God’s Honor and Integrity

God’s actions toward Israel reveal His honor and integrity—He keeps His promises not because we deserve it, but for His holy name’s sake.

“It is not for your sake, house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name … I will vindicate the holiness of My great name … gather you from all the lands; and … bring you into your own land.”—Ezekiel 36:22–24 NASB

Throughout His relationship with His people, God demonstrates that He is holy. When He appeared to Moses in the wilderness, God appeared “in a blazing fire” and told him, “The place on which you are standing is holy ground” (Exodus 3:2–5).

After the children of Israel left Egypt, God told them, “Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, because I am holy” (Leviticus 11:44). Because He is holy, He required that His people act in holy ways as well. They were to abstain from sin and stay away from anything unclean.

By the time of Ezekiel, His people’s lives were filled with sin. God told them that He would save them, not because they deserved or earned it, but to “vindicate the holiness of My great name.”

The Lord promised to demonstrate His holiness by gathering His people “from all the lands” and bringing them into their own land. We saw the fulfillment of this promise when, in 1948, Israel became a nation for the first time in almost 1,900 years.

Today, when you look at the nation of Israel, remember that God is holy. He keeps His Word. His purposes and plans will be fulfilled. His Word is always true, and His promises are true for you.

One day, every nation and every person will know that He alone is the Lord. Worship Him. Serve Him. Seek to live a holy life so that others will come to know Him.

Reflection Question: How can your life reflect God’s holiness and integrity today?