Reflections on Holiness

When I think about holiness, I tend to compare it to impurity. One time somebody explained to me that when God created us he made us to be good, like a clean cup of water. When we sin, even if it's just a tiny sin, it is like putting a drop of red food coloring in the cup of water. No matter how small that drop of red food coloring is, all of the water in the cup will turn red. No matter how little we sin, we are completely sinful, because we all have sinned. Romans 3:23 says "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." God cannot be around anything that is even a little bit unclean or sinful. We are completely sinful, so how can we talk to and pray to God? How can we say that God is in us as Christians?

When Adam and Eve sinned, God wanted to spend time with them and all other people so much that he made a plan to clean anybody who wants to spend time with him too. Since sin is so bad, this was not going to be an easy job. It would take someone who was completely clean to die for everyone who was sinful. Everybody on earth had sinned, so a normal person could not do the job. Instead, God sent his only son into the world to become a human, so that we could be clean. He went through so much pain so that we could be sanctified (cleaned) and so that we could be with him again. It is so amazing to me that we can be with God and talk with him, because he has cleaned us even though we don't deserve it!

Jehovah Quadash: The Lord Who Sanctifies

Holiness is God's quality of purity and perfection.  Read these verses to find out more.

Exodus 15:11
What attributes are used to describe God?

Leviticus 20:7-8
To consecrate yourself means to set your self apart.  Why did God want the people to consecrate themselves?
Who makes us holy?

Isaiah 6:1-9
What did the seraphs say about God?
Isaiah answered "Here am I. Send me."  Who might God be calling you to tell about Him?

Galatians 5:16-23
What acts of a sinful nature do you see in yourself?
What fruits of the spirit do you see in yourself? 

1Thessalonians 4:7-8
What kind of life did God call us to live?
If you reject instruction, who are you rejecting?

God Always Does the Right Thing!

Do you ever get frustrated because you want to do the right thing, but you don't? Today I was helping my younger brother and sister clean out their toy room and instead of encouraging them to do what was right, I got angry about the gigantic mess they had made. My response wasn't the "right" one. Even though I set out to do something good (help them) my efforts didn't really help. The Bible says that that's the way our righteousness is. In Isaiah 64:6 it says "our righteous acts are like filthy rags." No matter how hard we try, we cannot be good enough.

God, on the other hand, always does the right thing. John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." God is a just and righteous God and He hates sin. However, He loves you enough that He sent Jesus to pay the punishment for your unrighteousness. Only a righteous God can do that.

Numbers 23:19 says "I the Lord do not change." We can be sure that God will always do the right thing.

Jehovah Tsidkenu The Lord Our Righteousness

Psalm 48:10
What is God's right hand filled with?

Psalm 119:137-138
What do these verses tell us about the laws of the Lord?

Psalm 139:1-24
What do these verses tell us about how well God knows us?
What are a few of the details God knows about you?


Psalm 145:17
How many of the Lord's ways is He righteous in?

Jeremiah 23:1-8
What does God to to the people who are scattering his sheep?
What does he do for his sheep (His people)?

Psalm 97:2
What is the foundation of God's throne?

His banner of me is Love (Song of Songs 2:4)

Sometimes I think about all the times I've sinned and made God sad and I feel like he should be tired of me by now. I start to wonder if God could ever get so tired of forgiving me, that he just gives up and stops. I start to wonder if there's any way I can really go to heaven.Then I look in the Bible and it reminds me of the truth. The truth that God's love never ends, that we cannot be separated from God's love.

On Saturday I was wondering whether or not God's forgiveness could run out, and then I remembered where Peter asks Jesus how many times he should forgive someone. Peter asks if he should forgive someone seven times. In the Hebrew language, the number seven meant complete or whole. So Peter was asking Jesus if he should forgive people completely. Jesus answered him by saying "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times." (Matthew 18:22) Jesus tells us to forgive each other completely, no matter how many times they hurt us. If he wants us to forgive each other every single time someone hurts us, wouldn't he be happy to forgive us even more than that?

The name Jehovah-Nissi means the Lord is my banner. A banner is like a flag. A flag is a symbol that represents a group of people. So, if the Lord is our banner, and he is love (1 John 4:16), how should we live? We are supposed to follow a God who is called love. We are supposed to try to be like God... try to be like love. So what does it mean to love others? Can we show love to others no matter how much they hurt you, or make you angry, or even hate you? Jesus is a perfect example of someone who was able to do this. He loved the people who were nailing him to the cross. He loves us every time we sin against him, even when it hurts him so much. Let's try to imitate Christ, by showing this amazing love to those around us.

Jehovah Nissi- The Lord is my banner

What is a banner?

Read Song of Songs 2:4
What is God's banner over us?

Read Isaiah 54:10
What is God's love like?

Read Romans 8:38-39
When does God's love run out?
Can we get away from his love?
How have you seen his love in your life?

Read 1 John 4:7-21
Look at verse 16. What does this verse say God is?
Imagine all the Christians in the world as an army with God's banner going ahead of us. How should we live to represent that banner to other people in the world?

The Good Shepherd

I've been spending the last two weeks with my brother's family. I was going on a walk with my one year old niece and my sister. My niece started walking happily towards the road as a car was coming by. I called out to her, but she didn't turn around. Since I have a broken foot, I couldn't get her. My sister knows she is a stubborn baby and as she was getting a little too close to the car, she ran to pick her up. My niece was not so happy as she was taken from what seemed so exciting, but it was the best thing for her.

Psalm 23 talks about God as our shepherd. He guides us to things that are good for us, even when the way to get there is not easy. He daily shows us his love and comfort. He knows us completely and knows what is best for us, even when we don't.  He has incredible plans for our lives that we cannot even imagine. He is completely powerful and able to make his plan happen, even when we are walking the other way.