Proverbs 9:10. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
The book of Proverbs began with this same phrase – The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (1:7). The wise person fears or honors God and holds him in the highest place in their heart. To fear God is not to be in terror of God, but to stand in awe of him. Recognizing his transcendent glory and beauty.
And his holiness.
That’s the second part of the proverb that parallels the first. The fear of the Lord mirrors knowledge of the Holy One. We can’t, and won’t, fear the Lord without knowing him as holy. Perfect and pure. There is no sin in God and God cannot sin. The minute we compromise on God’s perfections, we begin to make a God in our own likeness. And that is the definition of a fool.
But to be fair, can such a holy God even be known? Aren’t his ways unsearchable (Rom. 11)? Isn’t God unfathomable (Job 11)? Surely he is. And yet, God wants to be known. Let that sink in. The God who is infinite, and fully satisfied in himself, wants his image bearers to know him and to know him in his holiness. In fact, Jesus defined eternal life as knowing God the Father (Jn. 17:3).
Christian, God has made himself knowable in Christ. As we said yesterday, we can infinitely increase in the wisdom of God. How? By our union with Christ. Union with Christ is the fulfillment of Proverbs 9:10. The greatest revelation of the holiness of God is Christ’s death and resurrection. How holy is God? So holy he would send his Son to take every sin upon himself and destroy them on the cross. How holy is God? So holy he would insist on restoring mankind to a state of perfection by his indwelling life. Now, by the indwelling life of Christ, the Holy One is knowable.
Can we actually know the Holy One? Yes. We can and we do. In Christ. In sharing in Christ’s death and resurrection we now know God. No just intellectually, but experientially. By the Holy Spirit, we are experiencing his holiness in us. By the Holy Spirit, we participate in God’s holiness alongside the Trinity. We partner with God in his righteousness as his holy ones, his saints. The holiness we have passively received from Christ, he now actively displays as he lives out his holiness through us.
You: Does your life look like the holiness that is in you?
You in Christ: Are you holy? Do you know the Holy One? How would you answer these questions?
Christ in you: Where is Christ in you calling you to live out his holiness?
Pray: Father, in Christ your Son, and by your Holy Spirit you have made me holy. You have given me knowledge of you, the Holy One. Lead me in the way of holiness today. Amen.
To Live is Christ 