Message 132
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Scripture Reading: Exo. 28:36-43; 39:27-31
Speaking of the plate of pure gold engraved with the words “Holy to Jehovah,” Exodus 28:38 says, “And it shall be on Aaron’s forehead, and Aaron shall bear the iniquity of the holy things which the sons of Israel shall sanctify for all their holy gifts; and it shall be on his forehead continually that they may be accepted before Jehovah.” If we understand this verse properly, we shall see that, in type, it indicates that Christ takes the responsibility to make us holy and to guard for God the holiness that is in us.
Christ is guarding, protecting, caring for, the holiness that God has gained among us. As we have pointed out, this involves a fourfold holiness, a series of four steps in which we become more and more holy. We may be in the holy land producing a holy harvest. However, our experience of holiness may not be very definite. Thus, we may not understand much about setting aside the tithe, the top portion, of the holy produce. It is not easy to understand fully what is this top tenth that is set aside for God. It is even more difficult to explain what is that portion of the tithe that is separated to be absolutely for God and His priests. We can speak concerning these matters, but it is not easy to describe them from the standpoint of our experience, because our experience is limited. We know that, according to typology, Christ, our High Priest today, is safeguarding the holiness God has among us. But it is difficult to go further to explain how we may have in our experience a higher and higher degree of holiness.
Throughout the centuries, various Christian teachings have been formed into systems of theology. The understanding of many believers is fully occupied with the concepts of systematic theology. As a result, there is no room in them for the proper understanding of divine things. This is true in particular with respect to the subject of holiness.
From my youth I have been studying the matter of holiness. Even in the classical Chinese writings a word is used for holiness, and Confucius is called a saint. According to the traditional Chinese understanding, to be holy is simply to be upright; it is to be right with others in every way. Certain learned Chinese used to say that it is possible even for a saint like Confucius to be wrong. This indicates that their understanding of holiness is related to uprightness. When those with this understanding of holiness read the words holy or holiness in the Bible, they spontaneously have the thought of being upright. Eventually, I began to question whether this is what the Bible means by holiness.
Certain denominations emphasize a particular concept of holiness. These groups include the Church of the Nazarene, the Church of God, and some Pentecostal groups. They are the so-called holiness churches and follow regulations concerning such things as clothing, hair style, and behavior. According to their understanding, believers are holy if they follow these regulations.
Another concept of holiness is related to what is called sinless perfection. John Wesley and those with him developed certain methods to control their behavior, and they taught that holiness was a matter of sinless perfection. But the Brethren, who were raised up about one hundred sixty years ago, pointed out that in the Bible holiness does not mean sinless perfection. They pointed out that the Greek word for holiness denotes something separated to God. They referred to the Lord’s word in Matthew 23:17 and 19 concerning the temple sanctifying the gold and the altar sanctifying the gift. They showed that this was to make the gold holy in position by changing its position from a common place to a holy one. Likewise, the gift was made holy in position because its location was changed from a common place to a holy one. They went on to argue that sanctification has nothing to do with sin. How can gold commit sin? Likewise, a sheep, an ox, or a bird presented on the altar and sanctified cannot sin. Therefore, these Brethren teachers concluded, holiness is not a matter of sinlessness, but is a matter of separation. The gold in the market is common, secular. But the gold in the temple is separated, holy. Likewise, cattle in the flock are common, but those offered on the altar are holy. Realizing that this teaching concerning holiness is scriptural, I accepted it. However, in my reading of the New Testament I came to see that holiness involves more than separation. For example, 2 Thessalonians 2:13 speaks of sanctification of the Spirit. Hebrews 12:10 says that God disciplines us so that we may partake of His holiness. Verses such as these certainly indicate something deeper than mere positional separation. Furthermore, Romans 6:22 speaks of “fruit unto sanctification.” This is another indication that holiness, or sanctification, involves something deeper than positional separation.
Concerning the proper understanding of holiness, I have been helped by the writings of Brother Nee. More than fifty years ago, I read a booklet of his in which he says that righteousness is God’s way of doing things, holiness is God’s nature, and love is God’s heart. That word concerning holiness being God’s nature led me into a new field of exploration in the Word. During the past fifty years, I have been exploring the biblical field of holiness.
Now I see that holiness, sanctification, has both a positional and a dispositional aspect. The Brethren emphasized positional sanctification as illustrated by the gold in the temple and the gift on the altar. In this kind of sanctification, neither the gold nor the gift is changed in nature; it is changed only in position. The Brethren, however, did not see the dispositional aspect of sanctification, the sanctification that takes place in our disposition, in our being. According to the Bible, sanctification is a matter both of position and of disposition. Hence, we need positional sanctification and dispositional sanctification as well.
The books of 1 and 2 Thessalonians are concerned with a holy life for the church life. In 1 Thessalonians 3:13 Paul says, “That He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.” What does it mean for our hearts to be established blameless in holiness? When we read these words in 1 Thessalonians, we may take them for granted and assume that we understand them. We should not take for granted that we understand this matter. Surely for our hearts to be established blameless in holiness involves dispositional sanctification. It is not merely positional separation or sinless perfection.
In 1 Thessalonians 4:3 Paul says that the will of God is our sanctification, and in verse 7, that God has called us in sanctification. This is the continuation of his word regarding sanctification in 1 Thessalonians 3. At the end of 1 Thessalonians, in chapter five, verse 23, Paul says, “And the God of peace Himself sanctify you wholly, and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Certainly this is a further development of holiness or sanctification.
First Peter 1:2 says, “According to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.” Here we have the foreknowledge of the Father, the sanctification of the Spirit, and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. This verse raises a significant doctrinal question: How can the sanctification by the Spirit come before the sprinkling of the blood of Christ? Theologically speaking, the sprinkling of the blood must precede the sanctification of the Spirit. But in this verse the order is reversed. According to the first chapter of 1 Peter, the blood of Christ redeems us not from sin, but from our vain manner of life received by tradition (v. 18).
Recently, as I have been considering 1 Peter 1, I have seen that this chapter is concerned with the operation of the Triune God on His elect for their participation in His full salvation. In 1 Peter 1:2 we see the Triune God, for this verse speaks of the election of the Father, according to His foreknowledge, the sanctification of the Spirit, and the sprinkling by the blood of Jesus Christ. This is the operation of the Triune God.
Beginning with verse 3 and continuing through verse 12, Peter gives a long blessing, a well-speaking regarding the Father who has regenerated us to a living hope. Here we have the operation of the Father. This chapter goes on to speak of the blood of Jesus Christ redeeming us. This is the operation of the Son. Furthermore, this chapter speaks of being purified through the Spirit (v. 22). This is the operation of the Spirit. Redemption and the sprinkling of the blood of Christ are applied to us by the Holy Spirit. Moreover, according to 1 Peter 1:12, the gospel is preached through the Spirit. Therefore, in this chapter we surely see the Triune God operating on His elect, His chosen people, so that they may participate in His full salvation.
This operation of the Triune God revealed in 1 Peter 1 has a twofold result. First, it results in a holy life. Verse 15 says, “But according to the Holy One who called you, you yourselves also become holy....” This is sanctification. This is related to the purification of our souls. “Having purified your souls by obedience to the truth unto unfeigned brotherly love, love one another from the heart fervently” (1 Pet. 1:22). The purification of our souls involves the sanctification of our being. This is the first result of the operation of the Triune God on His elect. The second result, a further issue, is unfeigned love of the brothers. Therefore, the result of the operation of the Triune God for our participation in His salvation is that we live a holy life and love the brothers.
Now we can give a definition of holiness. Holiness is God wrought into us. We have seen that holiness refers to the nature of God. Thus, holiness is a matter of having the divine nature wrought into our being to make us divine. When we become divine in this way, we are holy. God alone is holy. Everything else is common. Since only God is holy, for us to become holy requires that God be wrought into us. Therefore, holiness is the Triune God wrought into our being.
We have pointed out that the concluding word regarding the priestly garments in Exodus is related to holiness and righteousness. The plate of pure gold on the turban worn by the high priest was inscribed with the words “Holy unto Jehovah.” This declaration, this brand, was on the forehead of the high priest. It was on the golden plate worn as a crown, a blossom, and therefore we may say that holiness was exalted. That holiness is exalted as a crown indicates that holiness in divinity is exalted for glory. Furthermore, the high priest was covered with linen — with a linen turban, a linen tunic, a linen girdle, and linen breeches. This linen covering of the high priest signifies righteousness. Righteousness, which is related to humanity, is expressed as beauty. Holiness in divinity is exalted as glory, and righteousness in humanity is expressed for beauty. Therefore, today holiness is our glory, and righteousness is our beauty.
As our high priest, Christ is working to bring us all the way from the first stage of holiness to the fourth stage. God treasures this holiness, and Christ is guarding it.
In the Old Testament God gave the good land, the holy land, to His people. He charged them to labor on the land in order to have the harvest, the holy produce. God also required that the top portion of this produce be brought to His dwelling and offered to Him on the altar. Furthermore, from this top portion offered as a gift, God required that a certain part be separated absolutely for Himself. Particular parts of the offerings were for God. These were regarded not as sacrifices but as holy gifts. The sin offering and the trespass offering were sacrifices, but the meal offering, the peace offering, and the burnt offering were gifts, holy gifts offered to God. Of these gifts offered to Him, God kept part for Himself, and the remainder was for the priests. According to Exodus 28:38, the high priest was required to bear the iniquity of this part. This means that if anyone who was not qualified partook of it, Aaron was held responsible. This indicates that the high priest guarded the holiness that was in the fourth stage. God treasures the holiness that is absolutely for Himself, and Christ is working to safeguard it.
The holy land is indeed holy, but it is not absolutely holy. Likewise, the produce of the holy land and the top portion of the produce were for God, but they were not for God in an absolute way. Only that part of the top portion that was set apart fully for God was absolutely for Him. Because God treasures this, He charges Christ to guard and protect it. This means that Christ as the High Priest is safeguarding a portion of holiness for God’s satisfaction.
