by Shannon Caughey

There are certain high-profile coaches who have great competitive success. They’re given full power and authority to run their program how they want. They are good public communicators and have strong relational skills. In the eyes of many, these coaches are at the pinnacle of their sport. When you look a little closer, however, you rightly wonder about their tactics. They seem to look for loopholes in the rules to gain a competitive advantage. Past actions suggest they’re not above cutting corners in order to get what they want. While their success on the field or court is undeniable, it’s questionable how much they value behind-the-scenes integrity.

A coach like this often gathers a significant following. But if you were asked whether you would trust this coach, how would you respond? Is being successful, powerful, and popular all that’s required to be trustworthy? Or is something else needed?

Considering why you would choose (or not choose) to trust another coach helps us think through a bigger question: Why trust God? In this series of devotions we’re looking at attributes of the Lord that give us abundant reasons for trusting him—and for continuing to deepen our trust in him. So far we’ve considered his love, power, and sovereignty. Another of God’s attributes addresses the issues that undermine our confidence in the kind of coaches described above. We trust God because he is holy.

In Isaiah 6:1-4, Isaiah shares this experience: “¹ In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. ² Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. ³And they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.’ ⁴At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.”

What the seraphim emphasize about the Lord is his holiness. Because this is so central to who God is, they repeat it three times: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty.” To be holy is to be set apart or separate. God is wholly other: separate from his creation, exalted above all else. God’s holiness also refers to his absolute purity and moral excellency. The Lord is set apart and awesome in his moral and spiritual perfection.

Unlike human leaders, whether it’s a high profile coach or any of us, God’s character and integrity are never in question. He never sins or acts with anything other than perfect moral purity. He is completely separate from sin. We trust God because his words, actions, promises, and plans are holy.

We also trust the Lord because while he is set apart in his holiness, he makes a way for us to draw near to him. Our sin creates a barrier to being able to approach this holy God. But God came to us through his Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus lived the perfect, sinless life that we fail to live. In John 6:69, Simon Peter says to Jesus, “We know that you are the Holy One of God.” Jesus, the Holy One in the flesh, then took the penalty for our sin in our place through his death on the cross. When we surrender in faith to him, he graciously cleanses us and takes away the guilt of our sin. We can now be in the presence of our holy God.

Why trust God? Because he is loving, he is all-powerful, he is sovereign, and he is holy. Put your confidence in him because the Lord is glorious in his moral and spiritual perfection.

For reflection: Take some time to praise God for his holiness. Renew your trust in him because he is set apart in his moral and spiritual perfection.