1291. Our Great God

Welcome to The Daily Platform from Bob Jones University in Greenville South Carolina today on The Daily Platform were beginning a series called our great God. Today's message will be preached by BJ you Executive Vice President Dr. Ellen Benson take your Bibles this morning and turn with me to the book of Jeremiah Jeremiah chapter 10 introducing this morning are doctrinal theme for the semester and it is by topic in theology what we would describe as theology properly add the word proper. Why because we think generally of theology as kind of all these categories of theology and yet this one is not necessarily describing the whole thing. It actually has a primary focus in its God himself. God himself, so the theme for the semester is our great God and what I want to do today is kinda frame our thinking with regard to the nature of this study as well as begin it so why the snow globe. I need to engage with me for just a minute okay. I thought for an illustration to help with this and this is what I came up with so you bear with me. Imagine as I recently had my little granddaughter came to our house and of all the things that enamored her about Christmas, there is a particular item in our house that Mimi my wife now. Her grandmother and not a color Mimi.

She still Babe to me. But anyway introduce my granddaughter to enter was a snow globe. When you turn it on. The snow would move minute to put a rainbow on the ceiling. She associated that with grandma is like, what else could turn that on something that Mimi did get 18 months so it's you anyway. Imagine that you have a snow globe and you got a child older than 18 months considering to talk to them and explain to them and there's a mountain inside the snow globe and never seen a mountain and you're gonna describe for them. This mountain in the snowblower you begin to feel my frustration even though it's small and you're looking at it and tell them about a mountain because you want them to be excited about the mountain. Imagine that in your mind set that aside for a minute and I'll I want you to imagine with me that you have successfully submitted, Mount Everest and you know what went into preparing for that and and then what actually took to do that in your navigating it and you are talking to someone who has never and will never see Mount Everest until they have to climate and they have to climate and you are now going to give them a description of this mountain because they have to, climate, and you know, if not rightly prepared. They're not coming back. Think of those two descriptions for maybe let me give you another one.

Imagine you're somewhere and you're sitting with someone who is never seen a car and you're gonna describe them.

Car. Now imagine you're sitting at your kitchen table with your 15-year-old and you are going to teach them to drive exclusively by what you tell them about the car sitting at the kitchen table. I cannot take the mountain.

Teach them to drive your to sit at the table and your to tell them enough about the car that you handled Keith cynical direct. Think of those two descriptions and now I want you to think about what we are what we are going to attempt to do in theology from were not going to attempt to do the first one.

In other words, this series isn't going to be designed for you to know about God were not looking to describe a mountain in a snow globe so that you kinda know about it or not looking to describe the car so that you if you ever saw was it. I think that's almost scarfing. We actually are looking in this series is to give you a description that leads us to experiential knowledge will let you know about God.

The purpose of looking at God in his inspired word is for you and I can no God, so I hope that'll frame kinda what we do in this whole series, as well as what we will do in her her session today. Your Jeremiah chapter 10 listen to the word of the Lord Jeremiah tab chapter 10 verse one. Hear ye the word which the Lord speaketh unto you a house of Israel, thus saith the Lord, learn not the way of the heathen lost those that don't know God and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven for the heathen are dismayed at them.

Why is it like lightning and thunder for the customs of the people are vain and empty for one cut of the tree of the forest, the work of the hands of the workmen with the acts they deck it was silver and with gold. They fasten it with nails and with hammers that it move. Not there. Upright is a palm tree but speak not. They must needs be born because they cannot go afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good. That's the gods they've made for as much as there is none like unto the Lord, thou art great and I name is great and mighty school would not fear the O King of nations for the does it appertain for as much as among all the wise men of the nations in all their kingdoms. There is not like unto the split they are altogether brutish and foolish stock is a doctrine of vanities, silver, spreading the plates is brought from Tarsus and gold from you for the work of the workmen's head of the hands of the founder, blue and purple as her clothing.

They are all the work of cunning men, but the Lord is the true God. He is the living God, and an ever lasting King none like you, the one true and living God as we come to explore God so that we might know God, we ask you to come to his self revelation and the word of God's that actually is characterized in an interesting way.

God throughout his self revelation in Scripture gives us terms that seemingly our office is what we would refer to as antinomy or seemingly self-contradictory statements because in the tension of those statements. It actually leads us beyond knowing about God's because of these things are really true that we wouldn't know about God's because we feel the tensions we come to know God himself by talking about the word of God reveals God to us that he is both transcendent fees completely separate from us, and yet he's imminent.

He's completely involved in every thing in life. What is that me.

How could he do that. What is it mean to be God and and and be completely removed and yet completely involved trustee is unfathomable and yet knowable by revelation's impact not just knowable but knowable in a way that man is accountable to know him yet. He's unknowable. He is both sovereign over a world and yet that world is marked by his own design by free moral agents. In fact, more than that he is sovereign over a rebel kingdom.

We don't yet see all things put under his feet. What is that tell me about God. He is both three and one cents and one in another he is Elohim over all the earth, and also Yahweh in covenant with his own. He is invisible and yet incarnate in his son. He is unchanging and unchangeable, and yet he is intimately involved in and responsive to the minutest of human affairs see as we come to the series. I don't want us to ask and answer the wrong question. I don't want us to merely ask the question what is God like I want us to ask ourselves, over and over and over this question, who is my God. And so I asked you this morning before we start the series who is your God. See, I think Jeremiah 10 gives us some interesting insights into how we might naturally as opposed to supernaturally answer that question and I want to challenge our thinking because if were not intentional in knowing God. We will default to the natural means of knowing about God and we will frame God according to our natural inclination. So I want to look at this passage of Scripture and I want us to see. First of all, man's attempts to make God will read again we see that the opening verses. It talks about not fearing the gods of the heathen, not falling prey to the approach of the heathen in their thinking to who God is.

There is in man because he is an image bearer of God created by God and God's own image there is in man, a God shaped hole in either man will come to God for the knowledge that is necessary to fill that hole or he will turn to the created order, and he will try and shape that whole way that he is satisfied and filling. He realizes a lot of people living in our world today who actually because of the way they live. Want an angry God.

There are others who completely just want to God that they describe as loving who, nothing really matters to him. That's how they define love matter what I do better how I treat you, or if I even think to treat you at all because your love. None of that mattered. And so, in these attempts to make a God.

I want you to see. First of all, the rejection of God.

Think Paul articulates is best for us in Romans one, when he says in verse 24 wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness to the loss of their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves and notice the next verse because of their behaviors. They shape their belief who changed the truth of God into a lie and worshiped and served the creature more than the creator who is blessed forever. Amen. You see, there is this natural inclination in us because of our behaviors and because of the way that we live in and out every day to shape our thinking about God. Paul adds that in verse 28 of Romans one and even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient because of their behaviors there came a rejection of who God is and it led them to a process of thinking differently about God. I think this is a challenge for because men who reject God always become God makers. Whether that is by intention or not at the level of which I reject the knowledge of God and choose a behavior that's contrary to it.

If I lived there long enough. I will remake God in the image of my behavior because I don't want to live with a guilty conscience. I don't want to live the way I'm choosing to live and feel a continual sense of accountability that robs me of the pleasure of the way I'm choosing to live in.

So what ends up happening is first of all, I ignore the knowledge of God that would make me accountable and eventually I read shape God so that I'm no longer on come by asking the Hoosier God, how are you living and if you're honest today. You have already begun the process of ignoring God and reshaping God so that you are comfortable with your behaviors and you are shaping your beliefs.

It's easy to live that way inside Charlotte's in chapel for nine times and tell me about God because I want to know about God friends. God doesn't want you to know about him. God wants you to know him so not just the sense of the rejection of God within three creation of God's and and this is is a a challenge because it's incremental like you may be sitting here that I would never do that. Never try to re-create God son is to give you some of the primary ways it's being done and and these are all primary ways that are currently infecting our culture. Why are we seeing things that we are seeing in our culture.

Romans one describes, in a sense what is happening in a God rejecting culture for a God re-creating culture and and as you listen to these I want you to think about what my hearing in the world today. My hearing in philosophy today. How do we re-create God what one of them is what you might know is animism believe in a multiplicity of spirits teaches that nothing is ultimately inanimate but that all things are actually alive with spirits that are either beneficial or detrimental to mankind.

Everything in a sense is that is is God where we were here that our culture today. Listen very, very carefully to the mantra of environmentalists today fetishism is a belief that a spirit may temporarily dwell in an in animate object and that the object is therefore sacred because the spirit lives there. God is moved into something. Pantheism is a believe that God is all and all is God. Reality is God's, and therefore everything is a manifestation of God and end theism is a believe that God in the physical universe. Each need each other for integrity in each are in a state of becoming God is the universe as one's mind is, is in his body at Scott.

This is how God is head of theism is a believe that many gods exist. However, one God is both superior to and is to be worshiped to the exclusion of the rest charters God there's a bunch of God's and some point. Yes, we have our God, but it's okay there. The other gods and other people have other gods polytheism is belief in the existence of many gods, all of whom are to be worshiped you here that express the mother's many pathways to God and then Deism is belief in one God, who was removed from the world. Yet he created it may gone through different processes. We can debate over that but but he Kiki somehow either push the plunger to start the Big Bang. Then he disconnected from that world. He is abandoned that world is no present relationship with that world. And so I live in the world that he made and I figured out on my own because God really is. This interested and disconnected.

You might say why don't describe any of those, but I challenge you in your thinking about how you live every day and I ask you the question, which one of those is incrementally beginning to frame your thinking about God what is that begin to look like friend. Do you believe in Deism when you sit in your room and think that God doesn't see you on your device. See, your behaviors are beginning to shape your belief about God. God doesn't see well maybe he does but really doesn't care or maybe he doesn't show. He is loving so it doesn't matter, and you see how your behaviors are shaping your belief about God and I ask you sitting here today who is your God gives us passes and brings us to the necessity of knowing the true God. For as much, verse six of Jeremiah 10 is there is none like him to the old Lord, thou art great and I name is great in my there is none like on to the at the end of verse seven verse 10, but the Lord is the true God. He is the living God, and an ever lasting king, and so who is the true God Nick strong captured it well when he said God is the infinite and perfect spirit in whom all things have their source of support and and in all three things are vitally important to knowing who he is. He made it heat it belongs to him. He supports it, it matters to him and he is the end. He has a purpose for it in that it includes you Mr. shorter catechism says it this way, God is a spirit, infinite, eternal and unchangeable is being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth friends.

There is one true one true and living God, and he has purposed in his creation to make him self known why did he create to display his glory to a being made in his image so that he might be known by you. Do you think he's okay. If you change who you think he is.

If his purpose was to be known. Do you see why idolatry matters. God isn't interested in you worshiping something caught isn't interested in you figuring out a way to fill the void in your life with something of your own making. If he was, he wouldn't have created but let me take you deeper than that imagined in the brokenness that came as a result of the fall and all of a sudden a God who has made everything that he might be known. Man rejects the knowledge of God, but no conversation about the knowledge of good and evil.

He rejects the knowledge of God. So what does God do God becomes me that through the incarnation God's son would make known God the father and that through him and his redemptive work.

We might know him see the truth of being precious in his holy site isn't some sentimentality to make you and I feel good actually is about God and his redemptive work. So who is God, but then I want to leave us with this one question because this is what will frame this entire series for us.

How can I know him take your Bibles and turn quickly to Psalm 19 Psalm 19. I want you to see in this passage really just three pointed things I hope will and frame our mindset as to whether or not we even want to listen during doctrinal chapels. Psalm 119 Psalm 1901, 19 begins this way in verse one the heavens declare the glory of God.

The first thing I want us to see in the Revelation, the self revelation of God is that he gave us. If you look in verses one through six and we won't read them all general or natural revelation God in his created order created a world that everywhere you look, if you look honestly says something. I believe Paul categorizes that for us back in Romans one when he writes in verse 20 for the invisible things of him the things I can't see from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made or something about God that I can't know because I can't see it becomes understood because of the things I can see what are those things he says it this way, even his eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse those who rejected God's. When I look at natural revelation.

It tells me something about God.

What does it tell me it tells me two things. Basically, there is a God and I am not him. That's what the world tells me when I go outside and I look at the splendor of the rolling ocean and how it is this ongoing perennial machine that is rolled wave after wave after wave, and it's seemingly the self generating energy source and asked to see how it shifts in the tides, and that I go I see all that. It says something to me there's a God and I'm not him. So general Revelation does teach me something about God, but I want to be incredibly thankful that it is not the only thing God gave me to teach me about him. Why, because what general revelation provides me is this accountability and thus we have the rest of Psalm 19. I want you to see the in verses seven through 11 we have these statements. Verse seven the law, the Lord let her have the testimony Lord. Verse eight statutes of the Lord F. The commandment of the Lord. Verse nine the fear of the Lord latter half the judgments of the Lord and then it says is more to be desired are they than gold hidden much fine gold sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them is not sure of it more than the keeping of them there is great reward and what you see, then, is God gives us a second source of knowledge about him and we call that special revelation or what you and I know as the word of God. God has given us his word. God breathed word so that you and I might know more about him than just our accountability because the spoken word. The inspired word of God breathed the words is a source for us, not just for accountability or answers easy, rather than just our natural inclination in the natural order of things to allow our opinion of God to become shaped by the influences around us and our behavior shaping our beliefs. God says to you, I want to give you a source of that if you will come to this word, it actually can inform your belief and throw your understanding and knowing of God's view that actually can see the opposite happens and your behavior become shaped by your belief. This is why it's so important that we answer the question. Who is your God. I leave you with this thought. If you look at the end of Psalm 19. You see their prayer, a prayer that I would challenge you throughout the series to make your prayer read with me if you will the end of Psalm 19 verse 12 says who can understand his or this is what we need to sit okay God I need to know. Have I been making you in my own image, shaping your life because I need to learn who you are. Cleanse out me from secret faults. God I want you to shake me. I realize I'm broken.I need to the knowledge of you for you not allow me to shape you but for you to shake me keep back thy servant also from presumptuous and let them not have dominion over me. Then shall I be upright and I shall be innocent from the great transgression of God. Verse 14 let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, oh Lord, my strength and my Redeemer friend I ask you who is your God and I invite you to join us on the journey in this doctrinal thing of not knowing about God, but getting to know God. Father, help us, we pray, enlighten and illumine us that we might know you whom to know his life eternal.

We pray these things in Jesus name, amen. You been listening to a sermon, which was part of the series called our great God preach by Beecher you VP Dr. Ellen Benson listen again tomorrow is we continue the series of The Daily Platform