04/11/10 - God Is HOLY - Pastor Tony Ashmore

Pastor Tony Ashmore continues the series "God Is..." in this Sunday service.

God Is... HOLY
Pastor Tony Ashmore
Sunday, April 11, 2010

www.churchatmirrorlake.com


Sermon Notes:

Hebrews 11:6 NKJV “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

Big Idea: God is Holy. Holy is more than a theological word meaning “to be revered and worshipped.” It is the response given by those who have seen Him—it is their description given in complete awe. It is the word uttered when the realization comes that His is complete—in His presence nothing is missing or out of place. It is the revelation that, in spite of our betrayals and misconceptions, He is completely for us and our good. He is where we are made “whole”.

Psalm 99:9 “Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain in Jerusalem, for the Lord our God is holy!”

Isaiah 6:1-8—Isaiah sees the Holy God. Isaiah, one of the most famous of the OT prophets, was experiencing tremendous upheaval in his life. All the things that made Israel what is was were being shaken or destroyed. The kingdom was divided and constantly under attack. The people were led off into captivity and the temple itself was looted and destroyed. Everything the Israelites believed was confronted—Is God really for us? Does He really exist? If so, where is He? In this passage, Isaiah finds the answers to the questions and his life and purpose become clear.

- His king had died: All of us have kings, other than God, in our lives. Our comfort zones, security blankets, our way of doing things—our areas of supposed strengths or our “hiding place” in times of stress. Just as the Israelites had 31 kings to displace after entering the promised land, we have kings we have allowed to remain that need to go. They are filling “holes” in our faith walk—substitutes for “wholly” trusting God. (story about my plan “B” for the first time we decided to trust God or our income—the wallpaper money)

- Holy, Holy, Holy shakes the Temple and its foundations—1 Corinthians 3:16—we are the temple. Sometimes our foundational beliefs, our world view, are built on wrong thinking and misconceptions. The holiness of God will always challenge and confront those. Hebrews 12:27

- “It’s all over. I’m doomed.” Our first response to a holy God is the recognition of our “incompleteness.” We see things, and ourselves, as they should be and could be. 1 Corinthians 13:12 “Now we see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity…” Then we choose—humility or hiding. Humility precedes holiness. We will never find wholeness by hiding our inadequacies. Humility results in what Isaiah experiences next—God picking him up and making him whole—equipping him for his destiny.

- Isaiah overhears Heaven’s plans. His choices have positioned him to experience “Holiness”. He hears a plan that he gives the rest of his life for—a plan that no opposition or obstacle will ever sway him again. He is wholly committed to the same thing a Holy God is committed to—the good of people.
Jeremiah 29:11-13 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.”

Romans 8:31 [Nothing Can Separate Us from God’s Love] What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?