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Pastor's Blog May 2, 2019

"A Fresh View of Holiness"

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Psalm 110:3 states, "Your people will join you on your day of battle.  You have been dressed in holiness from birth; you have the freshness of a child" (NCV).  The New Century Version isn't used extensively by a lot of people, but it's one of the best translations of this verse - primarily because this verse is hard to translate!  It's hard to nail down the poetic sense of the Hebrew of this verse for English comprehension. 

For instance, the literal Hebrew of this verse says, "Your people, the ones volunteering in the day of your strength, in honors/splendors/ornaments of holiness, from the womb of dawn to you, the dew of your youth."  Depending on its meaning, the phrase "the ones volunteering" could also be rendered "the ones who will volunteer" or even "those who will join"; likewise, the word "strength" can also mean "battle" or "army", and the lines "the womb of dawn" and "the dew of your youth" is a poetic way to emphasize the vigor of God's power and his ability to address problems before they happen.  And we can see that the reference to holiness already carries its own difficulties - is it in many honors, several splendors, or various ornaments that holiness is exemplified by God? 

There is a great deal about the intricate details of Psalm 110:3 that requires much prayer and thought to fully understand.  What is easily grasped, however, is that Psalm 110 is a messianic prophecy about the priestly ministry of Jesus to judge the nations and his kingly reign to save his people. 

Psalm 110 has traditionally been seen by Christians as an ascension psalm that unpacks the ultimate triumph of Christ with his people at the second coming.  And what we find in verse 3 is an explicit promise to us that we will participate in the victory of Christ - and what's more, that our participation in Christ's triumph is a natural part of the holiness of God. 

God wants us to be victorious in Christ, not just in our daily struggles with sin but also as full citizens of God's kingdom who will inherit the new heavens and new earth.  Part of Jesus' high priestly ministry is to make us victorious and triumphant with himself, and in this way array us in the honor, splendor, and beauty of God's holiness.  I hope you find this fresh view of holiness to be heartening and encouraging in your walk with Jesus.