Big God, Small Words

As you can see, the title today is, Big God, Small Words. Big God, Small Words. I know in the theological world, they like to use big words to make people feel pretty important, or to make you have to look up what they're talking about, or study. As I had in my theological classes, you had actual words, exegesis, isogesis, etymology, anthropomorphic, omnipotent, omniscient, hermeneutics, monotheism, polytheism.

These are just phrases and words that people use in the theology world. I know Joy will have certain words and nurses use different fields of expertise. Even in the educational world, you have your certain words that you use that are typically not used by everyone else.

I don't say it's just that. They do it for that reason, but it's part of your training. So today, I would like to give you another big word that most of you have never used, and doubt you will after today, but hopefully I can explain it. The word is monosyllabic. Monosyllabic. M-O-N. O-S-Y-L-L-A-Y-B-I-C. Like syllabic, but it's monosyllabic is how you pronounce it. And monosyllabic, or one syllable, actually just means small words. Small words, usually one syllable words that's used. Okay? They're usually very simple, very brief, and very short.

I bring this point out today because I think it's a very good one. Because God does not need or did not need a difficult language to teach His people. The actual words here, as they are phrased in the theological books, was simple words for simple people. And I think most of you, if you've ever had any great teachers, they could take the complicated and make it simple. They could break things down. That's what typically teachers do because any of you that had teachers high school or college that stood up there rattling this stuff off, you were taking notes, and afterwards, next week you wouldn't even know what they were.

What you had talked about much. But when someone is able to break things down in the simplified form, but some people need to feel important, so they like using big words. They like sounding important. God does not need to feel important. He already is. So I bring this up because the Torah Pentateuch, if you want to call it in the Greek, the Torah, the first five books of the Bible was written to former slaves, written for them first. We are blessed that we're able to read, that it's been carried down. But you must understand, those first five books were written to former slaves who had been slaves for at least 150 years.

A lot of them not educated. But that wasn't the point. The point that God makes in His teaching is that to understand who He is, what He is about, and what He asks of us is really very simple. And you don't need all these fancy five-syllable words to explain it. And unlike 2 Peter 3 and verse 15, 16 actually talks as Peter talking about Paul's teaching, because Paul's teachings were, as he said, sometimes hard to understand. We all agree that if you look at all the debate that comes into Christianity and what the Bible says, what it means, the interpretation of it all, the biggest discrepancies happen in Paul's writings, doesn't it?

When you read the first five books of the Old Testament, the Torah, it's pretty simple language. He lays it out pretty crystal clear what we're to do, right? But when you read the first four books of the New Testament, anything complicated in there? No. No. Christ makes it pretty simple. Follow me. Paul even said later, follow me as I follow Christ. And so Christ laid out his life by inspiring four books that were actually written about him, about his time on earth, and makes it pretty simple.

This is how you're to live. Good, bad, good, evil. There's nothing complicated about that. So Christ's words are of a simplistic language. He was talking also to farmers, fishermen, those who were just working at the time.

As a matter of fact, when he was actually talking to the educated, the theological giants of his day, he actually spoke in parables, because he really didn't want them to understand. Because they were going to twist it anyway. They were not really there to believe. They were there to find fault, to twist and turn God's Word, as he would have to correct them many times, because they twisted and added and put their own two cents in.

In vain do they worship me teaching His doctrine the commandments of men. That's what they like to do.

But Christ said the words He wanted to say, the way He wanted to say them, and to whom He wanted to say them. It's the way He wanted to do things. It was Jesus Christ simply being God in the flesh. Setting that incredible example, because you have to see and understand, as I did after my three, three and a half years of classes, studying all this, having to know it, those big words, knowing what all this meant, I came to the conclusion that, well, that wasn't necessary. No, I'm glad I did learn it. I'm glad it was taught. If I have a debate or talk to somebody, which I have, who have masters or doctrine in theology, which I do have, that we can discuss on their level, as I try to understand them. But for the most part, I think it should be simple. And as Jesus Christ came as God in the flesh, what did He try to do?

Did He try to simplify things? He didn't try really to explain what He was. Right? Because He understood that God in God's realm is beyond man's comprehension. No matter how smart you are, you are not anywhere in God's league. And He makes things simple. And He made them simple so that anyone could understand that it doesn't take a 150 IQ to receive salvation. And that's what we need to look at today. I'd like you to turn to Isaiah 55. Many of you know that verse. It's something that we seem to understand, but Isaiah needed to tell us this. He needed to reveal this to us because God wanted us to know this. Isaiah 55 verse 8 from the New King James, For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor your ways my ways. Says Isaiah? No. Says the Lord. Then He said, For as the heavens are higher than the earth, how high are the heavens? Well, there's three. You know, there's what we can see. Then there's outer space. Then there's actually space where God lives. There's three types of heaven. Matter of fact, the second heaven is actually called Carmen, and it's 62 miles supposedly above sea level. That's where outer space actually starts. So we have clouds, we have stars, and then we have God. Three. Which is heaven. But He says, For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. So we can't even comprehend that science will look at all this stuff. Science, the brightest minds in the world, will be putting all this stuff together, writing all these books, amazing people with their, what? Theories. God does not have theories. He does not need theories. He knows everything. Nothing is a theory to God. But yet, we as humans, we need theories. And yes, we do. Because we need it because it actually tells us we don't know much. And that's what God is trying to tell. We just need to be simple. We don't need to try to be something we're not. I'd like you to turn to Psalm 103, if you will. Psalm 103. Psalm 103 tells us, if you will believe this, you can have an understanding that as basically statistics prove today, 55% of the people in the world do not understand, or they do not agree with. Okay? Now, a lot more people, they say, believe in God. But that He is who He said He is? No. That He is in control of everything? No. Sorry. It's just not believed by humanity as a whole today. Psalm 103, verse 19. The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over what? Everything. All. No doubt. Okay? That should be our main proof of God, is we believe that Scripture. It's pretty simple. Scripture isn't. Okay? He's over all. He still reigns over all. No matter what happens in your life, no matter what happens on this planet, He's still in control. You can leave chapter 103 and go to chapter 104, and it actually gives you there a true understanding and a poignant point that God is sovereign. You just have to believe it. Does it require faith? Yeah, it does. Psalm 104, let's read a few there. Verse 1, bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, you are very great. Do you believe that? You are clothed with honor and majesty, who cover yourself with light as a garment. Verse 5, you laid the foundations of the earth so that it should not be moved forever. You can read the entire chapter there, and it will enlighten you. As the verse 32 says, He looks on the earth and it trembles. He touches the hills and they smoke. He just speaks a word, has a thought, and it's done. That is power. That is very, very powerful.

But you know, even Satan and the demons, when you study God's words, reveal God's greatness. I'll read from, if you go with me to James 2, James chapter 2, I'll read from the New Living Translation since late. Maurice, there are some things that are explained a little bit better. But James is not hard to understand. James 2 and verse 19 from the New Living Translation. You say you have faith, for you believe there is one God. That's hopefully what we've done. Good for you. Even the demons believe this and they tremble in terror. Do we? Enough? See, it isn't difficult. He never said, he talks about how another description in the Bible actually tells the power so forth of the angels, but it never talks about their intellect. They just do what God says, except those who followed Satan. Do we, as followers of Christ, realize the gravity of the disciples' statement once they came back from going out 70 in Paris? And they were amazed at what they had done. And they said, even the demons are subject to us in your name. Even the devil, even the demons, as it says, submit to us in your name.

His name. Pretty powerful thing. And we get to use it. It's kind of like dad's name. We can say father. We can say dad. I cannot think of one or two times that I might have called my father, my physical father, Charles. I didn't address my dad that way. Charles! I still have my teeth as evidence of that, because he did not believe in that kind of old school, that I see the respect why it was needed. I look at some of you and see your father was probably the same way. God's weight carries, God's name carries such incredible weight. We have that name attached to us. We're part of his, as you heard at the Feast of Tabernacles, we are part of the family of God. It is our destiny to live forever with him, forever, ever, and ever, and ever. So do we actually use his name enough? Only you can answer that question. Do we thank him enough? Do we talk to him enough? Do we reflect on his name enough? Do we reflect on his sovereignty enough?

How about wrongly?

Hmm. It's the reason for the Third Commandment, isn't it? When you begin to understand just how big, powerful God is and how important. You shall not take the Lord's name in vain. Right? One translation says you shall not misuse his name. And one actual translation says you shall not trample on his name. Now we know what that means, because we've all felt like we've been trampled on a time or two. Or we've seen things that are trampled on.

But that name, name's pretty big. It's very important, if so important to him, that of the Ten Instructions, simplistic instructions to how to live and actually live forever, one of those ten is about his name. Very important to him, and it should be to us. So I want to talk about this big God, and I don't need big words to do it. Simple words. But sometimes it's hard because his thoughts are not our thoughts. Can we truly understand? Or as it says in 1 Corinthians 2, none, I has not seen, nor where you're heard, nor has entered the heart of man, the things that God has planned for him. We can't even dream about it. We can't truly understand him. Everything about him. Some day, yes, we will. He says he is. Says who will, and I expect us to. Right? But sometimes to understand a being, you can look at their enemies. Sounds strange? Military people do it all the time. Strategists do it all the time. You want to understand about somebody, find out about their enemies. We can do the same thing about God. We can begin to see things by or from the enemy. We can learn from the adversary. Can we not? Because Satan reveals the greatness of God. He reveals the omnipotence, which the omnipotence of God is defined as having unlimited power to be supreme, almighty. And as Isaiah and many of the Scriptures, the most high, the most high. Most high. Right? So, I would like you to turn with me, if you will, to Isaiah 14, as we look at this and learn something from this adversary. Isaiah 14.

Now, these Scriptures in Isaiah and those in Ezekiel, Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28, describe and tell us, gives us insight into God's first and biggest enemy, Satan, Lucifer. And it tells us about him and the realm in which he lived, which is a realm we can't even grasp. You go to Revelation 4, Revelation 5, and we look at that and you read about all the heavenly beings up there at that time and what's going on, and it's a freak show. Would scare most of us. Okay? But that's not what it's about. See, Satan was the covering carob over the throne of God. He was one of the angels that covered the actual throne of God, covered God. He knows God as no other being probably knows God other than Christ, because he was there. How many years? Probably millions. So we know him. Isaiah 14, verse 14, he says, I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, and then Satan does us probably the greatest favor in describing the sovereignty, the omnipotence of God. Because he said, what? I will be like God. Right? He did not say, I will be greater than God because he was there. He knew there is nothing greater than God. Right? So he is telling us that God is the Most High. There isn't. Isn't anything higher. He, if somebody wants to be like a basketball player and you say, wow, I want to be like Michael Jordan, then you think Michael Jordan is the best basketball player ever. Or LeBron James. Right? But you hardly ever hear somebody say, I'm going to be greater than LeBron James. But here, Satan actually knew since he was there and he was covering carib and he had all this stuff that was given to him, there is nothing greater, nothing higher. And so the greatest thing that has ever lived or will ever live is God. A testimony of God's greatness is God's glory. I'd like you to go with me now to Ezekiel 28 as we see these descriptions here. Ezekiel 28 verse 13, you are in Eden, garden of God. I read in previous verses, he said, you were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect and beauty. You were in Eden. So he was, we know, up covering carib, but at another time, he was down here on earth preparing the garden of Eden. You were in Eden, the garden of God. Every precious stone was your covering, the Sardis, the Topaz, the diamond, the burrow, onyx, jasper, sapphire, turquoise, an emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes. That's very interesting as you can study the Hebrew because it actually describes as many of the commentators actually bring out that it's talking about his voice, his singing ability, his timbrel, his actual pipes of where he would sing and praise. That his praise and singing was out of this world. That he was so gifted, not only was he beautiful, had all this power, but he also had this incredible talent that was gifted to him by God. The workmen of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day you were created. So he was created. He said, you were the anointed carob who covers. I established you. I made you. I created you. And here then he turned. We know that. He said, you were on the holy mountain of God. You walked back and forth amidst your fiery stones. He was right there.

And yet he turned. And it's the first example. He said, you were perfect in your ways from the day you were created. Till iniquity or sin was found in you. You became filled with violence within you and you sinned. Therefore I cast you out as a profane thing. Out of the mountain of God. He said, God, I want to take your place. He rebelled.

He actually told God, I don't need you. As many parents can actually find out that their kids will do that when they get to be what? 14, 15? 10? Okay. I don't need you. I get by myself. Just let me have my food every week in my bedroom and my TV and my laptop and my, you know, phone. Yes. Right? But Satan actually said, I don't need you. As great as you are, I don't need you. I can take your place. It's the world's viewpoint today. Basically, they said they don't need God. And that's what's said. And so, God says, okay, I'll let you run at yourself for a while. Except I'm still in charge. I'll step in when I want to or I need to. Because it's become the world's viewpoint, just like Satan. And where did they get it? They got it from 2 Corinthians 4.4. Actually, he's referenced as the God of this world. That Lucifer, Satan, is the God of this world.

Yet, you read the Scriptures, he rules nothing. He rules absolutely nothing. He just has followers.

Like Facebook and Twitter. Those who follow what he kind of leads you to do. But the Bible does say he's the prince of the power of the air, right? So there's stuff you can't see him, but in that world, he's doing a lot of stuff. He's influencing a lot of people because they're following him. So you actually have, either you follow God or you follow him. He knows it. Okay? Now, he has no real power. We actually, what we actually saw, they tremble at his name. The demons tremble at his name. He can't do anything.

But yeah, we see that a lot of people reject God. They don't need him. They don't want him telling them what to do. I have so many young people. Isn't it amazing God gets to watch this whole thing generation after generation after generation and see what happens?

So yes, he has no power. Over us, he can have influence. And too many times, he actually does have a little influence on us, doesn't he? We get carried away. We get caught up in the things of this world, which is because that's what everybody's wanting to do, influence. God says, no, please don't. And isn't it amazing that on TV today, you can actually hear certain words that you'd say, well, you know, they couldn't use to hear that. But there are certain words you can't use, unless it's late at night, I guess. But during the main tea, you can't hear these certain words because they're obscene, they're profane, they offend people, and GD is not one of them. I watch TV and it's just like, man, I can't believe they say that. GD this, GD this, or even oh my, right? When that is so offensive to God. And didn't used to be, but we've kind of accepted that we can talk down religion and God, but there are certain street words, but we don't want to say that because that might offend someone. Is that not strange? That's just, that is really out there.

Big God, small words. It's simple. God isn't complicated. Salvation's not complicated. Living forever is not complicated. You heard about it many times, I'm sure. Kingdom of God's not complicated. Getting there is not complicated. But yet people will tell you, oh well, it can't mean this, it can't mean that. Satan means adversary. Means adversary. He's adversary to whom? To God. I want to do something today that I hope helps you to understand. And for those who are just listening and do not see the video, hope I can make it clear. But before he was Satan, he was.

He was Lucifer, right? Everybody knows that. Lucifer. And then he fell. Why did he fall? Pride. Pride, right? I mean, he was just, that's why he fell. He just looked at himself. He's beautiful. He just thought, I'm so great, I need to take the place of God. Right? So I've written Lucifer there. Then I've written on top of it, pride. Because that's why he fell. And he not only fell because of pride, but it actually said there that it was because he sinned. Pride leads to sin. You may have pride in something, my car is clean, that's, you know, you pride my house, that little pride. But pride in a human being, you do what? It becomes sin. Becomes sin. So I have Lucifer in the middle, pride above, and sin below. That's defined Satan. This basically defines the adversary, doesn't it? How does it define you? Let's hope it isn't this.

Because it leads to to track Satan, just follow the I's. I, I, I, I, I. Right? Go back to Isaiah 14. Go back to Isaiah 14. Isaiah 14 verse 13, For you have said in your heart, I what will? I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the northern side of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will be like the Most High. The I's have it.

I, I, I, I, I, I will, I will, I will. Could that catch us? I always, whenever I have to send an email, I tend to look at it after I, before I send it and see if there's too many I's in there. Don't you do the same sometimes? Because then, I mean, because you get them and it's like, well, and then I did this and then I did this and then I did this and then I, I, I let them and it's not only redundant, it's like, okay, is it all about you? Isn't that? Well, it was. It was all about Lucifer. All about him. His pride led to his sin, which caused him to be cast out. Question. Will you get caught in Lucifer's dragnet? Will you get caught in there? Will that state of mind, because it is Lucifer's state of mind, will it be, I think, didn't that be I will? Well, I think, I'll figure out, you know, I got a better way to do things. I think, anybody ever work with somebody that had that first day on the job? Well, I think you should, I think, where's the lead? The pride. Well, I think better than you do. That's what you're saying. That's why it's so important that we look at these eyes and make sure that we're not caught in that dragnet. Because actually, a dragnet is a trap, a trap to catch things, and that's exactly what Lucifer would like. You see these incredible followings on Facebook, don't you? Everybody's following you. See, multi-million following someone. As a matter of fact, I had that in or beyond today, TV shows that I actually looked up because I was researching things for the Caribbean. And so, I would see there were 1,000-2,000 watches here, 500 there, and so forth. But then I came to one that had like, you know, it was 3.2 million followers that had watched it. And so, man, I watched the show. I've seen it before. It's not much different than the others, so I had to call the home office. And I talked to the head of the media, Peter Eddington, and I said, Peter, did you look and see that this new, the show we had got like a hundred times what we've ever gotten before, a thousand times before what we've ever gotten before? Wow, what was it? And he said, don't get excited. I said, well, how do we need to change the show? Yeah, I had a better way. We need to change the show. We need to, you know, make this, and we can have millions watching every, you know? And of course, I liked what he said. Oh, you're not busy enough. Point taken. But he actually said, he said, someone of some fame, which he probably knew, had actually forward his solid and forward it to his followers. And so that's how we got that many. That's how you got that many. Because he said, that's all it takes is for those. And so I was sitting there thinking, wow, if Lucifer had a Facebook account, how many followers would he have?

Can you imagine the content? It would attract so many people. Why? Because he knows what we like. He knows what appeals to human nature. The fleshly pulls.

So I ask you the question, how many Facebook accounts does Satan already have? Who? My wife got offended because she's got one there.

I don't have one. But we have to be so careful because of the eyes. I think, I know. How many of us have said that? How many times I've said I know and I've found out I really didn't know? There is just one I am. And it's not me, and it's not you.

So we have to be careful. We have to watch what our minds want to bring into our houses, our life, our cell phones, our stuff.

Has it got a lot of eyes in it? That's the first one. I have to catch myself because I love just tidbits of knowledge. Don't know why. I have two or three books back home. I might even brought one here called Useless Knowledge. It wasn't good enough for me to have one book. I had to have two or three. Useless Knowledge. It would be so. And I don't know why Mary will make a joke sometimes. Oh, where'd you get that from? Because I'll just spit this stuff out. But I will sometimes say, oh, let me tell you what I saw. Brother and I bring this to your attention because it's been brought to mind.

I have to focus on the important God. And I don't need big words to do it. And it's so simple to do every single day. It's not complicated. And that's what He wants us to do. When you study and you study the book of Hebrews in 11 about the faith chapter, and you hear about all those people who went about in embarrassment or whatever in caves and wandering about, but they were faithful to God. They weren't the intellectuals that have to say, I wrote this book. Oh, I understand that. I know. I think. Which begs the question, if Lucifer was perfect and fell, what makes me think I will not?

There's any reason that I won't fail? Yes, there is. Yes, there is. Because Christ and God has revealed to us, the reason we will not fall is He actually gave an essence of Him in us. You ever thought about that? You ever thought about this incredible singer? Who's the guy who played at the feast? Not Pavarotti, the other one. Pachelli. I'm very Pachelli. Anybody heard of him? Wonderful voice. He's an incredible voice. He could sing the alphabet, make it sound good. Right? Or some other incredible musician, piano player. Could we, I mean, if we practice and practice and practice enough and say on the piano, would we ever be as good as, say, Vane Clyburn?

If somebody told us exactly how to sing, like Pachelli, could, if he told us and then he told us what all he did and everything else, and we practice and practice, would we ever be that good? No. No. How would we become as good as them? Is we would need that very essence that makes them them in us. But we can't. But what we can do is take the very essence of Christ. The very essence of God is His Holy Spirit, and God puts it in us so that we can be just like His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ. The only assumed problem that usually causes us is it takes a lifetime to do it. And you're still not perfect, but you're working at it. That's why the Scripture says what? Sermon on the Mount? Become you perfect. Become you perfect.

I want you to consider something today as I wrap this up. I'd like you to turn with me to Job 38. Turn with me to Job 38. This I want you to consider.

Job 38 in verse 6, as God is actually challenging Job because Job got the eyes. He got the eye problem. Okay? You don't want that eye problem. I had eye problem last year. It's not that eye. Okay, I'll take that eye problem. I just don't need the eye problem of right? Job had it, and God was straightening him out. He was working with him, perfecting him. In verse 7, he said, to what were its foundations fastened, as he talked about laying the foundation of the world, or who laid its cornerstone? When the morning stars, I mean the angels, sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy. Talking about the angels. At what? At the creation of earth, right? That's what he's saying. He said, where were you? Oh, were you there when all the angels shouted for joy? Well, okay. So we have an understanding here. Here's God, right? God always existed, always will. And so then we see from the Bible, then we have angels. They were obviously created next, what the Scripture's point is to do, right? And then we have creation, right? But this Scripture tells us that before creation, something happened, as we saw in Isaiah and we saw in Ezekiel, didn't we? What happened?

Lucifer and the angels. They fell. They were cast out. So here we know, hey, God did this, He created this, and before He created the earth, the angels fell.

Or did He? Think about it.

They sang at this creation, but somewhere after the creation, they fell, didn't they? Had to have, right? Are you with me? We had God, angels, the creation because they all sang, right? So here is a creation, but somewhere, somewhere, the angels fell, didn't they?

And then where are we? Have you thought about it? So when there was perfection, when there was actually perfection, that was when the angels were here. And it was also when creation. And then something happened after the creation because it said that Lucifer, right, Lucifer walked on Eden. So somewhere here, between now and where we are here, the angels fell.

And they saw perfection, and yet they walked away from it, didn't they? They rebelled. What about us?

What if we fall? How will we fall? You know what God said? The only way we fall is we get connected to Satan. We get connected to Lucifer. It's the only way we can lose it. Because as long as we stay focused on God, we, brethren, will live forever. So as I wrap this up, big God, little words. There's good, and there's what? Evil. Right? It's pretty simple. God lays it out for us, doesn't He? I don't need big words up here to put that in. Okay? How about right?

Wrong. Not left. Wrong. I'm left-handed, but not me tomorrow.

Right? Well, there's also true. False. Right? There's only two ways. I mean, you can talk about gray areas, but it's either what? One or the other. Really, when you get down to it, no matter how many ways you try to twist it when you're a child, telling your dad you didn't do it, which you either did or you didn't. Right? But we also have what? God is... And what's the other one? Eight. Any others? How about life and death? Right? Do what? Yes. Life and death. Light and dark. Well, we got true and false. Right? Joy and sorrow. Right? Joy. None of them are big words yet, are they? Blessings and cursings, as God puts that. Yes, blessings. He says, you choose. Right?

But one that affects us every day is a mindset of the eye. And it is it is give or get. It is Satan's way. All these very simple words. And what do these all encompass? God. It's all about God. It's that simple. Just live it. That, brethren, is what God wants us to do. Just live it.