The Holiness of God
The sermon emphasizes the importance of recognizing God's holiness, sovereignty, and goodness, and responding with godly fear, obedience, and worship.
A.W. Pink emphasizes the absolute holiness of God, asserting that no fallen creature can achieve acceptance with Him through their own actions, as even the best human efforts are tainted by sin. He highlights that God's holiness demands perfection, which is unattainable by humanity, yet through Christ, sinners can find acceptance and refuge. Pink further explains that true worship stems from recognizing God's greatness and sovereignty, which is characterized by His infinite wisdom and goodness. This understanding should lead believers to approach God with reverence, obedience, and heartfelt worship, acknowledging His sovereign will as ultimately good. The sermon concludes with the call to submit to God's sovereignty with a spirit of adoration and trust.
Text
Because God is holy, acceptance with Him on the ground of creature-doings is utterly impossible. A fallen creature could sooner create a world than produce that which would meet the approval of infinite Purity. Can darkness dwell with Light? Can the Immaculate One take pleasure with "filthy rags" (Isa. 64:6)? The best that sinful man brings forth is defiled. A corrupt tree cannot bear good fruit. God would deny Himself, vilify His perfections, were He to account as righteous and holy that which is not so in itself; and nothing is so which has the least stain upon it contrary to the nature of God. But blessed be His name, that which His holiness demanded His grace has provided in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Every poor sinner who has fled to Him for refuge stands "accepted in the Beloved" (Eph. 1:6). Hallelujah!
It has been well said that "true worship is based upon recognized greatness, and greatness is superlatively seen in Sovereignty, and at no other footstool will men really worship." In the presence of the Divine King upon His throne even the seraphim 'veil their faces.' Divine sovereignty is not the sovereignty of a tyrannical Despot, but the exercised pleasure of One who is infinitely wise and good! Because God is infinitely wise He cannot err, and because He is infinitely righteous He will not do wrong. Here then is the preciousness of this truth.
The mere fact itself that God's will is irresistible and irreversible fills me with fear, but once I realize that God wills only that which is good, my heart is made to rejoice. Here then is the final answer to the question (concerning our attitude toward God's sovereignty) - What ought to be our attitude toward the sovereignty of God? The becoming attitude for us to take is that of godly fear, implicit obedience, and unreserved resignation and submission. But not only so: the recognition of the sovereignty of God, and the realization that the Sovereign Himself is my Father, ought to overwhelm the heart and cause me to bow before Him in adoring worship. At all times I must say, "Even so, Father, for so it seemeth good in Thy sight."
Sermon Outline
- I. The Holiness of God
- A. God's holiness is the standard for all things
- B. Man's sinfulness is incompatible with God's holiness
- II. The Sovereignty of God
- A. God's sovereignty is not tyranny, but wisdom and goodness
- B. God's will is irresistible and irreversible
- III. The Response to God's Sovereignty
- A. Godly fear and implicit obedience
- B. Unreserved resignation and submission
- IV. Worship and Adoration
- A. Recognizing God as Father
- B. Bowing before Him in adoring worship
Key Quotes
“A fallen creature could sooner create a world than produce that which would meet the approval of infinite Purity.” — A.W. Pink
“The mere fact itself that God's will is irresistible and irreversible fills me with fear, but once I realize that God wills only that which is good, my heart is made to rejoice.” — A.W. Pink
“Even so, Father, for so it seemeth good in Thy sight.” — A.W. Pink
Application Points
- We should approach God with a sense of godly fear and reverence, recognizing His infinite holiness and sovereignty.
- We should submit ourselves to God's will, trusting that He is wise and good.
- We should worship God as our Father, acknowledging His sovereignty and goodness.