Leviticus 20:26 And you shall be holy to me: for I the LORD am holy, and have severed you from other people, that you should be mine. Holiness! There is sweet music in the very name. It tells of sin subdued, of boisterous passions lulled, of fiery lusts becalmed, of miry paths made clean. It sets before us a pure walk, where peace and joy go hand in hand, and scatter heaven-born fragrance round. Holiness! To cause this lovely plant to thrive, its roots to deepen, and its branches to bear fruit, is one grand purport of the scheme of grace. The Lord's own voice proclaims, "Ye shall be holy: for I am holy." Holiness falls short when it falls short of God. But perhaps you say such glorious lustre is too bright for sight. The heavenly sunshine dims the dazzled eye. But still draw near. God's Holiness, in human form, has visited and trod our earth. Jesus takes flesh and tabernacles here. His walk in our soiled paths is clean as on celestial pavement. Mark every act. Hear every word. They have one feature, holiness. Mark next the soil in which this flower has roots, the seed from which it springs. Man's pride must here lie low. It never thrives in Nature's field. Neither can hand of Nature plant it. When sin came in each gracious fibre died. The curse fell blightingly on earth, bat most so on the human heart. The thorns and briars of the outward world are dismal emblems of the wilderness within. God's likeness was effaced at once, and hideous enmity established its one rule. How, then, can holiness revive? Until the waste becomes a garden the plant cannot be set; until Heaven gives the seed it can nowhere be found. God must prepare the soil. God must infuse the seed. The work is wholly God's. Next mark the renovating means. The wondrous engine is the gospel truth. The Spirit wins by charming notes. He opens ears to hear new melody. He gives the eye to see new scenes. He reveals Christ, the beauty of all beauty. He shows the cleansing blood, the sympathising heart, the perfect refuge, the all-sufficient aid. These sights wave a transforming wand. A new affection subjugates the man. Jesus and purer hopes now occupy the mind. Darkness is passed. The true light shines. The grace of faith springs up. This is the chain which binds the soul to Christ and makes the Saviour and the sinner one. A channel is now formed by which Christ's fulness plenteously flows down. The barren branch becomes a portion of the fruitful stem. Christ's vital juices permeate the whole. The limbs receive close union with the head, and one life reigns throughout the total frame. (Dean Law.) Parallel Verses KJV: And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the LORD am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine. |
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