The burning bush worked; Moses was drawn to it, just as God intended. He had to go closer to see why it wasn’t being burned up. This was exactly what God was guiding Moses to do. But there was another part of the equation. As Moses approached, God stopped him and told him to take off his shoes because he stood on holy ground. This is a picture of God’s imminence and transcendence intertwined. God draws us to Himself because He is a personal God who wants us to be in relationship with Him. At the same time, He is holy and set apart from His fallen creation, including the rebellious people He loves. This is why Moses could come closer to God – even still in sin – but not too close.

This is what God does. He makes holy what He possesses. We see it here with a patch of ground. We will see it later with the tabernacle, namely the Holy of Holies. We also see it in our lives. As Christians, we are a holy nation (1 Peter 2:9). Because of God’s presence in us, we become holy at the moment of our salvation. Only through the ongoing work of God in us and through us can we live holy lives as an accurate representation of our new, true identities in Christ.

• Why is it important to remember that God makes you holy and you cannot be holy on your own?