Conclusion of Why Jehovah's Holiness Draws Us To Him

A seraph promptly consoled the prophet. How? The mighty spirit flew to the altar, took a coal from it, and touched the coal to Isaiah's lips. That may sound more painful than comforting. Remember, though, that this was a vision, rich in symbolic meaning. Isaiah, a faithful Jew, well knew that sacrifices were offered daily at the temple altar to make atonement for sins. And the seraph lovingly reminded the prophet that although he was indeed imperfect, "unclean in lips," he could still come into a clean standing before God. Jehovah was willing to view an imperfect, sinful man as holy-at least in relative sense. -Isaiah 6:6, 7.

The same holds true today. All those sacrifices offered on the altar in Jerusalem were only shadows of something greater-the one perfect sacrifice, offered up by Jesus Christ in 33 C.E. (Hebrews 9:11-14) If we truly repent of our sins, correct our wrong course and exercise faith in that sacrifice, we are forgiven. (1 John 2:2) We too can enjoy a clean standing before God. Thus, the apostle Peter reminds us: "It is written: 'You must be holy, because I am holy.' " (1 Peter 1:16) Note that Jehovah did not say that we must be as holy as he is. He never expects the impossible from us. (Psalm 103:13, 14) Rather, Jehovah tells us to be holy because he is holy. "As beloved children," we seek to imitate him to the best of our ability as imperfect humans. (Ephesians 5:1) So achieving holiness is an ongoing process. As we grow spiritually, we work at "perfecting holiness" day by day. -2 Corinthians 7:1.

Jehovah loves what is upright and pure. He hates sin. (Habakkuk 1:13) But he does not hate us. As long as we view sin as he does-hating what is bad, loving what is good-and strive to follow in Christ Jesus' perfect footsteps, Jehovah forgives our sins. (Amos 5:15; 1 Peter 2:21) When we understand that we can be clean in the eyes of our Holy God, the effects are profound. Remember, Jehovah's holiness at first reminded Isaiah of his own uncleanness. He cried out: "Woe to me!" But once he understood that his sins had been atoned for, his outlook changed. When Jehovah asked for a volunteer to carry out an assignment, Isaiah promptly responded, although he did not even know what would be involved. He exclaimed: "Here I am! Send me." -Isaiah 6:5-8.

We are made in the image of the Holy God, endowed with moral qualities and the capacity for spirituality. (Genesis 1:26) There is a potential for holiness within us all. As we continue to cultivate holiness, Jehovah is happy to help. In the process, we will draw ever closer to our Holy God. Further, as we consider Jehovah's qualities in the chapters to come, we will see that there are many powerful reasons for drawing close to him!

Next time: "Jehovah Is . . . Great In Power"

Draw Close To Jehovah, 2002