More On “Traditional Holiness”

TUES., JAN. 10, 1995, 6:14 AM
FARM, STUDY

Last evening as your spirit encouraged planning for a Teaching this morning you knew that I had more to say about this theme. Our “liturgy” has developed in a way that limits any one Teaching to three of your written pages. If I have more to add I can wait until you come again, which shall be soon. So here you are, o son, in the dark of the early morn.

Holiness is a term and a concept that applies to Me, the Triune God. I, the Lord God, am holy, and you should stand in awe of Me and kneel humbly before Me. As Jesus I am holy. I was conceived in a mystical way, and apparently was born simply and without problems. The one incident in My childhood that is part of the gospel story… My staying behind in the temple with the priests and learned scholars… is a good example of My holiness, as a human. On the one hand, I was “about My Father’s business,” testifying to My sense of relationship with God the Father, and not just Joseph, who was My earthly father (and, conveniently, of the “house and lineage of David”) on the other hand I was a disobedient 12 year old, a pre-teen who caused His parents much worry and concern. This illustrated, early, that holiness was not just a matter of perfect behavior.

Oh, there was one earlier story wherein I, as a baby, was taken into the temple for the proper ritual in becoming a proper Jewish boy. I was recognized as holy by two old temple habitues, Simeon and Anna… the One for whom they had waited.

As the Holy Spirit I am holy even in name and by designation. I have been from the beginning and have done much that was mystically “good.” At Pentecost I came as wind and fire. Wind is air moving. It is breath that is the clear indication of life. When breath is gone, life is soon gone. Fire is warmth, and warmth also is necessary for life and for comfort in life. Yet wind and fire can also be destructive and life threatening. Tornadoes and hurricanes are wind at its worst, destroying property and causing death and injuries. Fire can be both a great comfort and a source of pain. Burns are the most painful of injuries. Hell is depicted as a terrible place of fire, where even the waters burn. Am, I, as Holy Spirit, responsible for some acts and actions that have been harmful to some. Of course. Does this compromise My holiness? Not a bit of it!

In your culture, as well as in some others, human life is seen as sacred… to be preserved at almost any cost. Much medical energy (and many medical dollars) goes into prolonging life… the life of the body. Murder is a heinous crime. Suicide is considered an evil. Even abortion of a not yet viable embryo or fetus is seen by some, who would often dub themselves as holy, as a sin, which should be a crime like unto murder.