Greg Laurie - God is Now Here (12/15/2017)
- Watch
- Donate
- Become Partner
Pastor Greg Laurie opens a new series on faith essentials with Psalm 139, reminding us God is "now here"—omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent. He knows us completely, is always with us, and has unlimited power to help through any trial, urging us to know Him better so we see life differently and live with confidence in His unchanging nature and love.
Why We Forget – And Why Reminders Matter
Lord, we still believe in your holiness, in your power, in your sovereignty, in your will, in your ability to work all things together for your good, to those that love you and are called according to your purpose. And, Lord, we just need to know you better. And as we know you better, we see things differently. So I pray that as we begin this new series on the essentials of our faith, that we'll grow in our knowledge and even our understanding and even our love for you as we learn more of your plan and purpose for us and love for us. So we commit this time of Bible study to you now. Blessed, we pray, in Jesus' name. Amen.
Amen. You can be seated. Let's turn in our Bibles to Psalm 139, if you would, please. The title of my message is, God is now here. You know, one of the things that I've found as I get older is, well, I start forgetting things. And this is happening more and more. Sometimes I'm out looking for something that I misplaced because I'm forgetful. And then I forget what I'm looking for. And I've told you before that I lose my car on a semi-regular basis. This usually happens when I'm in a parking garage because I don't remember what level I parked on. So I'm walking around with my, you know, remote control, pressing it, hoping it will set the alarm up. The sad thing is, I'm not the only person out there, you know. Others do this as well.
But we forget things, so I try to remind myself. I'll write little notes down. I'll ask others to remind me. And then we have those reminders we carry with us through life. Like, I have a ring in my finger and it reminds me that I'm married. Well, it's not the only reminder. I also have this woman living in my house for 35 years. Who cooks for me and everything. So, yeah, there's that reminder as well. But even when we gather together as a church for communion, we have those elements that remind us of the sacrifice of Jesus. Why do we need reminders? Well, because we tend to forget things. And the Bible is filled with reminders too. In fact, it's filled with repetition. It tells us the same thing over and over and over again. Why? Because we forget.
In fact, I find that I tend to remember what I ought to forget. And I forget what I ought to remember. I have a storehouse of worthless knowledge in my brain. I don't ever remember consciously memorizing dumb jingles of commercial songs. But there they are forever, it seems like. And then there are verses that I have painstakingly worked on to ingrain to memory that I can't fully recall. So I have to go back and reread them again and remind myself and refresh my memory. In fact, we're told in Peter, 2 Peter 3:1, we need to have our memories refreshed. In short, we need to think. And there's no important thing for us to be thinking about than our faith. Because what we believe about God and what He says about Himself in our world is the most important thing we can apply ourselves to.
Your View of God Shapes Everything
Why? Because what you think about God will have everything to do with how you live your life. Your view of God has everything to do with how you react to what happens to you in life. I don't know where you're at right now spiritually. Maybe you come here today filled with concerns and worries. And you're filled with anxiety. You might even feel at times as though you're alone. And you're adrift at sea with no one to help. You even wonder at times if God has abandoned you. Or you feel as though He has let you down. I want you to know, nothing could be further from the truth. And the things that I'm going to be sharing with you are not mere doctrinal facts. These are truths that have sustained me and my family in the most difficult time of our life. These are truths that will give you the balance you need, the foundation you need to get you through whatever comes your way in life. These are truths about God. And as they've helped me, I want to share them so they can help you too.
As the Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 1, He comes alongside us to help us when we go through hard times. And before you know it, He brings us alongside someone else who is also going through a hard time. That we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. Well, God has been there for us. He is here for us. And we want to help others to know He will be there for them as well. So whatever you're facing, God can be with you to help you through it.
We're living in uncertain times right now. Now, the threat of terrorism is still there. We have an economy that's turned upside down. And the experts are scratching their heads in amazement. No one seems they have any solutions right now. So what on earth is happening? You might even be tempted to say, God is nowhere. It reminds you of a story I read that took place many years ago of a man who was an atheist. He had no place for God in his life. He had been relatively successful in his career and had a nice home. He was married to a very committed Christian woman and had a beautiful little daughter. That was the apple of his eye. But one day, his hope began to fail. Quite dramatically, in fact. And he got sicker and sicker. And pretty soon, he was on his deathbed.
So his Christian wife called for her pastor to come visit her atheist husband, hoping that the minister could turn him around. And when this man saw that preacher walk into his house, he began to scream and to curse and use every profanity he could think of against that preacher and said, get him out of here. I never want to see him again. And he was so angry, he said to his wife, give me a piece of paper. And on the piece of paper, he wrote these words, God is nowhere. And he said, I want you to put that at the base of my bed so I can see it every morning when I wake up. God is nowhere. He wouldn't let his wife go to church. He wouldn't even let his wife take their daughter to school because he was afraid she would hear about Jesus there. And so he just was a mean old guy. And his health got worse and worse and it looked as though he was going to die.
And so it was felt that it was a good idea to get the little girl out of the house lest she could potentially catch what he had. And the minister and his wife offered to take her in. And she lived with them for a period of time. And what a wonderful environment that was for her. She went to church all the time and was around a family that prayed together and read the Bible together and sang songs about Jesus together. And her little life was being transformed. And the wife of the pastor was even teaching the little girl how to read. And she prayed for her father to have her recovery. And sure enough, he started to feel better. So she was allowed to go visit her father for a short period of time. As he was beginning his recovery, she climbed up on the bed and she gave her daddy a hug and said, I love you so much, daddy. And he said, now what have you been doing since you've been gone? And she said, well, I've been staying with the pastor and his wife. And she told all about the things she was learning and how much she had come to know about Jesus. And even that she could read now.
And the father said, oh, surely you can't read that much in such a short period of time. She said, oh, no, daddy, I can read. He said, oh, really? Well, why don't you read that sign there at the base of my bed? You know, the sign that said, God is nowhere. So the little girl looked at it very carefully and sounded it out. G-O-D-I-S-N. And she thought she had it. No, it wasn't right. And she said it over. And then finally she said, daddy, I got it. I know what it says. She says, that sign says, God is now here. I guess it's all in how you look at things, isn't it? And she said, you know what, daddy? He's been with you here the whole time. And I've been praying for you. The father choked up, said to his wife, take her out of the room right now. And he began to weep. And he realized what a mistake he had made. And he asked God to forgive him of his sins. And it was through that event that he came to believe in Jesus Christ. God is now here.
So I don't know what you're going through, but God is now here for you. So that's something we all need to know. And we need to know about this God that is now here. It seems to me that there is a great illiteracy among professing believers today. By that I mean among those who claim to be followers of Jesus. They seem to be unaware of what the Bible actually says. A recent Barna survey was done that revealed that half of all Americans who call themselves Christians don't believe that Satan exists. And the poll also went on to say that one-third are confident that Jesus sinned while on earth. Now, this, folks, is Christianity 101. To know that Jesus never sinned when he was on earth. And that there is indeed a real devil. The poll went on to reveal that 25% dismiss the fact or the idea that the Bible is accurate. And all the principles it teaches. And so the pollster concluded, and I quote, "Growing numbers of people now serve as their own theologian in residence. One consequence is that Americans are embracing an unpredictable and contradictory body of beliefs." End quote. And that's true.
Why Theology Matters – Right Thinking About God
So we as Christians, we as believers that believe the Bible is the Word of God, need to put our thinking caps on. Because God doesn't want us to just feel. He wants us to think. Christianity is a reasonable faith. It's a logical faith. In Isaiah, God says, "Come, let us reason together, says the Lord." And another translation would say, God says, "Come, let's argue this out." But let's know what we believe and not rely so much on our feelings and our fickle emotions and begin to start saying the Bible says and have that be the basis of what we believe. This is called theology and we neglect it at our own peril. Theology is the study of God. And what better thing is there to study than God?
You say, well, I don't really care about theology. Well, you ought to. C.S. Lewis gave this warning years ago and I quote, "If you do not listen to theology, that will not mean you have no ideas about God. It will mean you have a lot of wrong ones." End quote. So we're going to have a series that we're going through together that we're calling Essentials. What every Christian needs to know, or another way to put it, we're going to look at sound theology without apology. Because we need it. And you know what? These are takeaway truths that you can apply in your lives. Because again, what you believe about God will affect the way that you live.
Paul says in 1 Timothy 4:16, "Watch your life and your doctrine closely. Persevere in them because if you do, you will save both yourself and your cares." What you believe matters. Some will say, Oh, get off it. You know, doctrine, smogtron. I just love Jesus. And that's all that matters. You know, that's a nice sentiment. Well, wait a second. What if you end up loving the wrong Jesus? What if you're like that percentage of people that will say, Jesus sinned while he was on earth. Well, that's not the Jesus of the New Testament. Or they'll say something about Jesus that is incorrect. We need to know who Jesus was, who God is.
How would you feel if you got on a plane and you were taxiing down the runway and you heard the pilot say over the intercom, Hey, we're taking off, you know, service to Hawaii. I don't know if we have that much fuel. But hey, fuel, shmuel. Let's just see how far this bucket of bolts will fly. Well, what if you were in an operating room in a hospital and you heard the doctor say, I'm not really sure what's wrong with this person, but let's just get off the scalpel and cut away and see what happens. Well, that's crazy. But yet at the same time, we have something here we're talking about that is more important than your next flight or operation. We're talking about matters that have eternal consequences. We are talking about where you will spend your eternal destiny. Is there anything more important than that? And yet we'll treat it so casually or even make up our rules as we go.
People will say things like, Well, I'm not into organized religion, but I'm a very spiritual person. Or they'll say, Well, you know, I believe in a God of love, but not a God of judgment. And my God would never do thus and so. And all of a sudden, you just made yourself the moral center of the universe. You're kind of making up the rules as you go. And that is not the way it works. We come to God on His terms, or we don't come at all. Another way to put it is this is a package deal.
Three Key Truths from Psalm 139
So let's think for a moment about God. That's a good thing to think about. A good person to think about, for He indeed is personal. You remember the Apostle's words as he was on the storm-tossed sea there on his way to Rome, and everyone began to despair of life. No one think they were going to make it. No one thought they were going to make it. And Paul had an angel of the Lord appear to him and reassure him that he would make it to Rome. And so he went out to all those on board and he said to them, "Be of good courage, men, for the Lord has appeared to me and I believe God that it will happen just as He has told me." In the same way, we're in a storm-tossed world, uncertainty all around, an economy that seems to be in meltdown, and we need to know that God is with us and we can believe Him. Though times and circumstances change, God never does. The Lord says in Malachi 3:6, "I am the Lord, I do not change." When you believe God, that doesn't necessarily mean that your circumstances will change, but it does mean that you will change and see things differently.
So let's begin with a no-brainer point for number one. Here it is. This isn't going to come as a revelation to most people, but we have to start somewhere, so we'll start here. God exists and is the creator of the universe and mankind. God exists and He is the creator of the universe and mankind. Now I could spend the rest of this message and many other messages trying to prove the existence of God, but I really think that's largely a waste of time. Most people believe in God. And even among those who say they don't and even describe themselves as atheists, in most cases they would be agnostic. And even those who are atheists still have their moments of doubt, so I don't even know if they're true atheists. But, you know, these are things that we need to understand. The Bible just says that God exists. And most people believe that intuitively.
I have heard that some atheists are upset, though, because they feel they ought to have their own holiday. The Christians, after all, have Christmas and Easter. And there's no atheist day. But actually there is a day for atheists. It's called April's first, April Fool's Day. Because the Bible says the fool has said in his heart there is no God. You know, it's interesting. The Bible does not try to prove the existence of God. It just starts off with these words. You know them. Genesis 1:1. "In the beginning, what?" That's it. "In the beginning, God." Not in the beginning, you. In the beginning, God. God created the heavens and the earth. See, we're willing to accept God if we can have Him on our own terms. We effectively want to remake Him in our image. As Voltaire once said, and I quote, "God made man in His image and man returned the favor," end quote. And so what we have today is not so much a generation that doesn't believe in God, but rather we have a generation that believes in a God of their own making.
Going back in time now, did you know there actually was a time historically when there were only three channels on television? Can you imagine? And we all got our news at 6 o'clock in the evening. from Walter Cronkite or somebody else. Now, what are there like 3,000 channels? I mean, as you flip through, and still there's nothing good to watch. I mean, I'm like 362, 363, and I'm just flipping, flipping, flipping, flipping. You know, there was a time when you would have to be at home at a certain hour to see your favorite television program, and then this new device was created called the VCR. By the way, I don't think anyone ever figured out how to actually program one of those things. All of our VCRs collectively blink, 12, 12, 12, right? But now we have technology like TiVo, you know, where you can record on demand, and then some people bypass TiVo altogether, and they'll go to a website like Hulu.com and watch their program when they want to watch it, or they'll download their favorite TV program on iTunes. So now, not only do you not have to sit in front of your TV to watch it, you can download it to your computer, you can even download it to your iPhone, or your iPod, or your MP3-like device, and take it with you. Everything's on demand. You know, I can have a song list, and I don't like that song, I'll throw that song out. I don't have to sit through it. I'll eliminate it. I'll customize it. Everything is customized to me. I've got my iPhone, I've got my iPod, and now I can have my iGod. And my iFaith. Faith on demand. I'll take out the things I don't like. I'll leave in the things that I do. That's how I will relate to God. And that's how a lot of people are doing it today. And that's not the way it works. In the beginning, God. Not my God. In the beginning, the God. The true God. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
God Is Omniscient – He Knows Everything
By the way, if you can believe that verse, the rest of the Bible is going to be a snap for you. If you can believe that God created the heavens and the earth, you'll have no trouble with the Red Sea parting and people rising from the dead and the virgin birth and everything else the Bible speaks of. So most people can accept this premise. Okay, I believe there's a God. In the beginning, God. But who is God? Now this is hard because now my finite mind is trying to grasp the infinite. And this is hard to say the least. There are certain things I will never comprehend. And in many ways, God is incomprehensible. Zophar had it right when he said to Job, in Job 11:7, "Can you solve the mysteries of God? Can you discover anything there is to know about the Almighty? Such knowledge is higher than the heavens. And who are you?" David said in Psalm 145, "Great is the Lord and highly to be praised. His greatness is unsearchable." There are certain things about God I will never grasp.
Take my granddaughter, Lucy. Now you thought I was going to say Stella, but I am using my first Lucy illustration right now, okay? Lucy is very young, just a few months old. And, you know, I can't communicate with her, at least verbally yet. I can't tell her things yet. But she does understand impressions. You know, they say the most formative years of a child's life are the first five years. And even the little babies, even before you can speak with them, understand what nurture is. They understand what touch is, what love is. And that has an impact on them, even before you begin to verbally communicate. So Lucy knows she is loved. And though I can't communicate in verbal language with her, you communicate in other ways. Like when you look at her, you always raise your voice. You ever notice how people talk to babies? No one walks up and says, Hey, what's up, baby? No, you go, hello, hi, hi baby, hi baby. You know, and the baby looks, You are such an idiot. Well, when I learn how to talk, I'm going to tell you that. No, but, you know, and the baby will respond. You smile, the baby smiles. And, you know, and so you're making an impression. You're trying to communicate. Then as they get older, like my granddaughter Stella, who's two and a half, I can convey certain concepts to her. And maybe a story will help, or a drawing will help. She's more advanced, you could say, than Lucy is at this point in her life. But here we are trying to grasp God. Here we are trying to wrap the finite around the infinite. And it's virtually impossible.
But let me just say, though God cannot be fully comprehended, God can be fully known. And one day, we will fully comprehend Him and all things. 1 Corinthians 13:12 says, "We don't see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright. We'll see it all then. We'll see as clearly as God sees us, knowing Him directly, just as He knows us." Yes, God can be known. And that is the essence of the Christian life, to know God. As John said, "this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you've sent." Paul said, "My determined purpose in life is to know Him." That's why you're here on this earth. To know God. And as a result of that, to glorify and honor Him with your life.
So what is God like? Does God know literally everything? Does God have unlimited power? Can God be in more than one place at one time? Is He in control of the universe? Or are things just random? And does God care about you and I as individuals? Well, there's some answers to those questions right here in Psalm 139. And we're going to discover three important takeaway truths about God. Theology to go. Theology without apology. Let's read verses 1 through 6. "O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether. You have hedged me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it."
In this Psalm, I will discover three things about God that I need to know. Number one, God is omnipresent, which means He's present everywhere. Number two, God is omnipotent, which means He has unlimited power. And thirdly, God is omniscient, which means He is all-knowing.
God Is Omniscient – All-Knowing
Let's start with number one. God is omniscient. He is all-knowing. Let me read to you the first four verses of Psalm 139, but this time from the New Living Translation. Just listen to what it says. "O Lord, You've examined my heart and You know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my every thought when it's far away. You chart the path ahead of me and tell me where to go and rest. Every moment, you know where I am. You know what I'm going to do. You know what I'm going to say even before I say it." I don't even know what I'm going to say before I say it. Because I've said things and after I say it, I think, why did I say that? You know those inside thoughts and those outside thoughts. We need to know what goes where. Because sometimes someone will say something and they'll say, that's an inside thought. You actually shouldn't express what you just said. You know, there are certain things you think and then certain things you say and sometimes we've blurred out something and we realize we should have never said that at all.
But here, in this verse, we discover that God's knowledge is as eternal as He is. What God knows now, He has always known and will always know. Let me say that again. What God knows now, He has always known and He will always know. For instance, you and I learn new things. Hopefully every day. God never learns new things. Nor does He need to relearn things because He's forgotten them. God already knows what He knows and will always know it.
Now, scientists tell us that we never forget anything that we store it in these vast data banks in our minds and according to Think Magazine, the brain can store enough data to fill several million books. But I wonder about that at times because it seems like I do forget things. I have lapses of memory. There will be times when I'm talking with someone I've known for years and I forget their name. And you're just sort of staring at them blankly. And the sad thing is I'm talking about my wife. Is it Betty? I can't remember. No, but that's not true. But aren't you glad I actually said that's not true? He said, Whoa, he's losing his mind. But God never forgets. God never has a lapse of memory. God never looks at you and says, And you are who? He knows everything including what is happening in his creation.
You know, for years the early astronomers mocked the Bible, this unscientific book filled with myth and superstition that actually says the stars are innumerable. Everyone knows, the early astronomers said, that the stars can be numbered. Well, we can go out and count them right now. One, two, three, four. Then they developed a telescope. And okay, there's a few more than we thought. And they developed a more powerful telescope. And there's even more than we thought. Then more powerful telescopes were developed along with space travel, et cetera. And now they realize, you know what, there are so many stars out there, they actually can't be counted. In fact, astronomers estimate there are 100,000 million stars in the Milky Way galaxy alone and outside that there are millions upon millions of other galaxies as well. Guess what? God said a long time ago, the stars cannot be numbered. Ah! Guess the Bible was right after all.
But here's what's interesting. Though the stars are innumerable, at least to us, you can't count them. Humans can't. God can. He knows each one by name. Psalm 147:4, "He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name." Man, I would run out of names fast. God has a name for every star. You say, well, that's great. You know, God has this vast knowledge of all of the universe. But check this out. God has intimate knowledge of individuals as well. For instance, Jesus says, the very hairs of your head are numbered. Now, in my case, that's, you know, what, six, seven? Moved about very imaginatively. But in the case of some of you, it's a lot more work. Jesus says He knows about every bird that falls to the ground. And then He said, so don't be afraid because you're more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows. See, God is interested in you. He knows about you. It's one thing to know about someone, but God cares about you as well. In fact, we're told in Psalm 56:8, "you keep track of all of my sorrows. You've collected all of my tears in your bottle. You've recorded each one in your book." If it concerns you, it concerns God. He knows about those tears that you shed when you're all alone. He knows about your fears, your anxieties, your heartbreaks, and so forth. These are of concern to God. God is omniscient. He is all-knowing. He knows about everything that happens when you do something sacrificial for His kingdom that maybe is not known to others. God knows and He takes note. And Jesus promises your Father who sees you in secret will one day reward you openly. And God will also mete out justice because the Bible tells us in Proverbs 15:3, "the eyes of the Lord are everywhere keeping watch on the wicked and the good." How could He reward or punish otherwise? Not one single thing happens on this planet or anywhere else for that matter that God is not aware of. God sees and hears everything that happens everywhere. He knows all about you. He doesn't just see you. He sees through you.
See, we're really good at giving a certain impression to a person putting on airs or acting as though we're someone we really are not. And God is not fooled by things like that. And this drove people crazy when Jesus was here for His earthly ministry because He would read their minds. He would say, why are you thinking this right now? How do you know that? I'm glad I can't read minds. That would really be kind of depressing, I think. You know, to stand on the back and shake hands with people, oh, Pastor Greg, that was a great message. And meanwhile, I'm reading their mind and they're thinking, your message was worthless. And you're ugly in person. Oh. Thank you very much. God sees right through you. He knows everything. And I bring this up because sometimes we think we're so clever. We think we can sin and hide it. Oh, you hid it from your parents. Oh, you hid it from the law. Oh, you hid it from the government. Oh, you hid the... No, you're not hiding anything. The Bible says all things are naked and open before the one with whom we have to do. The Bible says every idle word a man will speak will give an account of on the day of judgment. God knows everything. He hears everything. He sees everything.
Of course, we're living in a time now where everybody has phones, right? And on their phones, many have cameras. And everybody takes pictures of everything and they post it on the Internet and there it is for everyone else to see. So even among mankind, we see technology where we have instant information. God knows all of that and much more because He knows the motive behind it. Nothing is hidden from God. Alan Redpath used to say, "secret sin on earth is open scandal in heaven." It's no secret to God. And one of the most significant things to consider about the omniscience of God is the fact that He knows what's going to happen before it happens. He knows what's going to happen before it happens. Nothing catches God by surprise. Whoa! What was that? No, God knew it was going to happen before it happened. That's because God, in contrast to us, dwells in the eternal realm. Isaiah 46:10 says God knows, makes known the end from the beginning from ancient times which is still to come. His purpose will stand. He'll do all that He pleases.
You see, I don't even know the end at the end. And by that I mean God knows what's going to happen before it happens. I don't even know what happened after it happened. Because sometimes I forget. Well, what happened there again? What was that? You know, you have your stories out of whack. You know, but God lives in the eternal realm and He knows all things and He sees all things and is aware of all things. To God, yesterday is as today and tomorrow is as yesterday. A.W. Tozer said, "in God there is no was or will be but a continuous and unbroken is. In Him, history and prophecy are one and the same." See, it's just a continuum to God. There's not a yesterday or a tomorrow to God but really there's just the eternal realm in which He knows everything about everyone at every time. It's an amazing thing. That is why it's not a big stretch for God to predict the future. I mean, would you think of me as a great prophet if I told you that the Steelers won the Super Bowl this year? Last minute upset. Yeah, but we all saw that. Oh, so I know the past. That's not a big deal. God knows the future is accurately even more so than we know the past. For instance, we can look at the Bible and we can see prophecies that predicted how the Messiah would come, where the Messiah would be born, how the Messiah would die, detailed information and we see it fulfilled to a T exactly as the Bible said it would be. Then we see the Bible predicting the future of the world and what's going to happen yet ahead. And I'm telling you, you can take this stuff to the bank. It's going to happen. As God said, He's omniscient. He's all-knowing.
God Is Omnipresent – Always With Us
Number two, God is omnipresent. God is omnipresent. Let's go back to Psalm 139, verse 7. "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you're there. If I make my bed in hell, behold, you're there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand will lead me and your right hand will hold me. Surely the darkness shall fall on me, but even there shall be light about me. Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from you. But the night shines as the day. The darkness and the light are both alike to you."
Now, these words can either be comforting or frightening depending on what side of the fence you're on. If you're a follower of Jesus, knowing that God will be with you wherever you go is of great comfort. As the psalmist said, "if I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the innermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me." No matter where I go, God will be there with me. Jesus said, "I will never leave you or forsake you." And in the Greek that's emphatic and repetitive. It can better be translated, Jesus speaking, "I will never, no never, no never, leave you or forsake you." Jesus has promised, "lo, I am with you even into the end of the age." By the way, that's not just a promise for short people. Lo, I am with you. Get it, lo, low down. Short, lo, lo, I am with you. What do you want from me? It's a third service. I'm crazy. It's a promise for all people. That's all you're going to remember from this sermon. Greg said he was crazy today. Did you hear that? We've always known that, but it's good he's admitting it now.
But you know, he's promised to be with us all. And God is omnipresent. Everywhere we go, God is there. C.S. Lewis said, "we may ignore, but we can nowhere evade the presence of God. The world is crowded with him." I love that. The world is crowded with God. You know, you don't have to cry out to God because he's out to lunch. I'm sorry. God is not here. I mean, can you imagine if you called heaven and got those worthless recordings which I despise? If you need this, you know, push this number. If you need that, and you can't talk to a person, I want to talk to someone. Can you imagine praying, I'm sorry, God is not here. He is out to lunch. If you need forgiveness, press one. If you need guidance, press two. No, God is always there, listening, on a journey.
Remember when Elijah was with the prophets of Baal up there on Mount Carmel? He had a little fun at their expense. It was a contest. It was a battle. The battle of the gods. And Elijah said, okay, let's have a contest and let's say the God that answers by fire, he's the true God. Since you guys worship Baal, the sun God, you go first. This should be a no-brainer for him. So they were crying out to Baal. Wasn't even a real God. Elijah is watching them. I'm laughing. And then he gives them a little encouragement and says, hey, why don't you yell out a little bit louder? You know, maybe he's deep in thought or he's busy or he's traveling and he's sleeping and he must be awakened. Or as the living translation says, maybe your God is sitting on a toilet. I love that translation. I just wanted to use the word toilet in the sermon. No. But actually, in the original language, that idea is implied. Of course, the word toilet that's not used. But the implication is, maybe your God, Elijah was saying to them, they're worshiping a false God, maybe your God, why, he's relieving himself. The whole idea is so stupid that they would worship a God that could be on a journey or could be relieving himself or anything else and they said, thanks for the advice and they scream louder and they're cutting themselves. What a mess. I'm so thankful that I have a God that's always on call, that's always listening, that's always available, that's always concerned, who is never asleep. He's never asleep.
God Is Omnipotent – All-Powerful
Number three, and lastly, God is omnipotent. He's omnipotent. He's all-powerful. Well, sometimes people will say, well, all right, let me ask you a question then. Can God do anything He wants? And assuming you'll answer that in the affirmative, the follow-up question is, well then, could God do something that is UN-God-like if He can do anything? Can God contradict Himself by making something more powerful than Himself or UN-God-like than Himself? Or the more popular version of the question, could God make a rock so heavy He could not lift it? My response is, could God make a person so lame? They could not come up with a better question than that? Oh, is this supposed to stump me? Whoa, you got me there. It's a stupid question. The implication is, well, God's all-powerful, that He can do anything and He might do the wrong thing. No, we have to balance the attributes of God one with another. We'll do this a little bit more and we look more in depth into the nature and character of God, but you see, yes, God is all-powerful, but He is not going to do something that's sinful. He's not going to do something against His nature for the Bible says, God cannot deny Himself. Listen, God cannot lie or do something that is inconsistent with His divine nature. God can neither lie nor die. Okay?
So, the question is built on a false premise. What is impossible to God? Not that which is difficult to His power, but that which is contrary to His nature. When we say God is omnipotent, we mean He has infinite power. We mean His power cannot be depleted, drained, or exhausted. He is infinitely perfect in that He is limitless, eternal, and self-existent. He doesn't need any external power. You know, I have an iPhone. I have to plug it in every night because it barely makes it through the day. You know, I start redlining toward the end of the day. That little battery has almost run out. You've got to get some juice in that thing. Or our cars run out of fuel. But God never runs out of energy. He never runs out of power. And here's something to consider. Your requirements are not a drain on God's resources. You will never need more than God can supply. He has everything you need. My God, Paul says, will supply all of your needs according to His riches and glory in Christ Jesus.
All right, so let's think about this now as we conclude. Let's look at your circumstances. Maybe you're overwhelmed by tragedy or grief or sorrow or confusion or uncertainty or worry. Maybe you're bound by an addiction that has become so severe it's turned into a lifestyle you cannot be free from or can't get yourself free from. So here's the question. Can the all-knowing, all-powerful, ever-present God help you? I should think so. The Bible asks the rhetorical question, is anything too hard for the Lord? Well, the answer is obviously no. You say, but Greg, I have a hard time wrapping my mind around this. You're talking about this infinite God. Okay, let's break it down. You want to know what God is like? Just look at Jesus. Jesus was and is God. He showed you what God is like. And as a matter of fact, Jesus told a story. It's a real simple story. But a very profound one. To show us what God is like. You might say it's a snapshot of God. We usually call it the parable of the prodigal son. The Bible doesn't call it that, but we generally do. But really, you can more accurately describe it as the parable of the loving father. Because it is indeed told from the father's perspective.
It says a certain father had two sons and the younger son said to his father, I want my portion of the inheritance that's coming to me. The father divided up his estate, gave the money to the boy, and that boy went to a distant land and wasted all of his money on prodigal living. Right? Then the boy came to his senses and said, How many hired servants of my father have bread enough to spare? And here I am dying of hunger. So I'm going to go home and say to my father, I'm no longer worthy to be called your son. Just make me a hired servant.
Now, here's where the story gets interesting. While he was still a great way off... Remember, this is Jesus telling this story, showing us what God is like. While he was still a great way off, the father sees his son and has compassion. And what does he do? He runs to his son, throws his arms around him, and kisses him, and has a barbecue. Loose paraphrase. That's really what happened. Let's have a feast. This my son who is dead is alive again. He who is lost is found. So what is God like? According to Jesus, God is like a father who misses his son. What is God like? God is like a father who can't wait to throw his arms around his son and show him his love and affection. What is God like? God is like an elderly man willing to lose his dignity to get to his child to save him.
Now let me explain that. You see, in the first century culture, it was considered undignified for an older man to run. Older men didn't do it. It was not proper. And you know, back in those days, they wore long robes, right? So to run, you'd have to pull your robe up above your knees to give you freedom of movement. You girls know about this? Some of you confused men know too. Older men did not run. Undignified. Not to mention the fact that it's harder for an older man to run. You know, I know this from experience because I've tried running and it hurts. And I'm still searching for endorphins. I don't know where they are. Recently, I met Ken Cooper who was called the father of modern aerobics and he coined the phrase. He was in Texas where I was speaking and he runs the Cooper Clinic. He's an expert on all these things. And I said, Dr. Cooper, endorphins. Where are they? How do I find... Oh, you just have to hang in there, Greg. Press on and run really hard and you'll feel the relief. I've tried that. No, they're there. Can you buy an endorphin somewhere? Because I've been... Forget that. That's not really the point of the story.
This man and the story that Jesus told was willing to lose his dignity to get to his son. If Jesus himself had not suggested it, it could almost be perceived as, well, disrespectful to say of God, to liking God to this. But this is the illustration that Jesus used. And did God not sacrifice so much to show his love for us? Jesus gave up the privileges of deity when he died for you on the cross. I didn't say he gave his deity up. And deity means he's God. Jesus never stopped being God but he gave the privileges of being God up and by that I simply mean he allowed them to take him and treat him like a common criminal and beat him and torture him and murder him in cold blood. He went through with all that. He didn't strike back. He gave it all up. He became as a servant to die for us because that's how much God loves you.
So when you think about an all powerful all knowing ever present God know this that God loves you and longs for a relationship with you and can't wait to throw his arms around you and demonstrate that love. So my question to you in closing is do you know this God today? For Jesus who died on the cross and Rose again from the dead is alive and stands right now at the door of your heart and he knocks and he says if you will hear his voice and open the door he will come in. Have you ever opened the door of your heart so to speak and asked Jesus to come in? Maybe you came in here today like that atheist I mentioned earlier saying God is nowhere. I'm telling you God is now here. And God can come into your life and forgive you of every sin you've ever committed if you will ask for his forgiveness and believe in Jesus. And then you can have the assurance that when you die you will go to heaven and all your questions will be answered. And you can be sure that you will discover God's plan for you and you will never walk through life alone. And God will be there to give you the strength you need when you need it to face whatever you're going to face.
But if you don't choose to believe in Jesus you walk through life separated from God alone and you will face a certain judgment. But God put that judgment on his son Jesus Christ when he died on the cross in your place. And if you'll turn from that sin and believe in him you can be forgiven. So we're going to pray right now and I'm going to give you an opportunity to say yes to Jesus and ask him to forgive you of your sin so you can leave here knowing God in a personal way. Okay? Let's all bow our heads. Father, I pray now for any that have joined us who may not yet know you or who are listening or watching listening to or watching this right now help them to see Lord you can be known. Help them to see Lord you can be followed. Help them Lord to receive the forgiveness of their sin at this very moment. When our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed and we're praying. how many of you would say today Greg pray for me I want my sin forgiven. I want to know that when I die I will go to heaven. I want Jesus Christ to come into my life right now. I want this void of my life filled pray for me I'm ready to say yes to Jesus. If that's your desire if you want Christ to come into your life and you want him to forgive you of your sin would you lift your hand up wherever you're sitting and I'll pray for you. Just lift your hand up. I will pray for you. God bless you. There in the front row. Anybody else? You want God's forgiveness today. You want your guilt taken away. God bless you up there in the balcony. There toward the back in the middle. God bless each one of you. Over here on the side God bless you too. Anybody else? You want Christ to come into your life today let me pray for you. The very back row there God bless you too. God bless you down here toward the front. Anybody else? Yes, God bless you too sir. Maybe you've fallen away from the Lord. You are the prodigal son or daughter that I spoke of a few moments ago. But you're ready to come back again. You're ready to return to the Lord. Would you lift your hand up if you want to make a recommitment to Christ today? God bless you. God bless you. God bless you too and you. Over here on this side. God bless. Up in the balcony. God bless you guys up there in the middle of the balcony. In the back of the balcony. God bless all of you.
Lord, thank you now for each one of these. Give them the strength to follow you. And to receive all that you have for them. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Listen, everyone that Jesus calls, he calls openly and publicly. And we're going to do the same in a moment. Our worship group is going to lead us in a song of invitation. And I'm going to ask if you raise your hand with me during that last moment of prayer. That when this song begins, you'll get up out of your seat. Walk down here to the front. And when you get here, I'll lead you in a prayer. If you're in our patio amphitheater area, I'm going to ask you to come around to the back of the sanctuary and join us here inside. So you outdoors and the amphitheater, leave your latte and come on into the back of the sanctuary and join us here in the front. If you're in our gymnasium building that we call the court, I'm going to ask you to go to the front of the room where the screen is. Right up there where the screen is and a pastor will meet you.
Now, why do I ask you to come forward like this? Because those whom Jesus calls, he calls publicly. He said, if you will acknowledge me before people, I'll acknowledge you before my Father and the angels in heaven. But he added, if you deny me before people, I'll deny you before the Father and the angels. That's why I'm going to ask you to make this public stand. So again, you in the amphitheater, outdoors, you come around to the back of the sanctuary, you in the court. Got to get all these names right. You go to the front of the room there where the screen is. And you in the sanctuary right here, I want you to get up out of your seat, step into the aisle, walk down here to the front. And when you get here, I'll lead you in a prayer. So you that want to make this commitment to follow Jesus, you that want your sin forgiven, you get up now. Now, you come on down here and stand here. Come on down from the balcony. A choice is set before you now, living or dying, blessing or cursing. I know the time has come around. Chorus, too, one last time. And there might be a few more of you that need to make this commitment. You know you need to get right with God. Listen, you may never have another opportunity like this today to make this commitment. You have no guarantees you or I or anybody else will be here tomorrow or even tonight. The Bible says, now is the time. Today is the day of salvation. So if you need to come or come back to Christ, there's still this opportunity. God bless you, guys. Again, if you're in the court, go to the front of the room where the screen is. If you're in the amphitheater outdoors here, come around to the back of the sanctuary. If you're here in the sanctuary, just come forward in this final moment as they sing this last chorus. Anybody else? Get up and come now. The Lord with all your heart, with all of your soul, all of your pain. I'm going to lead you now in a word of prayer. And this is a prayer of where you are asking God to forgive you because we're all separated from God by our sin. But Jesus died on the cross and paid the price for that sin. He took the sin upon himself. And if we'll turn from that sin and put our faith in Jesus and Jesus alone to save and forgive us, we will be forgiven.
So, I'm going to lead you in a prayer where you're just saying, God, I'm sorry. Jesus came into my life. I want to follow you. And mean this prayer from your heart as I pray it. Just pray it out loud after me, okay? So, let's all bow our heads if you would. Pray this after me. "Lord Jesus, I know I'm a sinner. I have broken your commandments. I have fallen short of your standards. Oh, but thank you for dying for me. And paying the price for my sin. I turn from that sin now. I choose to follow you. From this day forward, be my Savior. Be my Lord. Be my God. Be my friend. Thank you for loving me. And calling me. And forgiving me. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen." Amen.