"The Holy Grail"

"'Gaily bedight, a gallant knight 

In sunshine and in shadow;

Riding along, singing a song,

In search of El Dorado.'

Edgar Allan Poe

What is the first petition of the Lord's Prayer? Jesus said, 'Then this, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven ...( Matthew 6:9 ). The first line of the prayer is not a petition. It is a form of personal address. The prayer continues: 'hallowed be your name, your kingdom come' ( Matthew 6:9-10 ).

We often confuse the words 'hallowed be your name' with part of the address, as if the words were hallowed 'is' your name. In that case the words would merely be an ascription of praise to God.

But that is not how Jesus said it. He uttered it as a petition, as the first petition. We should be praying that God's name be hallowed, that God be regarded as holy.

There is a kind of sequence within the prayer. God's kingdom will never come where His name is not considered holy. His will is not done on earth as it is in heaven if His name is desecrated here. 

In heaven the name of God is holy. 

It is breathed by angels in sacred hush. Heaven is a place where reverence for God is total. It is foolish to look for the kingdom anywhere God is not revered. 

How we understand the person and character of God the Father affects every aspect of our lives. It affects far more than what we normally call the "religious" aspect of our lives. 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 that no part of my life must be outside of His lordship. His holy character has something to say about economics, politics, athletics, romance, - everything with which we are involved. 

God is inescapable. 

There is no place we can hide from Him.

Not only does He penetrate every aspect of our lives, but He penetrates it in His majestic holiness. 

Therefore we must seek to understand what the holy is.

We dare not seek to avoid it. There can be no worship, no spiritual growth, no true obedience without it. 

It defines our goal as Christians. God has declared, 'Be holy, because I am holy.' ( Leviticus 11:44 ) To reach that goal, we must understand what holiness is." 

RC Sproul, "The Holiness of God," quoted from Chapter 1  

Ephesians 5:1 tells us, "Therefore be imitators of God as beloved children." And I've come to realize that it is impossible for me to imitate my Father, if I don't know what He is like. So I've embarked on this journey of knowing God, and although God dwells in all of His children, still he invites us to draw near to Him, powerfully promising He will in turn draw near to us. ( James 4:8 ) This is the joy of our relationship with God given to us by Christ. ( John 15;11 ) 

I've also found that when we struggle with a certain weakness or sin or suffering, if instead of finding a Bible verse to conquer the trouble, although there is nothing wrong with that at all, but I've found if I focus instead on the attributes of God through the Scriptures, as overwhelming at times as they may be, I find a deeper meaning embedded in my wrestling that begins to transform into a richer understanding of who my Father truly is, knowledge of the Holy One I am dealing with, and a new desire and strength to be like Him. 

Happy New Year, Friends. May our eyes be opened wider and our hearts enlightened greater this coming year to the holiness of our Father in heaven and all that this knowledge entails. 

💜