The Holiness of Jesus, to Convict of Sin
Luke 5:8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.
Rev 1:17 And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:
Is 6: 5 ¶ Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.
Joh 16:8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
There has been so much grace teaching these past few years, that the holiness of God is all but forgottan in the modern church. Truly, when we are born again, we have access to the very throne of God, and positionally, we have become the righteousness of God. In fact, the Holy Spirits greatest work is to do just that, to show us our righteousness before the throne of God, to woo us into our Fathers arms, to encourage us to fellowship with Jesus!
Yet, God is Holy. Peter met Jesus, and the first thing he was aware of, was his personal sin.
John the beloved saw Jesus in His glorified state, and fell on his face like a dead man.
Isaiah had the same experience: a revelation of the holiness and purity of God, and immediately he cried out.
Repentance, to see ourselves in the light of God’s holiness, and to immediately cry out for mercy and the cleansing, atoning power of the blood of Jesus.
Reportedly, when Charles Finney, after several days or weeks of intense prayer from the lips of father Nash, would enter a town, people would fall to the ground, groaning under the realization of their sin. Reportedly, over 80 percent of his converts, remained faithful to Jesus, after one of his meetings, have authentically met God.
Then we read of the case of a famous faith preacher, Smith Wigglesworth, who reportedly felt a burden to pray while travelling on a train. He retreated to the restroom, and met with God there. When he emerged, the entire passenger car beheld his face, ‘as that of an angel’ and cried out to God for mercy, and he was able to lead them all to Christ, without a sermon spoken.
Then, there was the incident with the famous Kathryn Kuhlman, who after prayer in her hotel room, was being brought privately through the kitchen entrance of the hotel to the ball room where her meeting was being held. Reportedly, when the kitchen staff saw her glowing, they were all knocked to the floor by God’s power, as she simply walked across the room.
In my own life, I am reminded of several incidences where I saw God’s holiness displayed:
The first, was during the Toronto Blessing, or revival. There had been deep worship, and someone cried out prophetically: ‘The Fear of the Lord’. When they did, the Spirit of God fell in the meeting, and all 5000 of us present were knocked to the ground, and for over an hour, no one spoke or got up. The only sound was the occasional groaning or anguished weeping of people getting right with God in prayer.
In another meeting, at a Full Gospel Businessmans fellowship world conference, in Anaheim, California, in 1994, Benny Hinn gave an alter call for those desiring more of God’s power, the anointing. Like a wave, the Holy Spirit fell, and people, like dominos fell like stacked cordwood. As people got up, the crowd surged towards the platform, seeking to touch Benny Hinn. He yelled: ‘Back!” and when he did, a circle of light engulfed him, about 15 feet in diameter. He stood, looking into heaven, and this no one could get through this ring of fire. In fact, anyone touching it, was immediately knocked down. I was only 15 feet away when this happened, and I will never forget the illumination and glory on him at that moment. He was lit up in the power of God!
Then, I was at Rhema, a Bible school student, serving in the alter care. During one morning exhaltation service for the students, Kenneth E Hagin was there, and as I turned around from worship, I literally bumped into him. I had been praying for him for so many hours during this season of my life, that I simply said: ‘I love you!’ and gave him a hug. He chuckled and said, ‘I love you too son’, and we both went on. I rushed home after class to eat lunch that day to hurry back for prayer school, and as I turned to leave out little apartment, the power and presence of God came upon me, and I was knocked to the floor, realizing many, many sins in my life, in my heart. As Iay there weeping, I realized that the anointing and love from brother Hagin, had revealed these things, in order to cleanse and heal my heart.
The Holiness of God revealed, will bring repentance.
This, is the greatest need in the church today. A revelation of the holiness and love of Jesus, that will cause people to forever turn from compromise and evil.
Let’s pray:
Father, Peter, Isaiah, John, and now Chris, have all had encounter with your love and holiness, that changed them forever. Please do it for me, today, in your name Lord Jesus, Amen’
