The main thing is to make the main thing the main thing....RC Sproul

This is from The Holiness of God by R. C. Sproul:

If I were to ask a group of Christians what the top priority of the church is, I am sure I would get a wide variety of answers. Some would say evangelism, others social action, and still others spiritual nurture. But I have yet to hear anyone talk about what Jesus' priorities were.


What is the first petition of the Lord's Prayer? Jesus said, "This then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven...'" (Matt 6) The first line of the prayer is not a petition. It is a form of personal address.

The prayer continues: "hallowed be your name, your kingdom come." We often confuse the words "hallowed be your name" with part of the address, as if the words were "hallowed is your name."

In that case the words would merely be an ascription of praise to God. But that is not how Jesus said it. He uttered it as a petition, as the first petition. We should be praying that God's name be hallowed, that God be regarded as holy.

There is a kind of sequence within the prayer. God's kingdom will never come where His name is not considered holy. His will is not done on earth as it is in heaven if His name in desecrated here. In heaven the name of God is holy. It is breathed by angels in a sacred hush. Heaven is a place where reverence of God is total. It is foolish to look for the kingdom where God is not revered.

How we understand the person and character of God the Father affects every aspect of our lives. It affects far more than what we normally call the "religious" aspects of our lives.

If God is the Creator of the entire universe then it must follow that He is the Lord of the entire universe. No part of the world is outside His Lordship. That means that no part of my life is outside His Lordship. His holy character has something to say about economics, athletics, politics, romance--everything with which we are involved.

God is inescapable. There is no place we can hide from Him. Not only does He penetrate every aspect of our lives, but He penetrates it in His majestic holiness.


Therefore we must seek to understand what holiness is. There can be no worship, no spiritual growth, no true obedience without it. It defines our goal as Christians. God has declared, "Be holy, because I am holy." (Lev. 11:44)