts in justice.
4 He is the Rock, His work is perfect; all His ways are just. A God of faithfulness without injustice, righteous and upright is He.
12 Indeed, it is true that God does not act wickedly, and the Almighty does not pervert justice.
Conflict:
Conflict:
Imminently we should see a problem.
God’s holiness is incompatible with human wickedness.
Our sin is an offence to God.
13 Your eyes are too pure to look upon evil, and You cannot tolerate wrongdoing. So why do You tolerate the faithless? Why are You silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?
18 If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.
Conflict Judgment
As a Holy God who is just, wrong must be judged and punished.
Well because God is Holy He is the only one qualified to be Judge.
In fact, the bible frequently calls God the Judge.
25 Far be it from You to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Will not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?”
God’s Holiness requires that God must judge and punish sin.
The Dilemma
The Dilemma
Now I’m sure you can see the dilemma we have between God’s Love and God’s Holiness.
Both are essential attributes of God.
God is not more loving than he is holy; nor is God more holy than He is loving.
As deeply as God loves the sinner; equally deep is God’s hatred for sin.
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If God were more loving than holy then He could just forget us of our sins without punishment.
However if that were the case then God would cease to be Holy.
On the other hand:
If God were more Holy than He is loving then He could just leave us to die in our sin as a just punishment for what we have done.
If that were the case God would cease to be Love.
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The Solution to this dilemma is the Atonement.
The Atonement
The Atonement
That Jesus Christ, the Son of God, would lay down His Holy life in Love for us as a substituent sacrifice.
Lets walk through the steps:
1: God detests sin and is a just judge.
1: God detests sin and is a just judge.
16 There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to Him:
As we have seen God cannot tolerate sin. God cannot even look at sin.
Sin cannot simply be put away.
24 Instead of fragrance there will be a stench; instead of a belt, a rope; instead of styled hair, baldness; instead of fine clothing, sackcloth; instead of beauty, shame.
It is a crude illustration but as the bible says Sin is a stench!
God has to punish sin.
2: If sin could be “put away” without punishment then the bible is wrong.
2: If sin could be “put away” without punishment then the bible is wrong.
The bible makes a powerful absolute claim regarding sin:
4 because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
If something is impossible it means that it cannot be done. Period.
It has nothing to do with resources or ability.
Impossibility is not a skill issue - it is a nature issue.
Objection:
Does the scripture teach that with God all things are possible?
Citation:
27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”
I want you to notice in this verse that Jesus is NOT referring to skill but nature.
Luke words it like this:
27 But Jesus said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”
Because of our human sinful nature certain things are impossible for man.
But because God does not share our sinful human nature and has a divine holy nature things that are impossible for us are possible for God.
HOWEVER!
God’s own divine holy nature makes it impossible for God to do things that are completely possible for man to do.
For example scripture makes it clear:
18 Thus by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be strongly encouraged.
Have you lied? Your sinful human nature makes it possible.
For God however, it is impossible to lie because His own nature makes it impossible.
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Now back to our passage:
4 because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
This means that as far as removing sins is concerned: God’s Nature makes it impossible for animal sacrifice to take away sins.
Why?
Because God is Holy and Just sin must be punished.
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Punishing animals as sacrifices in our place does NOT satisfy the scales of God’s justice.
God’s Love wants to save us.
God’s Holiness requires that our sin be justly punished.
Conclusion and Summery:
Conclusion and Summery:
Because God is love; in love He sent Jesus Christ to us.
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Because God is Holy and must punish sin, Jesus took our punishment upon Himself.
5 But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
Lyrics of the Fathers Bargan.
Lyrics of the Fathers Bargan.
This “agreement” within the Godhead that Jesus would would come and be punished in our place is called the Pactum Solutis.
There is a song that attempts to shed light on the “discussion” between the Father and Son on how to deal with our sins.
The song is NOT to be taken for its theological accuracy or depth, rather it is just an opportunity to imagine the conversation:
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Father
Oh now my son, here is a company of miserable souls
Cold and undone, searing their conscience with hearts black as coals
Here now they lie objects of justice, deserving of wrath
Speak your reply, what shall be done for them? Draw out your path
Son:
Father, I say, such is my love and my pity for all
There is a way for no condemnation on men to befall
Such is my love and pity for all
No man can pay, I'll make a way
No man can pay; utterly broke and poor to settle their debt
Though all've gone their way, I'll yield a way for their sins to forget
Son:
Bring in all their sins
Lay it all on me
Bring in all their sins
Every last bill that they owe
Lay it all on me
For what they reap I will sow
The place these souls have found themselves is one of great distress
For even all their righteousness is just a filthy mess
Father:
O my son, you must understand that if I show mercy
You must reckon to pay, the last bit of my rage
For justice reigns upon this throne; perfection without flaw
How can the wicked find their peace and still have broken every law?
Son:
Let it be so, charge it on me
For I can bear the weight of sin so all would be free
Bring in all their sins
Every last bill that they owe
Lay it all on me
For what they reap I will sow