“Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts” (Isa 6:3NASB). This verse creates a formidable problem for humanity. How does a perfectly holy God interact with profane humans? Profane means the opposite of sacred or holy. There seems to be an issue of the sinless “Holy One of Israel” being relational with a “sinful nation, people weighed down with iniquity, and offspring of evildoers (Isa 1:4).” Though it seems improbable for holiness and profanity to dwell in a relationship, nevertheless God has provided the solution for man to enter into God’s divine presence.
The Problem for Holiness
The root meaning of “holiness” is “separate.” The first time the verb form of holiness is used it refers to the creation account. The term is used to designate the Sabbath as a day distinct from the six previous days of creation. The first six days focus on the human world with all of its complexities while the seventh day dwells on the realm of God. From the beginning there has been the separation between the profane, the world of man and the holy, the realm of God.
The problem is that unregulated contact with holiness results in death to humans. Moses prays to the Lord to let him witness His glory. God grants Moses this request, but Moses cannot see the fullness of God’s holiness because "You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!" God has to cover Moses’ face and only reveal a glimpse of His backside to protect Moses from His overwhelming holiness (Exod 33:18-23). Uzzah does not have the privilege of regulated contact with holiness and reaps a tragic consequence. Uzzah is killed by God when he attempts to steady the ark, which is a symbol of God’s holy presence among the people (2 Sam. 6:6-11). Even Manoah believes that death is imminent because he has seen God. "We shall surely die, for we have seen God," he said (Judges 13:22). Fortunately for Manoah, he has only witnessed the appearance of the Angel of the Lord and not the face of the Lord. Also, Moses’ contact with God’s holiness in the form of the burning bush has to be regulated by removing his footwear (Exod 3:5). The Apostle John understands that no one has seen God because this would be detrimental to a person’s life (John 1:18).
The separation between God and humans results in an interesting paradox. God’s holiness is a two-edged sword. Humans need holiness for sanctification, but too much exposure to God’s holiness results in death. Therefore, how is God able to overcome the need for separation inherent in holiness and establish a relationship with man?
The Provision for Holiness
Fortunately God has made provisions to regulate His holiness to mankind. The first provision God made was establishing the priesthood. At the end of the book of Exodus, God separates out a group to mediate holiness to the people through religious rituals. The role of priest is described in Exodus 28-30, but the ordination ritual does not happen until Leviticus 8-9. In Exodus 28:1 God separates Aaron and his sons to serve as priests to the people. In order for them to fulfill the role of priest, Aaron and his sons are required to go through a process of purification, a process which takes these men even closer to the powerful nature of God’s holiness.
In becoming a priest, one must forsake some of the freedoms of the profane world to act as a mediator between God and man. Instead of assuming the priesthood as privilege-- the priesthood is characterized by sacrifice. Christ the High Priest voluntarily emptied Himself for the sake of humanity (Phil. 2:1-11). The priesthood does not bestow honor but rather calls for submission, obedience, and suffering (Heb. 5:8). When one enters the priesthood, he or she must count the cost of giving up some earthly freedoms. God has chosen to separate for Himself a “particular people” to mediate His holiness to the profane aspects of humanity. God has to temper his holiness through the priesthood to bridge the gap between Him and the whole of humanity.
The human priesthood can only usher in a limited level of relationship with God. The Lord has even made provisions for Christians to enter deeper into communion with him. The human priesthood had flaws, so God established Jesus Christ for Christians as a high priest. In the book of Hebrews, the author elaborates on the supremacy of Christ over the Jewish high priest. Through Christ’s priesthood, Christians are invited in to experience a deeper measure of God’s holiness.
The Proposal for Holiness
God established the priesthood to mediate holiness between the sacred world of God and the profane world of humans. This is the role of Christians as declared in 1 Peter 2:9 “But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” God has commissioned Christians to perform the mediatory work of dispensing holiness to a corrupt world. Christians who have been influenced by the cleansing power of God’s holiness are to travel out into the world to leaven sinful society. This ethical mission of being “the light of the world” is to transform wickedness into righteousness. Christians know that this holiness is infiltrating the larger world when people are purged of malice and envy (1 Pet. 2) and when people live and interact with others through love and not hate (1 Pet. 3). As Christians are transformed into closer images of God’s holiness through the practice of godliness, then believers are able to positively influence those that are farther away from experiencing God’s holiness.
The holy influencing the unholy is God’s system of evangelism. Since God’s holy light is too powerful for those accustomed to darkness, God has ordained Christian priests to mediate the nature of God to a profane society. God’s presence would be too overwhelming and harmful for those living in sin. Paul encountered Christ and was blinded for three days (Acts 9:8). God regulates His holiness through Christians to draw all nations to Him. Man has a measure of holiness but still has imperfections which make bridging the expanse between God and the unredeemed easier. God invites sinners into His holiness through a Christian’s evangelism.
The complete presence of God’s holiness is too perfect for imperfection to bear. God has to regulate His holiness to a profane world to refrain from destroying all that is wicked. God had to devise a plan to mediate His holiness to his created world, so he established the priesthood of believers and placed His Son in the position of high priest. Through the tainted holy influence of God’s people, God calls others into relationship so that he can impart a measure of His holiness to them.
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