God Isn't Part2

So this is a continuation of the sermon I gave two weeks ago. The title of God isn't, as we discuss and look biblically as I went through with the first time. God is so awesome and so big it's hard for us to even put a name when he is limitless, is boundless, he is beyond even our comprehension even though he wants us to try. So I will pick up where I left off because the last time I was here we talked about time and that time marks the beginning of a created existence because God never began to exist and because he never existed doesn't apply to him but he made it for us.

That explains in one form or another if we can, which is very hard to do, we look at deep space. We look up at this, our skies, we can even take our probes, we can take our cameras, and we see such a large amount of space that no matter who you are you can't comprehend it. And this is all his. He created it, lives in it, he exists in it, but sometime in the future we will understand.

We'll be able to understand what he meant when he said in Isaiah 9.7 that of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end. We can't understand anything that does not end because that's what we as humans deal with. God doesn't know an end, never knew a beginning, and that kind of stretches our mind to we know beginnings and we know ends, but there will be a time when we realize this world and everything about it will not end.

Life will not end. So I want to look at now what God isn't again as we continue where I pick up from last time and one thing I need to tell you that God isn't needy. God isn't needy. God doesn't need our help. Nothing we can do can make God any smarter, can help him through anything, but he doesn't sit around waiting and saying, I wonder what Ann and Phil think about this because he already knows.

He knows everything. So he isn't needy. God needs nothing. He is complete. God needs nothing from us and the word necessary is completely foreign to God. He doesn't need it. He never has to use it. Nothing is above him and nothing is beyond him. It just isn't. If every person on earth became an atheist, it would not affect God in the way most people would think because it would not affect the plan of God because what did he say in Matthew 3 and verse 9?

He said, I can raise up stones to take your place. That make you feel good? Pick up stones sometime and he can use this instead of me. But that helps us to understand what God isn't. He is powerful. As he says, he reveals to Abraham, he is almighty, one of his names, El Shaddai, and he needs no support. Doesn't need any support from anyone.

We have a hard time understanding that because look around you. You have support. Family, friends, church. You have support from a government. You have support. You have support because God gives you oxygen to breathe. You need it.

Man's only claim to any importance was that he was created in a divine image. That's it. Because of ourselves, we're really nothing but dirt, dust, as he actually says in one place. We humans are needy. God made us that way. He also made us to need one thing. He puts a hole in each one of us and that hole can only be filled by God. Can only be filled by him. We need stuff. We need others.

But most of all, hopefully we know we need God. A lot of people out there. I talk to them whether they're calling me on the phone or emailing me asking questions about the existence in this world today. Where is God? But the incredible plan that God, he knew we needed things that he didn't need. God doesn't need the Ten Commandments to tell him how to act or live. They're the very essence of him. So he is. But we need those. Mankind needs those to know how to live just to get by with each other.

Leave God out of the picture, which is hard to do. And if you move down to the last six commandments, this world would be a much better place if they just kept those six. But it's not that simple. Not that simple. It's like God isn't needy. God isn't wise. I mean, getting any wiser.

God is all wise. We usually get wiser as we get older. I think all of you could probably say that. Hopefully you can. Hopefully you haven't become dumber or more ignorant as you've gotten older. Hopefully experience and life has given us wisdom. Experential wisdom. See, God is all wise. He knows all. He knows everything. There is a little... I reckon you can Google it if you want. There was a phrase one time that we all knew, the Word of God is a foundation of all knowledge. And it's a little plaque.

Word of God is a foundation of all knowledge. So I decided I'd Google that. So I Googled it and what did A.I. tell me? It took me to that plaque. And there behind that plaque today is the building for the United Church of God. That's what it shows.

I found that to be interesting. But as I meditated on that phrase, because at one time I saw it in California when I was out there decades ago. But I found I have a problem with it because I think it could be better. And I didn't always say that. I didn't always understand that, but hopefully in time we've gotten wisdom. Because I like to think of it as the Word of God is the only true knowledge in the world. The Word of God is the only true, real knowledge in the world. Oh, there's other knowledge. But the Word of God tells you why you're here, where you're going, where you've been, and gives you the whys. Why were you born? Why do you exist?

It can tell you that. Can science? Not really. They have a different viewpoint. Like you turn to Proverbs 2 and verse 6. Proverbs 2, a powerful verse. I read from the New King James Version. For the Lord gives wisdom. From his mouth comes knowledge and understanding. Do we use that? As a matter of fact, Proverbs tells us to actually pray for wisdom.

That's the reason the book was written. Solomon could pass on some of his wisdom to his son, which didn't do a whole lot of good, if you know the history. Either his son didn't read it, or didn't want to go by it. But when you study what God isn't, you realize just how great he is. And it is humbling when you see that he's so great that our minds can't even fathom how big and how great he is. And that's one of the purposes of reading this book. Every time you should be a little bit more amazed.

I want to bring something up about God because it's maybe one of the most misunderstood parts of his character. And that is, God isn't petty and cruel. God isn't petty and cruel. You read Joshua 6 in verse 21 as people have taken me to that verse before, where God told Joshua, told children of Israel to utterly destroy everything and then to kill with the sword every man, woman, and child.

We do not live in that type of world today as they lived. It's a hard, cruel world. You say, well, it's hard and cruel some other places, yes, today. But as a whole, we don't experience that. And it's hard for us to imagine, unless you're raised on a farm, going out and killing your own food and eating it. We prefer Publix. We don't have to get our hands dirty.

It's raised on a farm where we did kill animals and we would eat them and we would harvest everything. So today our world is very sanitized. At the time of Joshua and this time, it was a very cold and cruel world.

Many in the church and mostly in the world may question God's fairness with the scripture and say, God's not fair. Why would he kill this innocent child?

But that's not the question I raised. My question was, why did he say kill every animal too? Why did he say kill every donkey, kill every sheep, kill everything?

Have you ever thought about that?

Is God petty and cruel?

But he's hard to understand him. Unless you know what he isn't, he would say that he is. In Matthew chapter 23 and verse 23, we know it as the Christ proclaiming the weighty, the heavier matters of the law, justice, mercy, and faith. It is what motivates him and he actually wants us to be that way. There is justice because he has a law and that justice needs to be exacted. But there comes a point where we have the choice to show mercy.

God had a choice to show mercy if it was for the best and who knows better than he does. He says, my thoughts are not your thoughts. My thoughts are so much greater. They're so much higher than you and yet we tend to say, well, no, we're pretty smart.

We wouldn't do it your way, God. And you know what you know the beauty that he likes about that?

He says, you're not God. You're not God. Someday you will understand. But right now, I just need you to understand justice, mercy, and faith. And it's how we handle or should handle every single problem that we have in the church today that we have with other people.

Because sometimes we want justice, but justice is not done.

And somebody you might say gets away with something. What do we do then?

God wants us to show mercy just the same way he shows us mercy. Now think about when Jericho was destroyed, walls caved in, God showed mercy to one family in there because of one woman. The rest of them were all slaughtered. She had to know all those people.

Do you think those people were praying to God? I do. They were praying to a God. Because all these civilizations had a God. Matter of fact, they had multiple gods. They were praying to them. Did that help them?

Do you think Rahab found a God? Obviously, she did. She found a God because she was contacted by two men. And we don't know why. We don't know why, but God knew. I want that one. I want to save that one. And I'm going to save her entire family. I mean, I'm going to save her animals. God showed mercy, just like we need to show mercy. What happens when we show mercy and somebody still treats us bad?

That's where it requires faith, doesn't it? Faith that sometimes we just need to leave things in God's hands.

If I were to stand outside of Jericho that day, and saw 100,000 men take out swords and just start whacking little children to death, you don't think I would be affected?

But it comes back to justice, mercy, and faith. God said it. They believed it. And they did what He told them to do. And thousands of years later, if they had done everything that He told them to do, and take out the people He told them to do, there wouldn't be a Middle East problem today. He sees way beyond us. So God isn't petty and cruel. God goes shows compassion like no one else.

I hope each and every one of us in here can attest to that fact, can actually speak to it of the compassion and mercy that He's shown us at various times in our lives. In fact, so many times I wonder how many people would actually be here if He didn't. Right now. And think about those times. It's amazing.

The area that we have to go to in our minds is one of utmost respect.

The problem is we sometimes think we know more than God.

Or we know a better way. And that's why He gives us this book, because you see that everybody that thought that way didn't end up where they wish they had ended up.

More important, aspects of the law is what the New Living Translation calls Matthew 23.

But I want you to turn with me, if you will. I'm going to go back to the book of Psalm.

Psalm 147. Psalm 147. This thing is just so loaded.

Psalm 147. Go with me to verse 8. We get to actually see here a little bit about the qualities of God, how He's involved.

So let's read in verse 8. It says, Who covers the heavens with the clouds?

God.

Who prepares rain for the earth? God.

Who makes grass grow on the mountains? God. We don't have a problem with those, do we?

We can say, yeah, yeah, yeah. Who gives to the beast its food and to the young ravens that cry? God.

Well, this same God that does this, it says in verse 10, He does not delight in the strength of a horse.

How many of you have ever ridden a horse?

Isn't it a beautiful thing? I mean, I grew up and was given one at a young age and wrote, I was given one when I was seven years old. I didn't start riding until I was about 10. But you realize underneath you is such power, such strength.

And even when I was 17, I decided one day I would go out and get on my horse after I hadn't ridden it for a year. But they don't like that. He was used to just doing. So I just said, OK, I decided not to put a saddle or anything on him.

And I came and gave him some sugar cubes. He loved those things and got the bridle on him. And he didn't really like that, but he liked the cubes better. And then I just jumped on him bareback and take him out for a ride in the field. That's where our house is now. And I rode him for about 30, 40 minutes. And the horse gets all lathered up and he's sweating and everything. And then I get him up to the house towards the house and I kick him in the side just to go on. I'm going to take him down by the barn and let him get water and stuff. He decides he just stopped.

And he dropped his front legs, dropped his rear legs, and just rolled over so I couldn't get out from under him. He had my leg and I couldn't get up.

And I realized just how strong a horse was at that time. So this verse reminds me of that because I realized I couldn't move that 900 pound, thousand pound horse. And there are bigger horses than that. But he was... So guess who won? He did. And after laying there for 30 minutes and my leg was just totally sore, just gone to sleep, he gets up and walks off and went down and got his own water.

So God realized that to me that showed me the power of a horse. Up front and personal.

To God, that's nothing. This strength is absolutely nothing. He, as it says, he takes no pleasure in the legs of a man.

We have Usain Bolt. Anybody know who Usain Bolt is except you guys? Yes, you know who Usain Bolt. Supposed to be the fastest man in the world. That 100 meter, isn't it? And ran a couple of 220s also. He is one fast human being.

If... Is God impressed? No, thank you. God could be here in Lauderdale in two seconds. Probably a second.

He's not impressed with speed because he has speed. He controls everything. In fact, it says, the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy. Hoping is mercy. Do you? That's what He's impressed with. He's not impressed with strength. He sees this. You know, here it's something to run a three-minute mile or under four-minute... What is it now, Stan? It's... The mile is 340 something, 342, I think. God's not impressed if He could run it two minutes. He doesn't care.

Because that's why He looks and He says, those who take pleasure... He takes pleasure in those who fear Him, have respect, revere Him. And in those who hope, hope in His mercy. They look for His mercy.

That's why He's not impressed when a man, 260 pounds, crosses the goal line and scores a touchdown. And then takes the ball and slams it down there and then goes, hey, guys, seven foot jumps six inches and dunks a basketball and then goes, it's about their glory.

Do they think? And some of them do. They're thankful for their abilities and God-given gifts. But most don't. It's all about them.

That means nothing to God. It took man, what, almost 5,000 years. It did take him 5,000 years, 6,000 years, 6,000 years to go into space.

You live up at Cocoa and I've been out on the beach and watched the rocket go up. I've seen it in the daylight, seen in the night, as that rocket goes. It took man all that time to figure that they had to go to break the atmosphere, break the bonds of this earth. That rocket has to go 25,000, 20 miles an hour.

And then to stay in space, it has to travel at 17,500 miles per hour. And because you know my niece, she's an engineer that works there and her husband does too. And it's impressive what they know and how they figured all this out.

I wonder if Christ that day, as he was leaving in Matthew 28, as he was going up to, he was his father, if he said, I wonder what speed I need.

Can I attain 25,000, 20 miles an hour to break the earth's atmosphere?

And then to travel in space, am I going to need to travel 17,500 miles per hour?

No. No. So God's not impressed.

With any great human feat, because to him it's nothing. To Jesus Christ you had to wonder. And I've thought, I just have to look at my watch. I have to wonder because I've thought about this many times. Because he could travel, you know, he could go through walls, he could be in one space and then magically appear, not magically, but spiritually appear. Okay. He could do all this stuff. Did you ever wonder when he was sitting there riding that donkey? Man, this thing is slow. You know, I would have said, come on, you had to look up, come on, father, isn't there some faster mode for me to get this done? With God, all things are possible and nothing is impossible. That's the difference between us.

We have a lot of stuff that is impossible for us to do.

There is, for you engineers, there is something called absolute zero. We have never, a scientist and everybody involved, they haven't reached that yet. It's absolute zero. It's 460 degrees below zero. We've come close, but we haven't reached it yet. I know when we used to do artificial insemination, you ranchers back there know, well, my neighbor was, he went around, I traveled with him and saw him artificially breed different cows and also horses, especially walking horses. He would pull out the sample and it would be in liquid nitrogen, which was 333 degrees below zero.

He would tell me, you put your finger there, you'll keep it there for 10 seconds, you'll lose it. It's that much, and if you keep it there for three or four seconds, I might have to cut off the skin to pull it. I said, no, that's good. You do it. But absolute zero is theoretical lowest temperature according to the laws of thermodynamics. That's our laws, not necessarily God's. But you realize that with God, we're still working to reach that 460 degrees below zero, absolute zero. We're at like 425. They're trying to find more ways to free. With God, he's got a million degrees below zero. He can just, he can make it happen. That is what is amazing to this thing. To this thing.

God isn't poor. He isn't poor. And you'll be happy to hear, as most churches are, well, no, they don't like to hear that, but people do. God doesn't need your money.

No, God isn't poor. He doesn't need your money. A matter of fact, you'll see even on TV a TV evangelist who says, unless you send the money in today, you send money. God's work will go off the air.

You know the problem. They've got the wrong God.

They're looking for man to be their God. Not that.

Send me some seed money. My mother, I was just saw her and she was telling me, she saw this guy saying, you need seed money. I said, well, you better not give him any seed money.

But God doesn't need your money, but God says he loves a cheerful giver.

He just gets to see, seeing he gives us so much. He gives his creation so much. He just wants to see if we're in a giving mood just like him. If we can live life like him where we are givers.

So if he says he loves a cheerful giver, how do you think he feels about stingy people?

Miser's. Because he owns it all anyway. He just gets to give you some to see what you're going to do with it. To see what good you're going to do. God isn't us, not even close.

He has no doubts, no insecurities. He feels no pressure, and he has no negativity. That's hard for us to grasp, isn't it? Because we usually have part of that. God isn't a made-up fairy tale, as some people want to say, as I referenced the book, Magic Man in the Sky, a book I read, trying to figure out something about God.

Hebrews 11.3 says that things seen are proof of things unseen. It's a different translation. I didn't give you that verse. That just popped in my head. Because what we see around us it took something for it to be, to exist. Science proves a creator.

Doesn't disprove it. But it's interesting because why does this book make non-believers so angry? Because it does. Oh, that's your book.

Used to have a roommate who said he was an atheist.

And he said, oh, that book again, because I would quote something from the Bible. He goes, oh, that book again. That book again.

There's something here that makes them angry. There's other books that's just outrageous. That doesn't make them angry. But this one makes people angry.

Yes, it's truth. We believe it, and they don't want to have to believe it.

Yes.

I always had a problem with what they would call intelligent design. Because they would talk about that. Because that doesn't cover it. I've always liked to say it's beyond intelligent design.

Because that's a word we have, and we just don't realize that his intelligence is way beyond, way beyond any design. 1 Corinthians 3 and verse 19 says, the wisdom of man is foolish to God.

Absolute truth. Absolute truth.

We can believe in that. It requires faith. Requires faith to change our way of life when God begins to work with us. It requires faith even after 20 years of following God when God begins to reveal other things to you. It requires faith to do that.

So as I go back here and finish this up, one thing, even talking from the sermon this morning and from last week's sermon in Fort Lauderdale, one thing God isn't, God isn't deaf.

God isn't deaf. Not in the least bit. He's not hard of hearing. And 24-7, he's listening. He wants to. He loves to hear from his creation. Who want power? God isn't deaf. Are we?

Taking advantage of that? Imagine. Imagine having a father that is the most powerful man, richest man in the world. In fact, I just heard Elon Musk yesterday. He's building the biggest building on the earth in Houston, Texas, to make not only a data center, but he's also making chips. He's going to do it. It's a hundred million square foot. It's not going to be the biggest. It's going to be the most expensive building ever built. He's excited about it. Does that impress God? Not really.

The only thing when I think it really impresses? No. I have to look at my past.

Contractor.

Okay, how much a square foot am I going to be paid?

I know. And the last point I want to make today is that God isn't done with us yet. That's the biggest isn't. He isn't done with us. And it's so important that we realize that.

He wants us to repent. It's all through the Bible. In Hebrew, there is word, repent is pronounced, nacham.

And it means to feel sorry. Feel sorry. Feel regret.

And that word's all through the Bible. But there's another word in there. And that's why you have to study the Hebrew to understand this.

And it's the word he gives to his church. It's the word he gave to his nation at the time. And the word is, for repent, is teshuvah. Teshuvah. From the root word, shuvah. Teshuvah. And it means different than regret or being sorrow. It means to turn 180 degrees.

And the word is from, means return to God. Return to God. That is what he wants us to do. Every single day, when we get away from God, he wants to make sure. And, you know, we have the means to do it just before we go to bed every night.

We have a chance to do it in the morning. Return to God and say, yes. Yes, God. As I said last time in his plan, we shall be like him. First John 3, 2, 7.

We shall be like him, but we still have work to do. This is his training ground. And he gives us a powerful scripture. My last one. Romans 8, verse 18. That's written to you and it's written to me. It's written to inspire us. It's written to fire us up.

As Paul said, for I consider that the suffering of this present time are not worthy. The sufferings are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. God wants us to be like him, like his son. So God isn't done with us yet. So if someone asks you who or what God is, hopefully you can say, I don't have enough words to describe God. There are not enough words, but I can tell you what he isn't. When you study what God isn't, you can truly understand how great he really is.