Praise His Name

10/01/21 – 10/09/21

Yahweh Mekadesh: Our Holy God

By Michael Youssef, Ph D.  10/05/21

Read Leviticus 20:7-8.

These days, holiness is not a very popular idea. Some people associate being holy with being “holier than thou.” Others—even professing Christians—think of holiness as a life of limitations and restrictions, so they want nothing to do with holiness. But God describes Himself as Yahweh Mekadesh—the God who is holy. And He calls His people to be holy, or set apart, as He is holy (see 1 Peter 1:15-16, cf. Leviticus 11:44-45, 19:2).

Because God is wholly different, He’s free to act in ways that may not make sense to us. There are times in life when we cry to God, “Lord, why are You doing this? Why is this happening?” But our holy God reassures us, “I’ve got this. Everything is under My control. Don’t panic.”

Because the Lord is Yahweh Mekadesh, we can never put Him in a box to make us comfortable; He is not ours to control. He acts graciously when we expect judgment and reveals Himself to us in ways we do not expect. We belong to Him, and in His love and grace, He is at work to make us holy as He is holy, to encourage us as we follow His Son, and to empower us to be His representatives to a lost and broken world. What a glorious calling!

Prayer: God, You are infinitely above me. Your ways are not my ways. You are holy and perfect—set apart. I know You alone can make me holy as You are holy. May I walk in Your ways by the leading of Your Spirit. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.
“Keep my decrees and follow them. I am the LORD, who makes you holy” (Leviticus 20:8).