“Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth.” Psalm 96:9

Beautiful Holiness

When a woman gets married, she spends a lot of time getting ready for her husband. She picks out a dress that looks good on her, gets a manicure and pedicure, has her hair cut and styled, and spends time applying just the right makeup. Showered, deoderized, perfumed, and bedecked with flowers, she walks up the aisle to join her groom. She is beautiful to him.

And what do we do to make ourselves ready to meet with our eternal Groom, Jesus? For the most part, nothing. We’re told in the Word to “Come,” and so we come—just as we are. This is okay with God. At least we come. We’re not to hide from Him, or cover our dirt. We come tired, thirsty, fearful, hurting, and weary, and He meets us there with great love. We come for wisdom, or healing, or rest, or direction, and He does not turn us away.

But He does ask a few things of us when we come to worship Him. One of them is that He asks us to worship in the beauty of holiness. You may not know if you are holy before Him, so let’s look at the meaning of holiness for a minute.

A holy person is consecrated (separated) to God’s service in body, soul, and mind. A holy person finds fulfillment in being morally dedicated to purity. She is committed to living a pure life according to the Word of God. Holiness is having a holy disposition, maintaining personal conduct and thoughts that please God. Holiness separates a believer from the world. A holy person doesn’t look, act, think, or speak like a worldly person. 

To God, holiness is beautiful. When we live consecrated, separated lives unto Him, we are worshiping in the beauty of holiness. Our whole life becomes an act of worship. We are giving ourselves to Him, and it’s only reasonable that we do so, for we owe Him everything. “I beseech you therefore, [believing sisters], by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable (rational) service” (Romans 12:1).

You might ask, “How do I do that?” The next verse tells us: “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2). 

God’s Word tells us how to pursue a holy, morally pure life. Ask Him to help you consecrate your whole life to Him, that you might worship Him in the beauty of holiness.

“Father, we can’t attain holiness on our own. Since we are to be set apart from the world, make our daily lifestyle choices clear so that we may know whether we are pleasing You. Enable us to choose wisely. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”