A Layman's View on The Holiness of God

By Tanya Nemley

The holiness of God is a fascinating spiritual subject and a difficult one to fully comprehend. So why would little old me, Tanya Nemley, even want to try to write a book on this complex subject?
This is why I named this book A LAYMAN'S VIEW ON THE HOLINESS OF GOD. These are my own personal studies and observations about the subject. I need to write things out in a simpler way because that's the way I can process information.
In my first book "Obsessed With God" I shared about my very personal and intimate relationship with God. To have that kind of a prayer life requires one to try to know God personally. Since I feel one of His most glorious attributes is His holiness, I'm also obsessed with gaining more knowledge of the Holiness of God.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: May 20, 2022
• ISBN: 9781667847122

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A Layman’s View on The Holiness of God

© 2022 Tanya Nemley

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Print ISBN: 978-1-66784-711-5

eBook ISBN: 978-1-66784-712-2

Table of Contents

Introduction

Preface: The Holiness Of God

Chapter 1: What Is The Holiness Of God?

Chapter 2: Holiness And Understanding Who God Is

Chapter 3: The Mystery Of The Holiness Of God

Chapter 4: Holy Moses!

Chapter 5: Woe Is Me … Isaiah

Chapter 6: Seems Sci-fi-ish To Me

Chapter 7: Wrapping Your Head Around God’s Perfection

Chapter 8: Holiness and the Holy Spirit

Chapter 9: How Can We Be Holy Like God?

Chapter 9: The Holiness Of God And His Glory

Chapter 10: The Holiness Of God. I Am In Awe!

Chapter 11: The Holiness Of God And Our Need For Mercy

Chapter 12: The Holiness Of God And How It Affects Me

Chapter 13: The Holiness Of God Reveals Deep Truths About Me

Chapter 14: The Importance Of Grasping God’s Holiness

Chapter 15: The Snap Back Effect Of God’s Holiness

Chapter 16: Witnesses To The Holiness Of God

Chapter 17: Search David’s Heart, But Not Mine Oh Lord!

Chapter 18: Who me Lord?

Chapter 19: What Is The Wrath Of God?

Chapter 20: The Cure For God’s Wrath

Chapter 21: The Holiest Man Ever, Jesus!

Chapter 22: Thank You Jesus!

Chapter 23: What’s In A Name?

Chapter 24: Who Does God Think He Is?

Chapter 25: You Betta’ Recognize! God Don’t Play!

Chapter 26: The Bible Will Tune You Up!

Chapter 27: When You Know Better You Do Better!

Chapter 28: Because Of His Love—Part 1

Chapter 29: Because Of His Love—Part 2

Chapter 30: We Can’t Be Holy Without The Holy Spirit

Chapter 31: Get Sanctified!

Chapter 32: God Is Dangerous!

Chapter 33: God is Holy, Holy, Holy!

Chapter 34: The Holiness Of God Can Be Understood By Comparing God To Us

Chapter 35: Holiness And The Bible

Chapter 36: Conclusion To The Holiness Of God

Introduction

What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.

A.W. Tozer¹

That quote is my whole reason and purpose for this book. It is about what I have found out about God through His word and through my prayer time with Him.

We must put something there to meditate on. The first thing we need to study to have something in our minds about God is the Holiness of God.

What do we actually know about holiness? We say things like holy cow, holy smoke and we throw that word around so much that we have desensitized ourselves to it to the point that it is almost meaningless to us. It is a special word that talks about the greatest attribute of our God. Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty.

Ezekiel 36:23 says, "I will show the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Sovereign LORD, when I am proved holy through you before their eyes. New International Version (NIV)

God’s holiness should lead you to:

Have remorse for wrongdoing and repent of your sin.

Have faith in Jesus Christ and follow His example.

Have a desire to live a holy and righteous life.

Ephesians 4:24 says, and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. New International Version (NIV)

These are some basic facts about holiness and a revealing scripture about what our spiritual self should look like.

These things should be a goal of every human being, but is it?

As I was praying while writing this book, I received a vision about the people who will read my book. There are things in this book that are a joy to read and will bring you much happiness and peace and there are chapters that will be a little unsettling. In my vision, I saw people holding this book and feeling curious about what is in it. I then saw water and people wondering if they should get into the water. I do not know what the temperature of the water was, but I know people were concerned about getting into the water. I saw people sticking their toe in, and then a foot, and then their whole body. While they went in the water, they had a contemplative look on their faces as they read the book. After they got out of the water, I saw that they were carrying bags of gold. The gold represented their souls were enriched by what they read. Some had a lot of gold, and some had a little. They carried the anointing from the knowledge they gained immersing themselves into the water and into their everyday lives.

But what is the holiness of God and what is the importance of studying it? My quest to understand the holiness of God has developed into an all-out search for all the information I can get on this subject. I want to know these important things about God, so I can develop a closer relationship with Him. So, just what is holiness all about?

In the early years of my walk with God, I confess I have seen Him as a kind of sugar daddy. Have a problem, need some cash or need a miracle, then hit God up for some help. But everything about God is not all goody, goody gum drops or somebody you just go to for stuff. Someone who can bail you out when you get in trouble. He is not an ATM or a get out of jail free card.

To come close to grasping the tiniest amount of knowledge about the holiness of God, we must first come to grips with our sinfulness. We need to examine our souls. We tend to see ourselves closer to the I am a good person inside and not as much as I am a sinful person outside. When I am in my deep prayer with the Lord, and I feel His Shekinah glory on me, I feel my unholiness and I repent and ask God to forgive me. His presence will make you feel your own unworthiness and your need for mercy and grace from God.

I want to be like my Father God, and it pains me to know I cannot be one hundred percent holy right now.

The older I get and the more biblical knowledge I gain, I find that I am growing spiritually but I have not arrived at the place of holiness I know that God requires. I need the holy Spirit to continue to work with me until my last day here on earth.

For us humans, holiness is not something you try to do, but it is something you must be.

Hannah, one of my bible hero’s, understood God’s holiness and expressed it so wonderfully in 1 Samuel 2:2. It says, There is no one holy like the LORD; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.

The holiness of God is a fascinating spiritual subject and a difficult one to fully comprehend. So why would little old me, Tanya Nemley, even want to try to write a book on this complex subject?

This is why I named this book A LAYMAN’S VIEW ON THE HOLINESS OF GOD. These are my own personal studies and observations about the subject. I need to write things out in a simpler way because that is the way I can process information.

In my first book Obsessed With God, I shared about my very personal and intimate relationship with God. To have that kind of a prayer life requires one to try to know God personally. Since I feel one of His most glorious attributes is His holiness, I am also obsessed with gaining more knowledge of the Holiness of God.

It is who He is. And what I want to be like. This is a very interesting subject about God to study because it also involves one of His other very powerful attributes, His wrath. I personally would like to just dwell on all His more nurturing attributes but that will not give you the complete picture about who He is. Without this complete picture, you will not be able to understand the full nature of His character.

It is not an easy thing to delve into the holiness of God because it reflects on the real heart of mankind, which is deceitful compared to God. It causes self-examination and reveals how much we needed Jesus to be our Savior and how much we need the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Without holiness, we will not be able to see God face to face one day. Without holiness, we will not be able to experience God here on earth either. Here on earth, you must try to be holy and if you cannot, the Holy Spirit will help you so that you can repent and make good your connection with God. God will not give anyone a free pass on sin. His holiness demands a repentant heart.

Many movies have been made about what man’s image is of a god. He is always mean spirited, controlling and looks down on his subjects. There are two very important differences in man’s concept of a god and the one true God. The two differences are His holiness and love. I am sure there are many more differences, but I feel these two things set Him apart. God’s motives are always sinless, pure, and holy. I think it is hard for man to think of a god that is holy because of man’s idea of what he thinks God should be like. That is why in books and movies a god is always mean spirited.

This generation is not very knowledgeable about living a holy life. Their sense of holiness has been whittled away over many generations. People have become comfortable with moving away from biblical foundational principles. Many feel the bible is old school. Our sense of morality and integrity have also diminished greatly. Holiness is not a part of our daily mindset. This is a serious deficit that has led to a worldwide spiritual crisis. Holiness is necessary if one wants to see God face to face one day. From a biblical perspective, this is non-negotiable and a deal breaker in the relationship between us and God. There is a way to repair this flaw, which I will discuss in the later chapters in this book.

I know that so far this is a subject that does not have you jumping for joy. Because of the eternal seriousness of this topic, it is necessary to have all the information you can get about it. If you want to be in a blessed place with God, if you want to live right with Him and if you want heaven to be your final destiny, then you need to comprehend some important facts about the holiness of God. There will be a lot of scriptures included throughout this book because God Himself has given us the information we are seeking about His holiness.

As you read through the chapters in this book, I hope you will open you heart to this incredible attribute of God and that it will illuminate your mind to be more in line with who God wants you to be.

Psalms 119:105 says, Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. New International Version (NIV)

I pray that everyone who reads this book will be drawn so much closer to our heavenly Father. I pray that people will examine their heart, repent if necessary and that holiness will become a priority in their daily walk with God. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

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1 Tozer, A W., The Knowledge of the Holy: The Attributes of God: Their Meaning in the Christian Life. Harrisburg, Pa: Christian Publications, 1961

Preface:

The Holiness Of God

I would like to state something about my literary journey before a reader reads my book. I have a learning disability. I absolute dislike reading because of this. English was one of my worst subjects in school. In 2011, I decided to write a blog called God Speaks I Listen because God was always giving me messages to help me through my life’s difficulties. I thought I could share these with others. In the beginning, it was so difficult for me to write, and it still is to this day. I made lots of spelling errors and had poor grammar. My husband would read my blogs online and call me from work to say, Lots of mistakes today. Eventually, I got a little better. Thank goodness for Spellcheck! It would take me hours and sometimes days just to write one blog. Writing is still very difficult for me. So, about a year ago I cut back from blogging after ten years ten years to writing just a few a year. Then, in 2019 the pandemic hit, and I decided to write a book. That was very difficult for me. I thank my husband for his support and help.

This year, 2021, I decided to write a second book on my favorite subject, the Holiness of God. One of the most famous writers on the subject is R.C. Sproul. Although his book is excellent and highly recommended, for me it was hard to process. I wrote my book in my own way for me to understand it. This is the reason I wrote a layman’s view. My book’s claim to fame will not be a highly theological book on the topic, but my easy interpretation of the topic with appropriate scriptures. There are many great books on the holiness of God from many acclaimed writers and bible expositors. There are many books for people of every scholastic background, and this is wonderful. If easy to understand is your thing, then prayerfully this book is just for you. I hope you are blessed by the spiritual insights that have helped me to understand this difficult subject—The Holiness of God.

Chapter 1:

What Is The Holiness Of God?

Revelation 4:8 says, Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying: ‘Holy,