[Pastor Lee Grzywinski]

Hello, fellow readers! I am very excited to begin this summer’s book with you!

I mean, one page in, and you can’t help but be struck by how good a writer Dr. Sproul was. His ability to paint a scene is amazing.

I have always found his “explanation” for why there is evil and sorrow in the world, as well as his “justification” for God’s command to wipe out entire cities and for killing poor Uzzah, very compelling. God is holy, but He is not regarded as holy. This is very similar to what we saw in this week’s Malachi passage. When God is not regarded as holy, things are not as they should be. Sin entered the world because God was not rightly revered. Sin has proliferated since then and is rampant in the world today, because regard for God’s holiness has been less and less with every generation for the last, I don’t know, 300 years(?). Rather than try to explain the many whys, just say “God has a reason,” or try to justify God, we should answer similarly to R.C. when challenged by unbelievers: He is holy, but He is not regarded as holy.

I am also struck by how God’s holiness has been downplayed in the modern church. Yes, God is good. Nothing but! Yes, He is love. But we have held these up as the “standard” for God to our own detriment, and the detriment of His character. I highlighted one sentence in this chapter. On the bottom of page 3, Sproul calls God: “A God who could fill me with terror in one second and with peace in the next.” That’s how we need to regard Him. David did. Read the Psalms. Solomon did. Read Proverbs. The prophets sure did. Jesus certainly described the Father as One to be feared, and yet the God in Whom we can find peace. We have lost the fear, by and large. But that fear is good. Let’s recover it!

I am eager to hear your thoughts on the chapter!

[Nayara Jordan]

Hi everyone- looking forward to this book club and discussion!

I liked the quote on the last page of chapter 1: “Not only does He penetrate every aspect of our lives, but he penetrates it in His majestic holiness.” To me, it can sometimes feel easier to connect with the person of Jesus Christ because of the human element. While I do see God the Father as holy, sometimes it is at the expense of seeing him as a father who is near. Yet I know the Bible teaches us the Father is near. So that is why this quote particularly struck me, because in his holiness, he still penetrates every aspect of our lives, and like the previous sentence said, “His holy character has something to say about economics, politics athletics, romance – everything with which we are involved.”

[Tom Courain]

This is my second reading through this book. I always like the second trip though a book as so much more of the writer’s experience comes through to me. I have always had a burden for my church to fully grasp the concept of the Holiness of God. I get grieved when hearing people say “Oh God” in a very common way. This book tells us why that is a symptom of how the world has crept into our lives. Page 3 reminded me of my early days of when I would love to pop into my local church and just sit there and enjoy God’s presence. It brought back great memories. On page 7 Dr Sproul writes about being able to speak to his early computer and ask it to write a sermon as if it is an impossibility. Hello artificial intelligence. “In the last days knowledge will increase”. I was blessed be his explanation of God’s power of “divine imperative”. A simple explanation of the creative power of God’s word. Page 12 gave me a great summary of how I am to live while I am in this world. No part of my life must be outside of His lordship. “Be ye holy as I am holy”. Great start to a book from a great teacher.

[Lynne Mazza-Hilway]

Yes, Sproul’s poetic and elaborate descriptions of context and scenery usher you into a parallel encouragement to similarly and methodically embrace the experience of the glorious and holy presence of our awesome God. Although “ineffable”, it behooves us to slow down and be intentional and deliberate as we bask here. The more I seek Him, the more I find Him-in His presence my thirst is both satisfied and stimulated. Just as our Creator “shouted a primal scream into a void of empty darkness (making creation the most dazzling event in history)”, our hearts and minds need to be awakened and illuminated to more ways of seeing, appreciating and describing such a Creator. As He “fashioned clay to think, feel and worship”, He continues to mold us and “rouse us from our complacent slumber, renewing our zeal and passion for the sweetness of Christ.” “God’s Kingdom (on earth) will never come where His name is not considered holy.” Lord, thy Kingdom come in our hearts and lives we pray.

[Neil Brohm]

The description of creation was a beautiful summary which stimulated many encouraging thoughts about our God creating a universe. The references to St. Augustine and writings about creation initiated a variety of thought streams about the creation and the power and holiness of God. I was also reminded that our dear friend Mark DiQuattro’s son David, wrote his doctrinal dissertation on St. Augustine and I’m hoping to read it too and further contemplate the awesomeness of a powerful and omniscient God.

[Lilla Langford]

In answering the questions at the end of the chapter, I am faced with my default avoidance of encountering God in His hoiness. On the one hand, I want to love God with all my heart, sould, mind and strength and on the other, I want “my way”. I do understand that holiness is being set apart, different from anything or anyone else and not to be treated like I treat anything or anyone else. There is in God’s holiness not only reverence and awe, but also, because of what Jesus has revealed, as sense of being loved intimately. May both of these grow in our experience as individuals and as a church as we work through this book.

[Theresa]

“How we understand the person and character of God the Father affects every aspect of our lives.” This is my first R.C. Sproul book, and his first chapter really gave me a lot to think about. In the beginning of my walk I was obsessed with what it meant to have reverent fear of God. As I’m reminded of this, I’m also reminded how much I would make time to just stop and sit in God’s presence. To think about who He is; to enjoy Him. And looking back I see how much that impacted my walk and my view of God in really great ways. I was challenged this week to make time to stop and think about God speaking the universe into existence, and I just found myself in awe. “If God is the Creator of the entire universe, then it must follow that He is the Lord of the whole universe. No part of the world is outside of His lordship. That means no part of my life must be outside of His lordship.”

[Jonathan Mellone]

What stood out to me most was Sproul’s explanation of what it means for God to be holy and what that means for our personal relationship with Him and our walk as Christians. Sproul describes how an encounter with God’s holiness produces both fear and peace. On page 3 he writes:

“An icy chill started at the base of my spine and crept up my neck. Fear swept over me… the terror passed, but soon it was followed by another wave. This wave was different. It flooded my soul with unspeakable peace, a peace that brought instant rest and repose to my troubled spirit… I was alone with God. A holy God. An awesome God. A God who could fill me with terror in one second and with peace in the next.”

That passage made me think about the expression, “put the fear of God into someone.” I’ve always thought of it as a negative saying, but maybe biblical fear is something different. It’s not simply being afraid of God; it’s recognizing His holiness with such awe and reverence that it changes how we live. Perhaps that kind of fear is exactly what leads us away from darkness and onto the right path.

[Author]

Posts