Weekly Devotion no 48
21 May 2021
Bible reading – 1 Peter 1:13-16[1]
13 So be watchful,
and control yourselves completely. In this way, put your hope in the grace that
lies ahead. This grace will be brought to you when Jesus Christ returns. 14 You
should obey your Father. You shouldn’t give in to evil desires. They controlled
your life when you didn’t know any better. 15 The
God who chose you is holy. So you should be holy in all that you do. 16 It
is written, “Be holy, because I am holy.”
Reflection
The earth is
the Lord’s, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it;
2 for he founded it on the seas
and established it on the waters.
3 Who may ascend the
mountain of the Lord?
Who may stand in his holy place? Psalm 24:1-3
The Almighty Creator is holy. He is sacred, set apart. Who is worthy to come into his presence? As Moses approached the burning bush, God told him to take off his sandals as he was standing on holy ground.[1] It’s a big deal to come into God’s presence.
The psalmist goes on to answer the question:
4 The one who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not trust in an idol
or swear by a false god. Psalm 24:4
This seems an impossibility. Who is this perfect? There is always at least some imperfection in our motives, something that we put ahead of God in our lives, that we might treat as an idol. How can we ever come into God’s presence?
Well, there is
someone who is perfect – Jesus, God’s only son. And when God looks at us, those
who believe in Jesus’ death and resurrection, he sees Jesus. And so, we can
stand in his holy place and we can come into his presence and we too can be set
apart. How incredible it is to be in the presence of the holy God!
Hymn
Verse 1
Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning
Our song shall rise
to thee:
Holy, holy Holy! –
merciful and mighty.
God in three persons,
blessed Trinity.
Verse 2
Holy, holy, holy! All
the saints adore thee,
Casting down their
golden crowns
Around the glassy
sea;
Cherubim and Seraphim
Falling down before
thee
Who was and is and
evermore shall be!
Verse 3
Holy, holy, holy! –
Though the darkness
hide thee,
Though the eye of
sinful man
Thy glory may not
see;
Only thou art holy,
There is none beside
thee
Perfect in power, in
love and purity.
Verse 4
Holy, holy, holy! –
Lord God Almighty!
All thy works shall
praise thy name,
In earth and sky and
sea:
Holy, holy, holy! –
merciful and mighty
God in three persons,
blessed Trinity.
Prayer
O God,
who taught the hearts of your faithful people
by
sending to them the light of your Holy Spirit:
grant
us by the same Spirit
to have
a right judgement in all things,
and
evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort;
through
the merits of Christ Jesus our Saviour,
who lives and
reigns with you, in the unity of the same Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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