God Most High

2010-04-18T10:59:00.000-07:00

God Omniscient

Omniscient means to be all-knowing. This is written to declare the scriptural truth that God knows all completely and eternally without exception.

God’s Omnipresence Assures His Omniscience
God’s omniscience is inseparable from his omnipresence. It is perhaps easier to some to understand God’s omnipresence, i.e., God is every where at all times. God is “the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity” (Isaiah 57:15). He lives in eternity. He is present in timelessness. I might say that he dwells from one end of eternity to the other. Yet eternity has no ends. He lives in a place that encompasses or encloses or surrounds our space/time world. There are dimensions other than our space/time world and these are encapsulated by eternity as well. God is not living in just another dimension - extra dimensional, he is also outside all dimensions - outer dimensional. “the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee” (I Kings 8:27). He dwells in a place where the past, present and future in all dimensions is always present before him. Inhabiting eternity he rhetorically ask, “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” (Jeremiah 23:24).

To acknowledge the doctrine of God’s omnipresence demands that the doctrine of his omniscience be acknowledged as well. For if God dwells everywhere at all times then it only follows that he knows all that is - in all dimensions at all times. He cannot be in a time and place and not know what is happening there. He is present in all eternity and thus in all eras of time and dimension. Therefore he knows explicitly all that is. There is no moment or place or void where something is or isn’t happening and he is not intimately aware of it. He knows all things - atoms ,electrons, split-second quarks - at once and forever, because he is eternally there.

God Knows Himself
I find it exciting that God knows Himself with perfect understanding. This is in contrast to man who is deceived in understanding and cannot even know the deceit of his own heart. But God knows himself perfectly. Every glorious attribute of his perfect character is present before him eternally. The depths of his eternal being radiate in his sight. His perfection is known to him in the fullness of its beauty. His image of himself (Colossians 1:15) is understood in such absolute completeness that it stands forth as an exact representation of himself (Hebrews 1:3) and is himself again - known as the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. And he, as such, is eternal deity. (For more information on this subject see my article on this blog - Joy In Considering The Trinity).

God Knows Each Person
I know very little concerning myself. A lot of what I have known about myself I have forgotten. I do not comprehend what a miserable creature I am nor do I have a grain of understanding of the glory of God. The functioning of my body is outside my grasp. I am totally oblivious to it when I am asleep or unconscious. Not understanding my body, it is clear my soul and spirit are a complete puzzle. My future on this earth and date of my departure are a mystery to me. The contents of this article will surprise me when it is done.

Yet God knows me in total. Allow me to summarize the first sixteen verses of Psalm 139. He actively formed me in my mother’s womb. He knows when I sit down, get up and the word I am about to speak. My thoughts are no secret to him. There is nowhere I can go to escape him - neither heaven, hell or the farthest part of the sea. Neither darkness nor light hide me from him. He wrote the book on me before I was. He is fully aware of the contents of the article I am now writing - from the beginning to its end.

God Knows All Creation
God does all things for his glory (Ephesians 1:9-12; 3:9-11). That which God does will be the thing that brings him the most honor. It will most highly exalt his name. It will best make known his righteousness. It will manifest who he is.

Thus, God must choose the best world for this purpose, i.e., the display of his glory. A second-choice world would not be sufficient. It would be a dishonor to God if he were not to choose the world through which he would be most highly exalted. Therefore we can be assured that the world in which we live is the world that will bring the most glory to God.

For God to choose or decree this world demands that he be intimately acquainted with it. He cannot decree the best world without knowing it. Before the world was, God knew all his works (Acts 15:18). He informs us that he has numbered the stars and calls them all by name (Psalm 147:4). Because he is great and powerful he knows that none of them are missing (Isaiah 40:26). As for the nations, he determined their length of time and the boundaries of their territory (Acts 17:26). All things that be are determined and known by God at the same time - eternally.

God Knows Other Possible Worlds
At this point I am seeking to be careful for it is easy to find those that enter into weirdness and the absurd. These are those that will ask such questions as, “Can God create a world in which he does not exist or where a circle is square, etc?” These are the questions of fools. Any one can put the words “Can God” in front of a logical fallacy and come up with nonsense. Doing so does not diminish God but rather shows the stupidity of man and his enmity for the holy God. This is not where I am going.

However, we previously noted that God would have created the best possible universe in order to bring the most glory to himself. But how would God know that this is the best possible world to honor himself? Would he not have to know all possible worlds? I believe it necessary that he would.

There is a possible world that is identical to this world except there is one more leaf on the hickory tree in my front yard. There is another possible world which differs from this one only in that I have one more hair on my head. Has God thought of these possible worlds? I believe so. If he is omniscient he must know all possible worlds in order to choose the one that glorifies him the most.

How many possible worlds are there? There must be an infinite number of possible worlds. We could throughout all eternity never conceive of them all. An infinite number of possible worlds could only be known by an infinite God: that is, an infinite God who is omniscient - who knows all things possible.

There is scripture that gives us detail on things that God knows would have happened but did not. One such place is I Samuel 23:1-13. King Saul was desiring to kill David. God had sent David to fight the Philistines at Keliah. David defeated the Philistines at Keliah and then learned that Saul knew he was there. David asked two questions of God. Would Saul come there after him? God answered yes. Would the people of Keliah surrender him to Saul? God answered yes again. So we have God confirming what would happen if David stayed in Keliah. David, armed with this information, took his army and left Keliah. God knew a possible event that would not be actual and gave the information to David to direct him.

In Matthew 11:20-24 Jesus knew that the works that he was doing at that time would have caused repentance if they had been done at another time in Tyre, Sidon and Sodom. To know this information he would have to have considered another possible world that in our reality did not exist. Such is true in Luke 19:40 as well. Jesus entered Jerusalem and the people were praising God. He made known to his enemies that if this were not happening the stones would cry out. A possible world in which stones speak? Yes!

Thus the infinite God knows an infinite number of worlds. This is the best possible world to bring glory to God. Thus it becomes the only possible world for all others are deficient.

God Has Never Acquired Knowledge
Isaiah 40:13 ask the rhetorical question, “Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or being his counselor has taught him?” No one has ever directed or taught God anything. He didn’t ask me to what family, race, nation, time, economic standing, etc. I would choose to belong. He didn’t even inquire of me if I wanted to be born. Nor did he get up one day and look into the future to find me here doing whatever I am doing. He is eternally mindful of me and of you. Indeed, my times and yours are in his hands (Psalm 31:15).

God’s knowledge is complete. He has never learned or will learn something new or discover anything. No information exist that he has not previously known. “With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding?” (Isaiah 40:14). The answer to this rhetorical question is an obvious “nobody” for he “is perfect in knowledge” (Job 37:16). He, himself, is the origin of his knowledge. As he eternally exist, so does his infinite knowledge eternally exist. To say that he knows all that is known is no less mystery than when he told Moses, “I am that I am” (Exodus 3:14).

Was there ever a moment in which God considered all infinitely possible worlds and then decided on this one that would most glorify him? Actually, no. All things are eternally known to him and are thus eternally decreed. If there ever was such a time that God made a decision then we must conclude that God has not always been omniscient. We would then have to say that God has evolved in his thinking. This would be absurd.

We who are finite think in ways that are limited to our mind and understanding. God uses language in the scripture that communicates as best as possible to a fallen finite mankind. These are anthropomorphisms, God using human attributes - forms, actions, emotions, etc. to convey information in a way we can understand. Yet there is no one like God, no one to whom we can compare him. As he rhetorically asks, “To whom will you liken me, and make me equal, and compare me, that we may be like?” (Isaiah 46:5).

Conclusion
I conclude in finite human writing as best I can what I perceive as true about this one attribute of an infinite God. God, being always omniscient, has always known and presently knows all things about himself, me and the creation. He even knows an infinite number of possible worlds. Yet this knowledge of possible worlds is, in one sense, of no use to him because all such worlds, excepting the one that brings him the most glory, are eternally rejected. The one world that he created, in which we are a part, is the only world eternally decreed as not only truly possible, but necessary. This world is the only one that can bring the required glory that is appropriate to honor God. This is the world that results from the omniscient God who says, “My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure” (Isaiah 46:10). He who knows all things decrees that which pleases himself.

Hopefully this information leads one to worship and conformity to Jesus Christ. Where else do you find a God who eternally knows and decrees all things? Would you be happy with a lesser one? It would not be the One True God. For this is the God who does not compromise his sovereignty and his beauty. He adores himself and overflows and thus the proper creation that glorifies him comes into being.

This creation is such that man rebels and opposes God. Then Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ and eternal Son of God was conceived by the Spirit and born of a virgin and ultimately “delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: Whom God has raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be held by it” (Acts 2:23,24).

Astounding! This is the God who declares his righteousness: both the glory of his justice is preserved and he is able to justify those that believe in Jesus. For the blood of Christ is the propitiation (appeasement of God’s wrath) for sins. Thus on that basis (the redemption that is in Christ Jesus) God can forgive the sins and justify (declare people to be in right standing) freely (without works) by grace (unmerited favor) all those who come in faith to Christ (Romans 3:24-26).

Thus Jesus Christ commands not the proud and self-sufficient but the humble and needy: “Come to me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and you shall find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30).

“O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who has known the mind of the Lord? or who has been his counselor? Or who has first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen” (Romans 11:33-36).

2009-07-08T16:53:00.000-07:00

Who Makes You Different?

We are all different. A multitude of differences separate each individual from another. We can be pretty or ugly, rich or poor, black or white, smart or dumb, loved or hated or somewhere in between in most given categories.

Of the prideful Corinthians Paul asked the following:

"For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?"
(I Corinthians 4:7).

Allow me to paraphrase and restate these three questions, centering specifically in regard to salvation:

Who makes you different from the next person - in regard to salvation?
What do you have - in regard to salvation - that you did not receive from God?
If whatever you have - in regard to salvation - you did receive from God, why are you proud and boastful as if you didn’t receive it from God?

The answers to these questions in order are God, nothing, and duhhh, I’m in sin. But consider each question and answer more specifically.

Who makes you different from the next person - in regard to salvation?

Christians will not likely have a problem with this question until it comes to their salvation. It is okay that God is God and does what he does until he messes with their self-possessed “free will” to choose God. At that point there must be something in them that makes them different from another. There is something good they produce that is not received from God. Thus they stand before God because they used that which is inherently good in them to choose him. They played the decisive role in their salvation. God made them different from another in a multitude of ways. But in regard to their desire or ability to choose him, God does nothing but leave them to themselves.

How can this be?

It cannot, for this is contrary to the teaching of scripture.

Consider the testimony of the Bible concerning man:

…the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth … (Genesis 8:21). But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags… (Isaiah 64:6). The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked… (Jeremiah 17:9). … There is none righteous, no, not one…there is none that seeketh after God…there is none that doeth good, no, not one (Romans 3:10-12).

Because of man’s fallen, anti-God nature he can do nothing to commend himself to God nor does he even have the desire to so do. But one will say that God gives equal grace to all so that man then has the desire and ability to choose God. Not true. But considering that it were true the problem still remains. What is in one man that he will improve this grace and be saved that is not in another man so that he will not?

It is not in sinful man to make himself different. Rather, it is the God who declared that there be “...a remnant according to the election of grace” (Romans 11:5). Grace by its very nature is freely given and not earned. Grace results in the praise of God’s glory for in it alone God “...hath made us accepted in the beloved” (Ephesians 1:6). There is no other basis for the election. It is this grace that gives birth to election. Grace - freely given - not earned.

Where do we find this marvelous grace-based election? Again it is certainly not found in puny humans who are captivated by the will of the devil and in need of the gift of repentance from God (II Timothy 2:25,26). It is not an election that is some convoluted doctrine that teaches that a god who was living in gross ignorance looked out into the future one day and saw some people liked him and so he elected them to salvation. A thousand times, NO!

This election is God’s choice of his people in Christ in eternity past (Ephesians 1:4). It is found where all that is righteous and pure and good and lovely and true is found. It is found in “...the good pleasure of his will” (Ephesians 1:5), “...the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself” (Ephesians 1:9). Glory to God. He is the only one who makes anyone different in any respect to another.

What do you have - in regard to salvation - that you did not receive from God?

Any Christian will believe that food, covering and life itself come from God. But what about faith, repentance and the whole of salvation?

Many will say that God has provided the salvation but man must provide the repentance and belief. He must turn and trust Christ. But does man have the capability to do so? John 3:27 states, “…A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.” Are there some exceptions to this rule, namely faith and repentance? If a man can produce them himself then he has no need of it from heaven. If he can turn himself and believe then he has generated goodness in himself in spite of scripture cited above that teach that none can do good, not even one.

Yet we have seen in II Timothy 2:25 that God must give repentance so that one can acknowledge the truth. Elsewhere we see that it is God working through Christ “…to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities” (Acts 3:26) and “…to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31).

Likewise, faith is the means through which we are saved by grace. It is not of ourselves but rather the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8,9). Paul makes it clear to the Philippians that their faith was a gift of God just as was their suffering (Philippians 1:29).

Be it understood that man is not the center of this great salvation. It is the relationship and communion between God the Father and God the Son that results in salvation for man. The elect Christian is a gift of God the Father to the Son. Jesus gives eternal life to as many as the Father gives him (John 17:2,3).

The truth of the elect being a gift of God the Father to God the Son is expressed not only throughout John 17 but is referred to elsewhere by John. A theme in chapter 6 is that God has given to Christ a people. Those people will come to him. Christ comes to do the will of his Father. “And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day” (John 6:39). Those who come to Christ come because they are given to him by the Father. They are “…born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:13).

Thus the salvation of the believer is not in any repentance or faith or anything else found in himself. His salvation is in God and God has given him not only eternal life but the means to attain it as well. Repentance and faith are gifts so that the believer may fulfill the commands of God and gain the ultimate gift of salvation, God himself.

So pause, empty yourself and think. Let there be no good thing you have that you hold in the face of God and say, “This good and righteous deed, object or thought is created solely by me. There is good that you, God, are not to be credited with because this good originates with me.”

Jesus is "...the author and finisher of our faith..." (Hebrews 12;2). "Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth…" (James 1:18). “…Salvation is of the LORD” (Jonah 2:9). All of it. You have nothing you have not received from God.

If whatever you have - in regard to salvation - you did receive from God, why are you proud and boastful as if you didn’t receive it from God?

Thus far, I have concluded that it is God who makes one different from another and no one has anything that he has not received from God. In this light Paul’s final question in this verse to the Corinthians and for us as well is this: Why do you live in such pride and defraud God of his glory by claiming what he has given you, you produced yourself? The “why” question. “…why dost thou glory…?” This is the question asked in order to reprove the proud and turn them to humility.

With pride the glory due to God is seized and claimed for self. “I did it. It was in me to turn from my sins. My own faith brought me to Christ. I did it.” Such words rob God of the exaltation due only to him.

With humility we are able to give all glory to God. We claim the authorship of nothing for ourselves… except our sin. The God of our salvation granted us not only the salvation, but the means to obtaining the salvation. All glory is his. So let this writer and the few who read these words and the multitude of the elect who do not, relentlessly pursue humility. And, if having found it, recognize that they have it solely by grace. With an overflowing and thankful heart give glory to God for humility is also a gift, since:

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning" (James 1:17).

God The All - A Prayer

2009-03-01T14:47:00.000-08:00

A few months ago a friend sent us a copy of the book, The Valley of Vision - A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions. It contains a few hundred prayers written by, obviously, Puritans. I was glad to get it. It is far superior to most of the stuff I get in the mail.

In the preface I found a definition of prayer written by the editor, Arthur Bennett. I’m always interested in seeing someone’s definition (or description) of a Biblical term. He says, “… prayer is communion with a transcendent and immanent God who on the ground of his nature and attributes calls forth all the powers of the redeemed soul in acts of total adoration and dedication.” Think about that for awhile. Prayer is communion (fellowship, intimate connection) with a transcendent (superior, completely other, outside of all, supreme) and immanent (internal, abiding everywhere) God who on the ground of his nature (essence, form, that which one is) and attributes (characteristics, assets, qualities) calls forth all the powers of the redeemed soul ( Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me…” [Ps. 103:1]). in acts of total adoration (deeply loving, cherishing) and dedication (devotion, commitment).

Getting on with the story, I came to the second prayer and got stuck. Gladly, this is the kind of book you can pick up and put down at various times. And that is what I have been doing. I pick it up and deal a little with the second prayer and put it down. That has now happened several times.

Why can’t I move on? First, it is just that good. I like it. It is food. It is real prayer. Secondly, and this is likely the real hang-up, it coincides a lot with what I have learned from reading John Piper. The supremacy of God and the joy therein is the substance of the prayer.

For both your and my benefit and enjoyment I have reproduced this prayer below. Following it I have reproduced it again and added a few of the thoughts I have when meditating on it. If in God’s good providence you desire a copy of the book for yourself, click http://www.banneroftruth.org/pages/item_detail.php?4461

GOD THE ALL

O GOD WHOSE WILL CONQUERS ALL,
There is no comfort in anything
apart from enjoying thee
and being engaged in thy service;
Thou art All in all, and all enjoyments are what to me
thou makest them, and no more.
I am well pleased with thy will, whatever it is,
or should be in all respects,
And if thou bidst me decide for myself in any affair
I would choose to refer all to thee.
for thou art infinitely wise and cannot do amiss,
as I am in danger of doing.
I rejoice to think that all things are at thy disposal,
and it delights me to leave them there.
Then prayer turns wholly into praise,
and all I can do is to adore and bless thee.
What shall I give thee for all thy benefits?
I am in a strait betwixt two, knowing not what to do;
I long to make some return, but have nothing to offer,
and can only rejoice that thou doest all,
that none in heaven or on earth shares thy honour;
I can of myself do nothing to glorify thy blessed name,
but I can through grace cheerfully surrender soul and body to
thee,
I know that thou art the author and finisher of faith,
that the whole work of redemption is thine alone,
that every good work or thought found in me
is the effect of thy power and grace,
that thy sole motive of working in me to will and to do
is for thy good pleasure.
O God, it is amazing that men can talk so much
about man’s creaturely power and goodness,
when, if thou didst not hold us back every moment,
we should be devils incarnate.
This, by bitter experience, thou hast taught me concerning myself.

GOD THE ALL

O GOD WHOSE WILL CONQUERS ALL,
A proper statement of free will, it is God who has it, not man.
“… My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure” (Is. 46:10).
There is no comfort in anything
apart from enjoying thee
and being engaged in thy service;
The ultimate goal - the enjoyment and service of God himself.
Thou art All in all, and all enjoyments are what to me
thou makest them, and no more.
All that is seeks its consummation in God. All enjoyments given by God are pleasurable but cannot be an end in themselves. They are merely shadows of the enjoyment of God alone and thus remind us of and point to the enjoyment of him.
I am well pleased with thy will, whatever it is,
or should be in all respects,
“… Thy will be done…“ (Matt. 6:10). What a blessing to be content with whatever God chooses to do.
And if thou bidst me decide for myself in any affair
I would choose to refer all to thee.
for thou art infinitely wise and cannot do amiss,
as I am in danger of doing.
God knows me better than I know myself. Thus his decisions concerning me are wiser than my own. It is impossible for him to foul up. It is natural for me to foul up. The understanding that God is all-knowing and all-powerful makes it wise to defer all decisions to him. And if there is no apparent guidance from God, it is comforting to know that “A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps” (Prov. 16:9).
I rejoice to think that all things are at thy disposal,
and it delights me to leave them there.
Here is a joy - knowing that God is doing what he wills with his creation and a delight - thinking, “That’s how it should be.” This is a joy and a delight that easily ends in the proper place - God.
Then prayer turns wholly into praise,
and all I can do is to adore and bless thee.
I see this as the climax to this prayer. When one’s heart is satisfied with God and his actions, content that God is doing all things well, the heart has nowhere else to go but to praise and adoration. One enters into the place where we will happily spend eternity - the ecstasy of the worship of God.
What shall I give thee for all thy benefits?
I am in a strait betwixt two, knowing not what to do;
I long to make some return, but have nothing to offer,
and can only rejoice that thou doest all,
that none in heaven or on earth shares thy honour;
I can of myself do nothing to glorify thy blessed name,
but I can through grace cheerfully surrender soul and body to
thee,
How can God be paid for all he has done? He can’t. And if there were a price demanded, one has nothing anyway. All is of grace. Everything being of grace leaves one with nothing but joy in and adoration of God. And if joy and adoration are all one has, then it is clear that it is a gift of God. The Father adores the Son and Jesus likewise delights in His Father. To be placed in between the two of them and experience and become a part of the mutual admiration of the Father and the Son is the greatest gift. It is also the only way for one to give to God, yet its author is God himself and of a necessity must be.
I know that thou art the author and finisher of faith,
that the whole work of redemption is thine alone,
that every good work or thought found in me
is the effect of thy power and grace,
that thy sole motive of working in me to will and to do
is for thy good pleasure.
Faith is a gift of God. He authors it and finishes it. He begins it and he ends it. Likewise redemption is solitarily his work. It had to be, for “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God” (Rom. 3:10,11). If a truly good work is found in someone, it is of an origin not found in this world system or in the person himself. It is rather a miracle. It is of grace and the power of God. It is God working his will, doing what pleases him. This takes us back to the beginning of this prayer - “O GOD WHOSE WILL CONQUERS ALL….”
O God, it is amazing that men can talk so much
about man’s creaturely power and goodness,
when, if thou didst not hold us back every moment,
we should be devils incarnate.
God grants a common grace to man so that man does much less evil than he is capable of doing. Yet man is clueless and of course ungrateful for this mercy. To the contrary he praises himself and others (others who will repay him for his praise). Men bestow honor on men and not on God. What a horrendous development, a dreadful, incomprehensible sin.
This, by bitter experience, thou hast taught me concerning myself.
Yes. Father, restrain me at all times - especially on the freeway. …No, everywhere…… just be merciful to me a sinner.

Joy In Considering The Trinity

2008-08-08T15:50:00.000-07:00

In the unity of the Godhead there be three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost: the Father is of none, neither begotten, not proceeding; the Son is eternally begotten of the Father; the Holy Ghost eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son (The Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 2, Article 3).

To make sure we clearly see what the confession is saying let me put it like this:

One God, three Persons:
The Father - of none, not begotton, not proceeding
The Son - eternally begotton of the Father
The Spirit - eternally proceeding from the Father and Son

Many years ago I began reading something on the Trinity. I did not understand it and to a certain degree was disturbed by it. I had not heard it taught in any church I had attended. Fearing that it might be error I put it aside and moved on to something else.

In recent years I have greatly benefited from the teaching of John Piper on the Scripture. At one point in his instruction he spoke of the Trinity and referred to the teaching of Jonathan Edwards. It was then that I came to realize that what I had set aside years earlier was this same material by Edwards. In the providence of God, what I could not previously grasp has recently become joy to my innermost being as I meditate and marvel upon it. And be assured, my present understanding of it would have to be juvenile and lacking maturity, for who is it that in this world can begin to grasp the more exquisite perfections of an infinite God? Yet the child of God now has a heart that longs for and feasts upon God Himself.

So I am indebted to Jonathan Edwards and John Piper for much of what follows. This is my feeble attempt to put into my own words the wealth they have mined from the Scriptures and upon which I have benefited. I direct the reader to Jonathan Edward’s “Essay on the Trinity” (which can be downloaded at monergism.com) and John Piper’s discussion found in pages 34 to 45 of his must-read book, “The Pleasures of God” (desiringgod.org).

As the above confession states, God the Father “is of none.”
He is that He is. There is nothing that we can compare Him to for He asks rhetorically, “To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?” (Is. 40:18). He is completely and totally other. He is not like anything created. No image made by man is permitted.

Consider briefly the image you have of yourself. I am not referring to the image that you see of your physical body in the mirror, but the mental image that you behold of yourself. This would be who you consider yourself to be. For instance you might consider yourself doing what is right, helpful to others, happy, performing a good job, living a good life - just an all around nice person. The problem that you would have with your image is that it is flawed. All humans have a sin nature that corrupts the way they understand themselves. Our intention at seeing ourselves properly might possibly be good but our ability at doing so is impossible. Only God can see us as we truly are. The point I desire to make is that even if we know that we are ungodly sinners we can never imagine how corrupt we are in and of ourselves. I cannot truly know myself. My image of myself is insufficient and thus my image of myself is false and does not exist in reality. Such an image is worthless and undesirable.

God the Father does not have this problem. He is cognizant of Himself in a perfect manner. He understands His existence. He knows His worth. The depths of Himself is not tarnished in anyway as He beholds Himself. The beauty of His total otherness is always before Him. The Father sees His excellence in a faultless and precise manner. The image He has of Himself is true. It is not fake, but factual. It is not artificial, but genuine. It is not tainted, but pure. He knows exactly who He is and sees Himself as such.

The Father beholding Himself in a perfect manner is real and eternal. Seeing Himself perfectly yields an image that is not a thing created but is of His own essence. The image is not an it but is such of the Father Himself that it is He who is “the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person” (Heb. 1:3). The image is the exact representation of the Father. The very nature of the Father is the very nature of His image. All that the Father is, the image is. He is such of the Father and yet distinct, being His own Person. Thus the image or expression or brightness of glory or exact representation is the second Person of the Trinity, fully Deity, the eternal begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ (Col. 1:15, 2:9; II Cor. 4:4).

The Father beholds His Son and He sees one who is infinitely glorious and beautiful, an eternal treasure of value and worth that is unmatched. In like manner, the Son beholds the Father and sees unrivaled perfection and majesty, a cascade of magnificence and glory. God beholds God and treasures He who is most valuable: God. Thus, in all eternity, the Father and the Son involve themselves in adoring, delighting in and rejoicing in each other. “Then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him” (Prov. 8:30). The gospels are full of the declarations of love the Father has for the Son and the Son’s declarations of love to the Father through the obedience to His will (e.g. John 5:20, 30).

The love, adoration, delight, joy, admiration flowing from the Father to the Son and the Son to the Father is not a created thing but is of the same essence as God. It proceeds forth from one to the other in infinite power. It is such of God yet distinct from the Father and Son, but of the same substance. This holy proceeding of blessed blessedness from the Father to the Son and Son to the Father is such of each so as to be Deity itself. As such, being of the same substance, yet distinct, this proceeding is not an it but a Person, the third Person of the Trinity, the incomparable Spirit of God.

The Holy Spirit is such adoration and blessedness proceeding between the Father and the Son and He cannot be contained by time or space. He is of such glory that He fills all in all. Thus David ask rhetorically, “Whither shall I go from thy spirit?” (Ps. 139:7).

There are many metaphors used in scripture to identify the Spirit of God. Some are wind (Acts 2:2), wine (Matt. 9:17), oil (Ps. 23:5), fire (Acts 2:3,4) breath (John 20:22) and a dove (Luke 3:22). Perhaps a most noted one is the river of water of life found in Rev. 22:1. “And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.” This is the river that, when granted to the people of God, flows forth from their innermost being. As Jesus said, “He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified” (John 7:38, 39). Elsewhere this is called “the river of thy (God’s) pleasures” and “the fountain of life” (Ps. 36:8,9). It is of this water or river or fountain that the one who thirsts is told to come and take freely. “and let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17).

In Matt. 7:11, “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” we see that it is the Father that gives “good things” to those asking. In a parallel passage, Luke 11:13, “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” it is the Father giving the “Holy Spirit” to those asking. The “good things” appear to be synonymous to the “Holy Spirit.” I suspect the good things spoken of in Matt. 7:11 would be the love, adoration, excellency, joy, delight, etc. that proceeds from the Father and the Son. That “proceeding” is the Holy Spirit spoken of in the parallel passage of Luke 11:13.

It is common of Paul in his letters to desire grace and peace from the Father and the Son to the recipients of his letters, e.g., “To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 1:7). It is noteworthy that the Holy Spirit is not included. However, consider such a place as II Cor. 13:14. “ The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.” The blessing of the Holy Spirit is Himself, the taking part of His Being in communion.

John tells us in I John 1:3 that he declares the truth to us “that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.” There is no fellowship with the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit is the fellowship Himself. The elect are “partakers of the divine nature” (II Peter 1:4). They have received “the promise of the Spirit through faith” (Gal. 3:14).

That Spirit of mutual adoration between the Father and the Son, Himself being fully God, inhabits the believer. He fills the believer with Himself - love, joy, delight and adoration of the Father and the Son. He is the communion, participation, fellowship, sharing, joining in of the Father and the Son. Thus every believer is joined together in this fellowship one with another as well as with the Father and Son.

Lest I have been a source of confusion or have muddied someone’s water, let me go to Jonathan Edwards to state this doctrine of the Trinity more clearly and succinctly:

And this I suppose to be that blessed Trinity that we read of in the Holy Scriptures. The Father is the Deity subsisting in the prime, un-originated and most absolute manner, or the Deity in its direct existence. The Son is the Deity generated by God’s understanding, or having an idea of Himself and subsisting in that idea. The Holy Ghost is the Deity subsisting in act, or the Divine essence flowing out and breathed forth in God’s Infinite love to and delight in Himself. And I believe the whole Divine essence does truly and distinctly subsist both in the Divine idea and Divine love, and that each of them are properly distinct Persons.

There is also good instruction in Edward’s discussion of the honor of the individual Person’s of the Trinity:

They are equal in honor: besides the honor which is common to them all, viz., that they are all God, each has His peculiar honor in the society or family. They are equal not only in essence, but the Father’s honor is that He is, as it were, the Author of perfect and Infinite wisdom. The Son’s honor is that He is that perfect and Divine wisdom itself the excellency of which is that from whence arises the honor of being the author or Generator of it. The honor of the Father and the Son is that they are infinitely excellent, or that from them infinite excellency proceeds; but the honor of the Holy Ghost is equal for He is that Divine excellency and beauty itself.
‘Tis the honor of the Father and the Son that they are infinitely holy and are the fountain of holiness, but the honor of the Holy Ghost is that holiness itself. The honor of the Father and the Son is [that] they are infinitely happy and are the original and fountain of happiness and the honor of the Holy Ghost is equal for He is infinite happiness and joy itself.
The honor of the Father is that He is the fountain of the Deity as He from Whom proceed both the Divine wisdom and also excellency and happiness. The honor of the Son is equal for He is Himself the Divine wisdom and is He from Whom proceeds the Divine excellency and happiness, and the honor of the Holy Ghost is equal for He is the beauty and happiness of both the other Persons.

For my part, I have written thus far knowing that I am not sufficient or adequate for such things (II Cor. 2:16). Yet I am driven by the joy of seeing, yet only through a glass, darkly (I Cor. 13:12). And that joy of seeing is the Holy Spirit, the communion of the Father and the Son. For what other joy would compare?

I seek to comprehend the incomprehensible. What beauty the Son is to the Father. What loveliness the Father is to the Son. Each beholds the other in eternal delight and love. The worth, the value of each cannot be surpassed. There is sheer ecstasy one for the other. That ecstasy is the Spirit of the Father and Son.

How is it that God can set His love on certain of mankind if He is so passionate about Himself? If it were possible, and of course it is not, for God to love someone more than Himself, He would commit idolatry. God’s love must and will always be centered on Himself. He does all things for His own Name’s sake (Ezek. 20:44), for His own glory (Phil. 2:11). God’s love for mankind is secondary. God’s love for man will never place man above God. He will not give His glory to another (Is. 48:11). God will not make much of someone else. No one will be exalted above Him (I Chr. 29:11).

The Father’s love for Himself in the person of His Son is a love of delight and pleasure in that which is excellent and beautiful. The love of God for mankind is a love involving mercy and grace that makes provision for fallen man to share in the love of that which is excellent and beautiful, i.e., God Himself.

To be loved by God is not to be made much of, but to be made such that you know and make much of God. It is to be directed to the place where there is “fullness of joy” and “pleasures for evermore,” the very presence of God (Ps. 16:11). It is to be placed in such a position that you “rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory” (I Pet. 1:8) and “shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light” (I Pet. 2:9).

When one is found to be redeemed by Jesus Christ, that one is known to be loved. And that love is not to exalt the one loved. It is for the one loved to be caught up in the love, joy, delight, admiration, etc. that flows between the Father and the Son and to participate, commune, share and take part in it. That one is said to be indwelt by the Spirit of God. “Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his” (Rom. 8:9). “Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit” (I John 4:13).

In conclusion I first quote Jonathan Edwards:

So that it is God of Whom our good is purchased and it is God that purchases it and it is God also that is the thing purchased.

And secondly I quote John Piper:

This is the soul’s end - the blessing beyond which no better can be imagined or conceived: an infinite, eternal, mutual, holy energy of love and pleasure between God the Father and God the Son flowing out in the Person of God the Spirit, and filling the souls of the redeemed with immeasurable and everlasting joy (The Pleasures of God, pg. 311 - 312).

Thus, herein is the beginning of my joy in considering the Trinity, the God who is all in all (I Cor. 15:28).

Father, fill my soul with the inconceivable ecstasy that flows between You and Your Son: the non-contained Spirit of God. Amen.

Sovereign God, Gracious God - Album Song Lyrics

2008-03-02T11:46:00.000-08:00

MYSTERY

This truth never could have been known
For man’s sin our God would atone
Thus the Christ departed His throne mystery

On the cross He suffered to claim
Helpless sinners all full of shame
And brought glory to His own name mystery
Such a mystery

True life dwells in them, trophies of His grace
God is their portion, they behold His face

None but God could ever have planned
Hope of glory dwelling in man
Done in power by His own Hand mystery
Such a mystery

This the mystery which was once concealed
Christ the Glorious One in His people live

All that is marvels at Him who
Redeemed His own whom He foreknew
Lord God all glory be to You evermore
Glory evermore

See the Glorious One, Christ upon His throne
God is all in all, mystery made known

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

STEPHEN

He was a man of power and of faith, and he boldly spoke God’s word
He testified that Jesus is God’s Son, stirring up all those that heard
His enemies could not resist his speech, so the council heard his case
Looking steadfastly on him they could see, like an angel’s was his face

(Chorus) Stephen spoke the truth of Jesus Christ
He stood firm amidst the strife
He became the church’s first martyr
And he won the crown of life

He fervently spoke of the grace of God and of Israel’s history
The prophet Moses was ordained for them and from Egypt set them free
Against the Lord and Moses they rebelled, in their sin they had no fear
With mercy great God promised Christ the Lord and instructed them to hear

(Chorus)

“Uncircumcised in heart, you cannot hear, like your fathers you have sinned
Neglecting God’s law, Jesus Christ you killed, you defied God once again”
Their hardened heart was cut, they gnashed on him when they heard these sacred things
But Stephen looked up to heaven above, where the Christ, his Savior reigns

(Chorus)

“Behold, I see the heavens opened wide, standing there at God’s right hand
I see the glorious righteousness of God, Jesus Christ, both God and Man”
With one accord they cry out and stone him, he prays God his spirit keep
He kneeling down prays for his enemies, doing this, he falls a sleep

(Chorus)

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

FROM PSALM ONE

Blessed is the man, who all night and day
Takes to heart God’s law, and walks in His way
His commandments he will keep
While awake and when asleep

Ungodly sinners he will not obey
From the scornful man he will stay away
From the wicked he’ll withdraw
And obey God’s holy law

He is like a tree grown by the river
Fruitful in season, whose leaf won’t wither
Mighty is this godly man
As a strong tree he will stand

Like the chaff of grain the wind drives away
The ungodly man stands not in the day
Of the judgment of the Lord
Wrath of God is his reward

The Lord knows the way of the righteous man
The ungodly way, He will not let stand
Let the ungodly perish
Let the righteous, God cherish

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

THE LIGHT

Men were walking in sin and despair
No hope of escaping the night
In the darkness, the shadow of death
And evil oppressed with their might
There was no hope
Pain and grief, no relief
There was no truth
Only lies and deceit from the thief

Hidden in light, whom no man has seen
For God dwells in bright holiness
At his right hand, enthroned in His love
Is Jesus the Christ, God expressed
The Mighty God
Purity, so lovely
O, could it be?
He would come and make the darkness flee

Those in darkness have seen a great light
Jesus is the true light of men
Condemnation, light came in the world
But darkness could not comprehend
Light of the world
Flee the night, walk in light
Cleansed by His blood
Trade your sins for a pure robe of white

God commanded the light to shine forth
And Christ to my heart was made known
Darkness scattered, light overwhelmed me
For Christ all my sins had atoned
Marvelous light
Christ alone, love that’s known
Behold the Lamb
With the light shining forth from His throne

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

THE FEAR OF THE LORD

The fear of the Lord is the start of wisdom
A good understanding He will give
The fear of the Lord is a spring of water
Go there and drink freely, you will live

His fear be on you, His truth be shown you
In His holy word delight
For Him deciding, in Him abiding
So that you may walk upright

The fear of the Lord is the start of knowledge
Keep all His commandments from your youth
The fear of the Lord is worth more than treasure
But fools despise wisdom and the truth

Judge truth correctly, walk circumspectly
In all of your life be true
The wealth of heaven, to you be given
Christ’s life be lived out in you

The fear of the Lord is to hate all evil
All pride, wicked actions you shall hate
The fear of the Lord shall endure forever
God’s pure righteous judgments are all great

Walk with endurance, have all assurance
Spirit of the Lord is here
With Christ inside you, His strength provide you
There is no one else to fear

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

FROM PSALM 46

God is our refuge, God is our strength
A very present help in trouble
Therefore will not we fear though the earth be removed
And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea

God is our refuge, God is our strength
His river shall make glad His city
The heathen raged, the kingdoms moved apart when He spoke
He has made such desolations, behold the work of the Lord

God is our refuge, God is our strength
Be still and know that He is our God
He makes the wars to cease to the ends of the earth
God of Jacob is our refuge, the Lord of Host is with us

(repeat first verse)

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

SOVEREIGN GOD, GRACIOUS GOD

In eternity past, God the Father decreed
From among helpless sinners there were some to be freed
From their sin and their guilt, from their grief and their pain
By the blood of the Savior, by the Lamb who was slain

(Chorus) Sovereign God, gracious God, to You praises we bring
We do lift up our voices and to you we do sing
Sovereign God, gracious God, Jesus Christ is our King
We give Him all the glory, praise eternal we bring

Long before time began, He of glory and grace
Did elect His own people out of the human race
Who were dead in their sin, who were deaf, dumb and blind
And for these came Christ Jesus, and each one He would find

(Chorus)

Before earth did exist, our Creator did plan
To redeem all His chosen by His righteous right hand
He who ever was pure, He who never knew sins
This one paid our transgression, then He called us His friends

(Chorus)

In the timeless future our God always will be
Ever worthy of worship for His gracious decree
That sent Jesus our Lord down to earth as the Man
To redeem all God’s children and fulfill all His plan

(Chorus)

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

HE WAS, HE IS, ALWAYS SHALL BE

He was, He is, always shall be
Christ abiding, eternally
Alpha and Omega, Beginning and End
The One who loved us, and washed us from our sin
Alpha and Omega, The First and The Last
Crucified and risen with glory unsurpassed

Worthy the Lamb, upon the throne
He shall receive glory alone
Jesus, You are worthy, for You there shall be
Praise and thanksgiving from all those you made free
Your blood was sufficient, with You we shall reign
Singing Your praises unto Your holy name

In God alone we all subsist
For His pleasure all things exist
The heavens break open, all people shall see
The Lord in glory, exquisite majesty
Holy, Holy, Holy - Lord God Almighty
You were and now are, and evermore shall be

Holy, Holy, Holy - Lord God Almighty
You were and now are, and evermore shall be

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

FROM I CORINTHIANS 15:52-57

A seed is planted in the ground, for a time there it will lie
That which is sown will soon come forth only after it has died
God makes life rise up out of death, what is sown seems to decay
But in the spring life will come forth, God’s own glory to display

(Chorus) O death, where is your sting
O grave, where’s your victory
Jesus Christ has come to raise me up
Giving life for eternity

The righteous man has hope in death, it is he God has esteemed
All his sins are as white as snow, for in Christ he is redeemed
Dwelling here in our sinful flesh, longing for eternity
All God’s people will soon be raised, fearsome death from them shall flee

(Chorus)

Commit this body to the grave, sow it firmly in the ground
Leave it there ‘til the Lord returns, it will here the trumpet sound
Without corruption I shall rise in the twinkling of an eye
Dressed in the righteousness of Christ, I will meet Him in the sky

(Chorus)

O gruesome death you have no sting, grave, you have no victory
Christ Jesus has defeated you, from your grip has set me free
Sin is gone and the law fulfilled, Jesus is my victory
Honor, glory and praise be His throughout all eternity

(Chorus)

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

BE VERY AFRAID

There above in holiness dwells God Most High
While sinful man on earth below rebel and die
They do not know, nor have understood
Their great offense and for them they should be very afraid

Hearts of greed that show no need for God above
Selfish desire, all you acquire, is what you love
Your heart’s corrupt, you can do no good
God sees your greed and for you, you should be very afraid

Pride of life and evil thought is in your mind
Fraud, lies, deceit and vanity in you confined
You keep it in, so that you look good
But God does see and for you, you should be very afraid

Your father is the devil, you do his will
Destruction is his great desire, to steal and kill
Captive to him, full of all falsehood
God’s enemy and for you, you should be very afraid

Jesus dwells with holiness as His attire
In righteousness He breaks forth as consuming fire
Bow down to Him, if by grace you would
But otherwise, as for you, you should be very afraid

Christ alone died for the sins of His elect
He rose again and all who come He won’t reject
He welcomes them, as He said He would
Refuse to come, as for you, you should be very afraid

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

NO ONE CAN COMPARE TO YOU

He chooses all that He will do and no one can change His decree
He chose to save me from my sin and sent His Son to die for me
Father, Abba, Father No one can compare to You

Lord Jesus is the perfect Lamb He paid the price of all my sin
He rose up from the grave in power and sits on His throne again
Jesus, Savior, Jesus No one can compare to You

The Comforter was sent by God to seal me for eternity
He comforts, leads, defeats my sin and puts God’s life in side of me
Holy Spirit, Spirit of God No one can compare to You

Gracious Father, Wondrous Savior, Mighty Spirit, God is One
All glory, praise be unto You for who You are and all You’ve done
Father, Jesus, Spirit of God No one can compare to You

Father, Jesus, Spirit of Christ No one can compare to You

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

FROM REVELATION 19:11-21

Heaven opens, to reveal
He who opened each and every seal
Faithful and True on a horse of white
He is called The Word of God
Eyes like flame, crowns upon His head
Righteously He judges and makes war
Heavenly armies follow Him
From His mouth proceeds the two-edged sword

He’s so worthy, God bestows
A name written that no mere man knows
With a vesture that is dipped in blood
He is called The Word of God
He shall rule with a rod of iron
All the nations smitten by His sword
He does tread the winepress of God
See the wrath of our Almighty Lord

Gather to the feast below
All the birds of heaven are to go
Summoned by an angel in the sun
Supper of Almighty God
Mighty men, captains and their kings
All their armies war against the Lord
Suddenly Christ His sword does swing
Enemies fall at His spoken word

Righteous judgment does require
Beast, false prophet in the lake of fire
Brimstone burning with excessive heat
Righteous is The Word of God
Behold the Lamb that is a Lion
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS is He
Worship Him - honor, glory, praise,
Adoration to Him ever be

Copyright 2007 Joe Garnett All Rights Reserved

Who Is It All About

2007-08-09T13:06:00.001-07:00

Is it about you being special? Or is it about God’s glory?

Is it about you needing some help? Or is it about God’s holiness?

Is it about your inherent goodness? Or is it about God’s righteousness?

Is it about you, man? Or is it about Him, God Almighty?

The tragedy of today’s Christendom is that man is at the center of it. The professing Christian believes that he and his problem, whatever he may consider that problem to be, is at the center of God’s attention. What can God do for them? Oh yes! He can heal their marriage. He can get them a better job. He’s there to get them out of a bind. His job is to love and approve of them. Maybe He can even forgive some occasional sin. Thus God only exists to be needed by them and to meet that need for their benefit. Consequently the secular church has created a man-centered gospel.

Let me quote at length John Piper:

Before you ever came on the scene or this universe ever existed, God was holy. Infinitely, valuable, incomparable, absolutely unique. And He knows it. And He loved it. And He treasured it because He is wise and righteous and a righteous person always values what is most valuable. Therefore before you ever came on the scene God valued God above all things.

He saw the perfections of Himself shining out of His own infinitely glorious divine Son and He loved His Son and the Son loved the Father and the Holy Spirit powerfully, personally radiated between the Father and the Son. Before you were ever on the scene there was a gladsomeness in reality. And then you came and I’ll tell you something. Nothing changed.

Let me tell you one of the ways God is so good to me. In the midst of all the slop (the greasy, obnoxious, watered down remains that were formally expelled by the cook from his kitchen, but which the religious counterpart of today serves up as the main course by pseudo-Christian teachers) God graciously leads me to feast on such truth as Piper emphatically proclaims.

It is only natural and logical that God values and loves Himself above all. His righteousness is righteousness. His holiness is holiness. His perfection is perfection. And when you came along, even if you hadn’t been a miscarriage in sin, why would you think you were special and God owed you something? Only because you have committed the grossest of sin - the sin of dishonoring God because you do not recognize Him as He really is but attribute to Him that which He isn‘t. You create another god before Him. You create a god who has yourself as his center. You create a god who exists to meet your needs as you see fit. You take no delight in humbly searching the Scriptures and worshipping God as He is there revealed. You may think yourself beyond those that worship a golden calf but you still commit the sin of idolatry.

Piper continues:

God did not suddenly become an idolater when He created man, putting man where God belongs. God is not a man worshiper. God is a God worshiper. Or would you deny Him the highest joys of the universe? You are not the center of God’s values. The glory of God is the center of His values. You are not the center of His redeeming work. The magnifying of Christ in your life is the center of His redeeming work. You are not the treasure of the gospel. God is the treasure of the gospel.

God glories in Himself. There is none other greater in whom He can glory. He is not an idolater. He has no other gods before Him. His greatest joy is Himself. It has been so throughout all eternity. With the creation of the speck called time should He find something greater than Himself that He can glory in more than Himself? His highest joy will ever be Himself.

I would continue on but I am not worthy to the task. To retire and muse on He who is infinite and seek to conform to Him by His grace is necessary. Blessed be the day when this body of sin is shed and I am brought before Him to dwell forever in wonder and awe and praise.

But this I do for you. Listen to John Piper’s sermon, “A Generation Passionate For God’s Holiness.” This is from where I have taken the above quotes. Among other things, he will define for you sin and God’s love, righteousness, holiness and glory.

You need to know these things because it is not about you. It is about the Most High God.

Acts: The Book Without Love

2007-06-22T13:31:00.000-07:00

The book of Acts records many of the first sermons preached in the early church. Here we can find what Peter, Stephen, Paul and others proclaimed. The people that were subject to these proclamations were Jews and gentiles, kings and commons, rich and poor. Will we find them declaring to everyone the gospel of today, “Jesus loves you?” Or will we see them declaring another gospel?

Jesus told his disciples that they would be “witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). If they were to be His witnesses, then surely in this book containing many of their sermons we should readily see if the “Jesus loves you” gospel was their gospel. If we find that it wasn’t their gospel then we should question the mush love gospel that is prevalent today. And why should we not at least question the doctrinal integrity of those who proclaim something that is not found in the sermons of the early church?

I cannot comment on each proclamation found in the book of Acts for it would take at least a book to do so. My goal is to point out many of the major points of these witnesses and always be looking for the message, “Jesus loves you.”

On the day of Pentecost we find Peter delivering the first sermon to the Jews. After telling them about Jesus being the Christ the record says:

Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.
Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost (Acts 2:36-38).

I didn’t find the word “love” even mentioned in that first sermon. But moving on we can give Peter another chance for in the next chapter he by the power of God heals a man and uses the occasion to preach again. Here are a few of the things he speaks about:

But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.
Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.
For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.
And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people (Acts 3:18-23).

Good preaching. Peter is still missing the “love thing” but he has a lot of opportunities remaining. The Jewish leaders show up and they are grieved that the disciples have “preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead.”
But Peter tells them:

Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.
This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved (Acts 4:10-12).

Relationships are really beginning to be strained here. Peter is telling the Jewish leaders that they have crucified Jesus and God raised Him from the dead. These leaders are ready to toss Peter and the other disciples into jail. This would be a good time for Peter to start telling them that Jesus loves them. But for some reason he opts for these words:

The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.
Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins (Acts 5:30,31).

Whoa! Doesn’t he understand that if he keeps harping on this “you killed Jesus” line that they are going to be really offended? I guess not. The disciples took a beating, “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ” (Acts 5:42).

Let’s leave Peter and move on to Stephen. Perhaps he can come up with a more tender, loving, peaceable message. In chapter six he is doing a lot of miracles and begins preaching also. This gets him an audience with the Jewish leadership and in chapter seven we read his message. He is speaking about the goodness of God toward Israel and about Israel’s rebellion. And then…, oh no! All of a sudden he is talking about their own rebellion:

Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:
Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it (Acts 7:51-53).

That’s not much of an invitation. But somehow it is pleasing to the Lord Jesus Christ, for He opens heaven to be viewed by Stephen. Stephen tells the Jewish leaders that he sees “the Son of man standing on the right hand of God (Acts 7:56). They execute him.

Lets look elsewhere for a more tenderhearted expression. Philip appears in Samaria where he is preaching Christ to them (Acts 8:5). And then he finds an Ethiopian eunuch reading the Scriptures. “Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus” (Acts 8:35). This is working good for Philip. But he is the third guy we have come across and still nobody is telling these heathen that Jesus loves them. Is it that they haven’t understood the fullness of the gospel yet?

Next let’s look at the conversion of Saul:

And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:
And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?
And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do (Acts 9:3-6).

Jesus didn’t even tell Saul that He loved him though we know from other scripture that He did. The Lord Jesus Christ arranges for Ananias to deliver some truth to Saul. He tells Ananias that Saul “is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15). Interesting. Paul is being sent to bear the name of Jesus Christ, not to tell people that Jesus loves them. By verse 20 we see Saul preaching “Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.”

In chapter 10 Peter is still in action, but he still hasn’t discovered the loving message of our modern era:

And we are witnesses of all things which he (Jesus) did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree:
Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly;
Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead.
And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.
To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins (Acts 10:39-43).

Peter is still on the “Jesus was crucified and God raised Him from the dead” message. And he says that Christ commanded them to “testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.”

Peter just seems to get more abrasive as time passes. No wonder he is in jail in chapter 12. Perhaps God should have left him there to rethink and refine a more positive message. But He didn’t. In fact God sends an angel to get him out. And not only that but Peter’s jail keepers are put to death because of his release! (Acts 12:19). Maybe Peter forgot to shout to them, “God loves you,” as the angel escorted him out of the prison.

Paul and Barnabus take off on a missionary journey. In Paphos, Elymas the sorcerer opposes Paul. Paul calls him a “child of the devil” and an “enemy of all righteousness,”
then causes blindness to come upon him (Acts 13:10,11). Later at the synagogue Paul preaches an almost chapter long sermon which included the truth of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Hope for him to preach the “Jesus loves you” message quickly evaporates. But even without that there were some gentiles listening and there were those that “glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed” (Acts 13:48).

Paul continues to preach the Lord Jesus Christ here and there. But he and those with him “were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia (Acts 16:6). This tends to make me think that God had no one in that area that he was particularly fond of at that time. However, in Thessalonica Paul “reasoned with them out of the scriptures, Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ” (Acts 17:2,3). In Athens he says, “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead (Acts 17:30,31). Reporting to the elders in Ephesus he said that he had been “Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:21).

As you likely know, Paul ends up in the custody of Roman courts. It is recorded that Felix and his wife “heard him concerning the faith in Christ. And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come Felix trembled” (Acts 24:24,25). Before Agrippa he stated,
“Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come: That Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people, and to the Gentiles” (Acts 26:22,23). Imprisoned at Rome, he called the Jews “to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening” (Acts 28:23). The book of Acts closes stating, “ And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him” (Acts 28:30,31).

Thus we come to the end of our simple study finding nothing that even resembles the “Jesus loves you” gospel in the whole book of Acts. Not only was there no reference to God’s love in any of the sermons, but the word “love” is not found anywhere in Acts.

The one who proclaims the “Jesus loves you” gospel is welcome to explain why he does so in contrast to the true gospel expounded in Acts. That one should soberly consider the warning given by Paul in Galatians 1:8,9:

But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

John 3:16 - The Most Misinterpreted Verse In The Bible

2007-06-03T09:48:00.000-07:00

[16] For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
[17] For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

John 3:16 is used by many to teach that God loves everybody. From this verse is deduced the three words that are so common to the false gospel taught today - “God Loves You.”

Let me point out to you one person which the Scripture clearly states was hated by God. This is Esau. You can briefly read about him in Romans 9:11-13 and Malachi 1:2-5. He was hated before He was born. He was not hated in the sense of merely being ignored by God but was hated to the extent of God being actively opposed to him and his descendants. If there is one person or group that God hates then how can it be said that He loves everyone?

The basic misinterpretation of John 3:16 stems from giving a meaning to the word “world” which is incorrect. People assume that it means “everybody.” This is an erroneous assumption since the “world” seems to have as many as seven different meanings in the Scripture. These meanings are to be determined by the context of the passage.

In our own culture the word can have various meanings. We often refer to "the world of politics" or "the business world" or a “world of hurt.“ You've heard the sportscaster say, "Today in the world of sports…." Someone else says, “The world is out to get me.” We use “world” to refer to the earth, the whole creation, even the system or practices of life around us summed up as “the world in which we live.” It can even mean “mankind.” These uses of "world" are readily understood by us in their context.

In Scripture it is easy to see various uses of “world.” I John 2:15 begins, “Love not the world….” We would certainly not jump to the conclusion that the world here means everybody that has ever and will ever live. We read the whole verse, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” It is understood that the world system is that which is being spoken about.

Consider John 12:19. In regard to Jesus the Pharisees say "... the world is gone after him." Obviously everybody in the world was not following Jesus. The Pharisees were simply remarking that Jesus was getting a lot of attention or that all kinds of people were coming to Him.

John 17:9 is a most astounding statement. Jesus says, “I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.” He makes it clear that he prays only for those whom God has given Him. He does not pray for the “world” of this verse. This world is the “world of unbelievers or the non-elect.”

Contemplate the meanings of this word in John 1:10. "He was in the world," (a portion of the habited earth) "and the world" (heaven and earth) "was made through him, and the world" (unbelievers) "knew him not."

Thus, my opinion is that the best interpretation of the "world" of John 3: 16 would be "world of believers" or “world of the chosen. " This interpretation would be in line with such passages as John 6:33; "For the bread of God is that which cometh down out of heaven, and giveth life unto the world." Jesus is this bread of God. He does not give life to all the people of the world but only to the elect. He explains in verse 51 that this is eternal life that He is referring to, that the bread is His flesh and it is given for the life of the world. Again, the only possibility being the world of believers, since they are the only ones receiving eternal life.

In John 3:17 we see that God sent Jesus into the world “that the world through him might be saved.” This is the same world that we find in John 3:16. It is the world that will not be condemned but that will be saved through Jesus Christ. Jesus is not going to save a world of everybody that ever lived. He is going to save the world that God loved. This is the world of believers.

But someone will say that verse seventeen is only teaching that the world might possibly be saved. In their view they believe that Jesus does not actually save but only makes salvation possible.

Consider this. My wife gave me ten dollars so that I should stop by the store on the way home and buy some eggs, milk and bread. Did she give me ten dollars thinking that I might possibly stop by the store if I feel like it and get the groceries? No! She gave me ten dollars fully expecting me to stop and get the groceries.

Now consider other Biblical examples. One only has to go back to verse 16 to the phrase “should not perish.” Does this merely mean the possibility of not perishing? The believer “ought not perish” or “might possibly not perish?” No! It is a statement of surety. The meaning here is that the believer will not perish.

“Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again” (John 10:17). Is Jesus laying down His life that He might possibly get it back again? Of course not! He is laying down His life with the certainty that He will have it again.

“Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved” (Acts 2:47).
Was the Lord Jesus Christ adding to His church those who should possibly be saved? What an absurdity! He was adding to His church those whom God decreed would be saved!

In all these examples we are dealing with statements of certainty and not statements of possibility. When Jesus says in John 3:17 that the world “might be saved” through Him He is not declaring a mere possibility but the fact that the world will definitely be saved through Him. And this world that is definitely saved is the world of God’s chosen, not every person that has ever lived.

In context this world that is going to be saved through Him is the same world that God did not send Him to condemn. It is the same world that God loves. It is the world of believers or the world of the elect.

The world of John 3:16 is the world that God loves. It is the same world which He will save in John 3:17. When understood properly that this world is the world of the elect believers these verses conform to the systematic teaching of the remainder of Scripture. It also eliminates the conflict of statements made about God’s hate for certain people found in such places as Malachi 1:2-5, Psalm 5:5, Psalm 11:5 and Romans 9:11-13.

You couldn't say "God Loves You" to these people and many others such as Pharoah (Romans 9:17), those who perished in the flood (Genesis 7:23) or whole nations (Deut. 20:16,17) who God instructed Israel to wipe out. God's love is placed upon His people whom He has chosen, the world of believers.

A Most Profound Statement

2007-03-22T14:16:00.000-07:00

Several years ago I read a tract by Horatius Bonar, a minister in the Church of Scotland in the nineteenth century. The tract was titled, “How Shall I Go To God?” The first sentence of the tract boldly answered the question. It may be the most profound statement I have ever read outside of Scripture. It is succinct. It states a truth that I had never before considered in such a way as Bonar stated it. It is fundamental to the Gospel. It is such good news - clear, pointed, refreshing. It is soothing to the soul. I delight in it because it teaches man’s awful predicament and the salvation that only God can provide. Everyone who has ever come successfully to God came in this manner. The statement….

It is with our sins that we go to God, for we have nothing else to go with that we can call our own.

What understanding! What relief! No one can come to God bringing anything of value. Why? No one has anything of value to bring. The one coming to God thinking that he has something of value to present to Him is deceived. And I quickly add, this is the state of most people. Those coming to God usually have something that they consider will appease God. Something they bring will be sufficient to show God that He should receive them. It has not, does not and never will happen. God saves sinners, not those who provide an offering which is a product of their own degenerate will.

But one will say that he comes to God with his faith, for it is faith that pleases God. It is true that faith pleases God. But where will a sinner get this faith? The sinner cannot do good, for there is no one that does good (Rom. 3:12) And if he cannot do good, then he certainly can’t produce faith or anything else that pleases God. The sinner may have the same faith that the devils have (James 2:19). But that faith is of no use for it is not of God. The faith that saves is a gift from God (Eph. 2:8). It is not of yourself. Just as Paul told the Philippians, “For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake (Phil. 1:29). To believe on Christ is a gift, just as suffering for Him is a gift.

And where will you get repentance? Will you dredge it up from within your carnal being? Then it too will be of no value. For the repentance that is necessary to please God comes from God. It is the goodness of God that leads one to repentance (Rom. 2:4). If the repentance is of yourself then you testify that you despise the riches of God’s goodness, forbearance and longsuffering. Your need is for God to give you “repentance to the acknowledging of the truth” (II Tim. 2:25).

This is the mystery of the gospel. Jesus Christ saves sinners. He does not save sinners who bring their own worthless sacrifices. These are repugnant to God. I repeat, He saves sinners. The kind of sinners He saves are those that come with nothing but their sins. For in coming with nothing but their sins they demonstrate that they come in the repentance and faith that God has given them.

Blue Letter Bible Verse Search

Who Is Your God?

2007-02-08T14:14:00.000-08:00

Most people have an imaginary god. It is a god of their own creation, a god they think should exist. This god has been created in their mind so that they can live with him. Their god may demand some kind of sacrifice such as going to church on Sunday or giving a donation to charity. If they are not as bad as some of the worst people that the world has ever known then their god will love them and take them to heaven.

Perhaps your god would not think of harming anyone. He wants everybody to be as good as they can be and that is sufficient. Or perhaps he knows that you are having a tough time and he is there whenever you need a favor in order to get by. He’s just a nice guy that exist to do things for you when you can’t get it done yourself. Wheee!!… you have an answer-on-demand cosmic dispensing machine.

Some people think this is the God as revealed in the Bible. It isn’t.

The God of the Bible is the Most High God. He has created all things for His own pleasure. He governs the universe according to His own desire. The destiny of all, great and small, is determined by Him alone. No creature ever asked God to create him. No one tells Him what to do. He asks the favor, opinion and help of no one.

This mighty, sovereign Deity exist in three persons, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He cannot be known to any extent unless He chooses to reveal Himself. He has done so to many.

One such person was Abraham (Abram). Although Abraham was no better than anyone else God revealed Himself to Abraham one day. God told him He was going to bless him and make a great nation out of him. Many other things God did for Abraham but not because Abraham was someone special in and of himself. God did it because He chose to do it. The cause of anything God does is found only in God. If it were not so, He would not be God.

God the Son, in an incomprehensible display of mercy and grace, came to earth in the form of man to save His people from their sin. One day He was by a pool in Jerusalem where there were all sorts of sick, blind, crippled and paralyzed people. One man had some kind of illness that had impaired him for thirty-eight years. Jesus healed him. This man didn’t know anything about Jesus. But Jesus chose to heal him and leave all the rest in their infirmities (John 5). You ask, “Why?” Because Jesus is Almighty God. He does that which is perfectly appropriate and pleasing for Him to do.

Another time Jesus was talking to a group of Jews in a synagogue. He was telling them about the famine back in the days of Elijah. There were a lot of needy widows in Israel but God sent Elijah to help only one in the country of Sidon. In like manner He told them there were many people with leprosy but Elijah was sent only to heal Naaman who was a Syrian. All the people in the synagogue were filled with rage. You can read about it in Luke 4. These Jews were so mad they were going to kill Jesus. But He just exited the scene and they couldn’t do anything about it.

But why were they so mad? Jesus was telling them that He had the power to send whoever He wanted (Elijah) to help whoever He wanted to have help (one widow and one leper). He was in control of their destiny. He could have mercy on whoever He chose to have mercy. There was no obligation He had to do anything for anybody. He chose to have mercy on a few people and a whole synagogue of Jews became angry about it.

So what are you thinking? Do you have the kind of god that you feel is obligated to help you and everyone else according to your expectations? Are you, along with these people, angry that God would just help a few whom He chose to help? Are you mad at the all-powerful Creator of the universe because He has the free will and power to do that which pleases Him?

Be not arrogant against the One to whom you owe your every breath. Humble yourself before Him. Perhaps He who is rich in mercy will grant you repentance and faith so that you may say with Paul:
“O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? Or who hath been his counselor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen” (Romans 11:33-36).