Harshness to Holiness

From the books of “Leviticus” and “Numbers” one gets a picture of the Holiness of God, from the book of “Deuteronomy” [all books from the “Torah”] one get a picture of the character of God.  There is a harshness [an uncompromising rigidity] that appears to attach itself to God’s requirements.  But God was working with the Children of Israel, so long in the Egyptian atmosphere of paganism and idolatry, to get them to understand that not only was He the only One and true God, He is also a “holy” God.  “Holy”, yes, but as revealed in “Deuteronomy” a very loving God.  But we learn in order for God to be loving He had to be harsh.  That’s simply in part because to transgress God’s holiness was to invite death.

God wanted the Children of Israel “to come unto Him” but there was a very prescribed way in which they were to approach Him as witnessed by the governances surrounding Tabernacle [later, the Temple] operation where His shekinah glory dwelt between the cherubim, over the Ark of the Covenant, in the holy of holies.  Only once a year, on the Day of Atonement, could the High Priest enter into the holy of holies, to make atonement for the sins of the people, and that only after very rigid and meticulous preparation.  In a word, the “holiness” of God was so overwhelming the unprepared priest could well be struck dead.

Fast forward to the “Cross of Calvary”.  What happened with all the events surrounding the Crucifixion saw Jesus offering up Himself, paying a terrible physical price, rendered all the more harsh, because he was without sin, to satisfy the requirements of God’s holiness.  When Jesus said from the Cross, “It is finished” (John 19:30), hell rejoiced with glee; Temple authorities were smugly pleased; Jesus’ small company of followers, a few present, most having fled, were broken-hearted; all that the prophets had proclaimed concerning Him and all that God required of Him--“was finished”!  The offering of His blood as a sacrifice for the sins of men for all time was done—immediately symbolized by the veil of the Temple [separating the holy place from the most holy place] being “. . .torn in two from top to bottom” (Mark 15:38).  With this awful death God is reconciled to man, so that His kingdom is now open to all who will enter in.

God had to be very harsh to His Son [see Isaiah 53:10-12), in order that He could be very gentle with all His other sons and daughters.  But God’s gentleness and kindness is not to be presumed upon.  He is still holy and all those who would draw near to Him must also be holy.  In fact the Scripture plainly states, “Pursue peace with all men and holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).

A clear and present call to the church now is to walk in holiness (being separated unto God for His purposes) before God and with our fellow man.  This is what the whole world is longing to see and needs to have happen.