So I'm excited to be here this morning. I hope y'all are too. I have had probably more fun studying this week than I've had in a while. Sometimes studying is like work, sometimes it's not. And so I ask that y'all would be praying that I would be able to articulate the truths of God's words clearly and simply. And that really is going to be kind of a theme of clearly and simply, because the question that's on my mind is one that's easy to ask and hard to answer. What do you believe? What do you believe? I'll flip that around. What do I believe? It's a big question, right? And so if you read most books by primitive Baptist elders, they just jump off and start with a wonderful discussion about the doctrines of total depravity, unconditional election, and limited atonement. And that's wonderful. That's a wonderful way to do it. But it's kind of hard to keep that all in your head, right? Sometimes you can get pieces, but where do you store them? Where do you save them? How do you draw those at your mind? And how do you really have a conversation with somebody where you start with that? And so, as I've been thinking through this, I'm like, okay, if I were to have the opportunity to talk to someone who's never heard of Jesus at all, where do I start? Right? Where do I start? So I'll tell you how I'm going to structure this, and my justification for the structure I'm going to pull from Colossians 3.16. It says, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your heart to the Lord. So the goal is for the word of Christ to dwell in you richly, and there's an admonition that we can teach and admonish, which admonish can be a mild rebuke. That could also be to put you in mind. of these truths in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. And so given that, the modern song that keeps coming to my head, and I don't like all the words, but I really like the title, and the modern song is, Let Me Tell You About My Jesus. Now, I don't like the rest of the lyrics. There are some pieces that are fine, but that phrase has been ringing through my ears this week. Let me tell you about my Jesus. How do you do that? How do you start from that? As a preacher, I could go to Matthew 1.21. That's a great place to start, right? And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins. You know, all the documents of grace are in that one verse. You could start there. That'd be a good spot. Well, how about 1 Corinthians? We're going to be doing a lot of flipping today, so have your fingers ready. 1 Corinthians 3.11, For other foundation can no man lay other than this that is laid, which is Christ Jesus. What's the foundation of everything? Christ Jesus. Jesus Christ. I inverted it. Jesus Christ. You could also go over in 1 Corinthians 2 too. For I have determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Those are great places to start. Great places. I'm going to start in a little bit different place. It's number 373. Because He lives. I want you to listen to the text of this first verse and you tell me if this is not the story of the Gospel. God sent His Son They called Him Jesus. He came to love, heal, and forgive. He lived and died to buy my pardon. An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives." There's a lot going on in that one verse. There's a lot going on. That's a song most of y'all probably know by heart, at least that first verse. And so this is going to be a series of messages. The question we're trying to answer is, what do we believe? What do I believe? But I want to start at least using this verse, this hymn, as a structure for how do I answer those questions. How do I answer that question? So what's the first word of that hymn? God. That's where we need to start. That's where we need to start, in God. And so as we're going through these messages, you're going to be able to plug in the pieces that I'm teaching and showing from the Word into these verses of the song. So as you're going along, you'll have a mental road map for how do I have that conversation with someone who has no idea? Well, where would I start? Start with God. Now, this is very different than any worldly philosopher. They start with questions of me. Why am I here? What is my purpose? What do I think? Right? We're not going to start with the creature, we're going to start with the Creator. So that's where we're going today. We're going to learn about God. It's a good thing to do in church, right? So this is going to be one a lot to take in, but hopefully Patrick will be able to understand everything I say. And I've challenged him this morning at breakfast. I said, if I teach anything this morning and you don't understand it, go on and try to remember it. And then ask me about it. So that challenge can go to anybody. If I teach something today on a level that's above what you've got, but you can't hold on to it, let me know. Because my goal is for this to be as simple as possible. Now, here's the caveat. I cannot fully teach God. Right? particularly on very simple terms. So this will not be an all-encompassing doctrinal treatise that gets down to the very bottom of every aspect. It's not. It has to be, to some degree, shallower. But I wanted to have substance, and I want to give you a lot of scriptural references. And guess what? Y'all are going to have homework, because I can't cover everything in one message. And so there are things that you need to read in context, in big bulks, and I'm gonna ask y'all to read those this week. And that'll allow us to cover more territory and add some of that depth that I can't give in one go, okay? And I'm having to do an intro into all this to set it up, and so that's burning some time. We may go past noon today, that's okay. We still got lunch. All right? So, God sent his son. They called him Jesus. We're just going to start with God. That's all we can start with today. We can't get beyond word one other than God. Now this leads me to the first question that came out of Pharaoh's mouth. Remember Pharaoh? Moses came to him and said, the Lord said to let my people go. What did he answer? He said, who is the Lord that I should obey his voice? Who is the Lord? Okay. So remember in our context, we're going to be talking to somebody who has no idea about the Lord. I mean, I really want... Wouldn't you like to sit with Paul as he goes into a city and talks to these Gentile worshippers who worship idols, who have no concept of our God, no concept of the Old Testament, no concept of Jesus? Where would he start? To my knowledge, we only get one glimpse of that, and that's Paul's message to the Athenians on Mars Hill. All the others, he started from devout Gentiles and Jews in their synagogues. If y'all find somewhere else where he's talking straight to Gentiles, let me know. I want to see it, but I haven't found it yet. But Mars Hill, okay? This is Acts chapter 17. This is Acts chapter 17. I'm going to say it one more time. Acts chapter 17. Why do you think I've repeated that three times? I want you to remember this. How do I start talking about God to somebody? Where do I start? Start in Acts chapter 17. Now, I'm not going to give you the specific verse. You can read down until you find Mars Hill, right? And Athens. You can find that. But if you've got Acts 17 locked away in your head, God sent His Son. Alright, God. Acts chapter 17. Why did I choose this? One, because it's a good example of Him starting to those who have no concept of the true and living God. And two, because it describes a lot about God in one place. Okay? So, what chapter? Acts 17. Alright, and then you can just skim on down until you find the word Mars. What verse? 22. Paul stood in the midst of Mars Hill and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious." Talk about Greek culture for a minute. How many gods do they have? Just a plethora. It means a whole bunch, Patrick, sorry. A bunch of gods, little g-gods, that they worshipped. If you take Greek mythology, you can spend a whole course just trying to find their names and kind of weird things about them. and you still may not finish in one semester. There's a whole bunch. So Paul stood in there preaching to these Gentiles, these idol worshipers. You men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are too superstitious. For as I passed by and beheld your devotions, or your worshiping, I found an altar with this inscription, To the Unknown God. Okay, so imagine you're walking through Athens with Paul. You see, okay, we've got a statue of Venus, or I think that may be the Roman name. Greek name, whatever. One of these statues, and they've got garland or something in their sacrificing thing, and they're worshipping this statue here. Right? And they've got that one there, and that one there, and that one there, and that one there. And then you get to the pedestal, and it's just blank. Right? They don't know what to put there, and on the label they just put, to the unknown God. It's a catch-all, right? In case we missed one, we'll worship him too. Okay? I found an altar with this inscription, to the unknown God, alright? Whom ye ignorantly worship, Him declare I unto you." He's going to teach about that unknown God, the God that they don't know. That's who He's going to teach about. That's the God that you and I worship. Alright, so we're going to go kind of slow, but I want you to think about how much He's packing in to just these few verses. I'm going to teach you about the unknown God. Verse 24, God that made the world and all things therein. What have we just learned? We've learned a very big doctrinal piece of important evidence, interesting things, attributes, whatever, however you want to call it. We've learned one thing about God. He's the Creator. Did He just make some things? No. He made the world and all things therein, all things. He is the Creator God. Okay? You can read more about that this week if you choose. This one's voluntary, Simon. Genesis 1 and 2. You can see how much He revealed about what He did in creation. Genesis 1 and 2. Alright, and I'm just going to flip briefly and pull one verse from Isaiah 45. Just keep your fingers on Acts 17. Isaiah 45 verse 18, For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens, God Himself that formed the earth and made it. He hath established it. He created it not in vain. He formed it to be inhabited. I am the Lord. There is none else. Who created the heavens? God. Who created the earth? God. Who created everything in the earth? God. This is foundational. This is what we believe. Anything that teaches you different from that starting point is an error. Have to keep it relatively superficial. We could go a whole lot in to just creation and the Creator and pay attention as we're going through because a lot of these verses that I'm going to jump through are going to have multiple of these pieces mentioned. I won't necessarily be able to pull them out each time, but pay attention. See if you can hear something we've already talked about. The Creator's going to show up. A bunch. Alright? God hath made the world. God that hath made the world and all things therein, seeing that He is the Lord of heaven and earth. Lord. That's the title we give to Jesus Christ, right? Lord. That means supreme in authority, master, owner. Who's the Lord of all things? Of heaven and earth? God. God. Okay? Another word we use for that, this may be a preacher word for you, but it's sovereign. Sovereign means the highest authority, one who has all the power and the right to rule. Isaiah 46. 9-11, remember the former things of old, for I am God and there is none else. I am God and there is none like me. God is unique. There is no one else like God. Remember the former things of old, for I am God, there is none else. I am God, there is none like me, declaring the end. from the beginning, from the ancient times, the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, I will do all my pleasure. A sovereign, a ruler, a master will have his pleasure done. The things that he desires to happen will happen. My counsel shall stand. There's no ambiguity there. There's no doubt. and I will do all my pleasure." Verse 11, given in context, he's talking about pulling in someone to bring them into captivity. "...calling a ravenous bird from east, a man that executeth my counsel from a far country. Yea, I have spoken it. I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it. I will also do it." Okay, he's talking about Nebuchadnezzar coming and conquering, but he spoke it. He'll bring it to pass. I purposed it. I also will do it. He is the Lord. of all things. We'll talk more about that, but just hang on to that for right now. All right? Let's go back to 17. God that made the world and all things therein, seeing He is the Lord, the Master, the Ruler of all heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands. Dwelleth not in temples made with hands. What's the difference between our God, the unknown God, the One who is unique, who created everything, who sustains everything? The difference between them And this little statue here is a little false god. It's that little false god that lives inside that little temple. Lives, stays in that little temple. It's not really alive. But God is not dwelling in a temple. He is bigger than all things. 2 Chronicles 2. Alright, 2 Chronicles 2, verse 6, "...who is able to build him a house, seeing the heaven, and the heaven of heavens, cannot contain him." Now this is Solomon as he is contemplating building the temple. This is what he was told to do. This is what David prepared for. This is what God told him that Solomon would do it. But who is able to build him a house? Because the truth is, heaven, you got your atmosphere, and heavens of heavens, everything, all of the universe, cannot contain our God. Okay? That's our God. Okay? Go back to Acts. Neither is He worshipped. Dwelleth not in temples made with hands. Can't be contained there. 25. Neither is He worshipped with men's hands as though He needed anything. This is significant. Our God doesn't need us. He doesn't need us to feed Him or carry Him around or do any of those things. He doesn't need us. He is self-sufficient. He is self-existent. Okay? Let's go to Psalm 50, 10 through 12. Oops, passed it. Psalm 50, verses 10 through 12. All right. He is the owner and master of everything, right? For every beast of the forest is mine, this is God speaking, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountain and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee, for the world is mine and the fullness thereof." God is independent. He does not need you to provide for Him, okay? Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed anything, seeing he giveth to all life." He giveth to all life and breath and all things. So here you've got two concepts. You've got both the Creator and then you've also got the Sustainer. He holds it all in place and continues. Alright, let's go to Romans 11.36. Look at the Creator aspect again. Romans 11.36. For of Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. What are all things? They're all of Him, and through Him, and to Him. He created them, He sustains them, and they're for His glory. They're to Him. All things be glory forever and ever. And then also in sustainer, go to Job 12, 9-11. Job 12, 9-11, Who knoweth not all these things, that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this? In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breadth of all mankind? Do not the ear try words, and the mouth taste his meat? With the ancient is wisdom and length of understanding. We'll just stop there at ten. "...in whose hand is the soul of every living thing and the breath of all mankind." The Lord sustains you. He gives you every single breath. That's our God, Creator and Sustainer, independent of all things and not in need of you. He is self-sufficient. Go back to Acts. "...seeing He giveth to all life, He giveth to all life and breath and all things, and hath made of one blood all nations of men, for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation." This is an active God. He has made the various nations. This is not only peoples, this is countries. He's determined the times of them. How long is that country going to be in power? He knew exactly how long Rome would exist. He knows how long the U.S. would exist. He knows the time of that. And he determines their boundaries and appointment. He has got an active role in what he desires to accomplish. Verse 27, they should seek the Lord, if happily they might feel after Him, and that feel means to really grope after Him in the dark, and find Him, though He be not very far from every one of us. Okay? He is a God who is everywhere and near. Okay? This is kind of a mind-blowing concept for you and me, that He is a God both of near and of far. that temples made by hands cannot contain Him, the universe itself cannot contain Him, and yet He is not very far from each one of us. Alright? For in Him we live and move and have our being. It's again the sustainer, right? We're allowed to breathe and live and move and have our being by Him. As certain also of your prophets have said, for we also are His offspring. This is one of the Greek poets that said, for we also are His offspring. For as much then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think of the Godhead as likened to gold or silver or stone or graven by art or man's device. So he is saying, Your idolatry, it doesn't even match up with your own poetry. That if we're the children of God or offspring of God, do we come from a rock? Do we come from a stock, which is another name for a tree or a stone? The Godhead is not like those things. Go to Psalm 115 and we'll see how God lambasts or compares the ineptitude... the weakness of these false gods. Still with me, Patrick? I about lost you with an ineptitude, right? Alright. Psalm 115. Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy name give glory for Thy mercy's sake and for Thy truth's sake. Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God? But our God is in the heavens. Where's God? Everywhere. He's in the heavens. "...he hath done whatsoever he pleased." Sovereign. "...their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They have mouths, but they speak not. Eyes have they, but they see not. They have ears, but they hear not. Noses have they, but they smell not. They have hands, but they handle not. Feet have they, but they walk not. Neither they speak through their throat. They that make them are like unto them, so is everyone that trusteth in him." These are weak. They're foolish. They're a mock, a mockery. They're a poor reflection of man itself, much less a reflection of the glory of God. Let's go back to... It says, and at the times of this ignorance, this worshiping of idols, God is winked at. He has allowed it to go on and has not sent down immediate wrath or retribution. But now commandeth all men everywhere to repent. He commandeth all men. Who can do that? The sovereign. Sovereign God. Right? The ruler. The power. Alright. He commandeth all men to repent. For all are subject to Him. Psalm 33. Psalm 33, 9-11. For He spake, and it was done. He commanded, and it stood fast. The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen to naught, or nothing. All the plans and devices of the heathen brings it to nothing. He maketh the devices of the people of none effect. The counsel of the Lord, His will, His desire, the counsel of the Lord standeth forever, the thoughts of His heart to all generations. And then also again in Psalm 119 verses 89 through 91. Forever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven. Thy faithfulness is unto all generations. Thou hast established the earth, creation, and it abided, sustaining. They continue this day according to thine ordinances, for all are thy servants. Everyone is subject to Him. He is the commander, leader, ruler of all. Okay? Verse 31, But he hath appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness. He is a judge. And he will judge them righteously by that man, that's referring to Jesus, whom he hath ordained, whereof he hath given assurances unto all men, in that he raised him from the dead. Now at this point, the Athenians hear about the resurrection and they just start mocking him. And there are some that believe, but that's as far as we know of what he's teaching there. But he has taught a great deal about the unknown God that they had never heard about, that they didn't know the truth about, that he created all things. He sustains all things. He cannot be held within the bounds of a little temple. He is outside the whole universe and bigger than that, and yet he's still near at hand. He is everywhere at once. We know that he is righteous. We know that he is a judge. And He will judge, and He's going to judge by His Son Jesus. So we've learned a few things about God. We're really just scratching the surface, right? Our mortal minds cannot understand all there is to know about God. Let's just make that clear. He has revealed certain things about Himself through His Word. That's how you can learn about God, through His revealed Word. And that's probably the most we'll be able to learn here below. But let's make one thing clear. He is not us. He is not like us. We should not ascribe what we think or feel that God is. You may trust on His revealed Word what He's told about Himself. Your personal feelings don't come into play. He is not like us. Hosea 11.9, you don't have to flip there, it just says, I am God and am not a man. I am God and not a man. That's clear. Hey, there are some religions that teach that God was once a man. That is false. I am God and not a man, Numbers 23, 19. God is not a man that he should lie. He is not a man. It goes on to say, I did not know a son of a man that he should repent. How about Psalm 50 and 21? Thou thoughtest that I was altogether such as one of thyself. What's this talking about? It's saying that here the wicked are doing wicked things and God didn't immediately punish them. They're saying, well, He must be like us. And either He didn't see it or He didn't care. And He says, don't think that I'm like one of you. I'm not. Okay? He is unique. Okay? Let's turn to Isaiah 55 and we'll read how different He is from us. Isaiah 55, verses 8 and 9. Isaiah 55, verses 8 through 9. For my thoughts, God speaking, my thoughts are not your thoughts. Well, I think God does such and such. Does the Word of God say that? For my thoughts are not your thoughts. My thoughts, the thoughts of God, are not your thoughts, O man. Neither are your ways my ways. How you would do something, how you would accomplish something. Verse 8. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. Remember our little illustration about my little sapling and the giant tree in the world, right? Our little thoughts, smaller than the sapling, His ways, way higher than that tree. It's more like all the way to the edge of the universe. It's how much higher. His thoughts, His perspective, His ability, because God has never learned anything. He knows all. One of His attributes. He's all-knowing. We'll talk about that more in a minute. His ways, that means His ability to do things. His power and His designs are infinitely higher than ours. So the short answer to that, is He like us? Alright, so Acts chapter what? 17, right? I want to learn about God a little bit. Start there. Start there. You want to talk about God? Start at Acts chapter 17. I'm going to give you one other place. I'm only covering two scriptures today, right? Acts 17. The other one I want to go to is 1 Timothy chapter 1 verse 17. on the Scripture songs that the sister camp put together. This is one of them. Acts chapter 17, Now unto the King, eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. My children have been wondering why I've been singing this all week. This is why. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. Amen. Be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. Congratulations. That's your scripture verse to memorize for this week. It comes with a nice tune. There are a lot of attributes about God revealed in this one little verse. A lot. Now unto the King. The King. King's another word for master, right? Ruler. Sovereign. The one of highest authority. King over what? King over everything. King over everything. Alright? So now under the king, we're going to start with king and we're going to look at that. Psalm 10 verse 16. Our Lord, our God is King. Psalm 10 verse 16. The Lord is King forever and ever. There is no election. There is no downfall. There is no tired. I'm going to give up the reins. The Lord is King. That Lord all caps is Jehovah, the Eternal I Am. The Lord is King forever and ever. He is the Ruler. Okay? Isaiah 44 and 6, Isaiah 44 and 6, Thus saith the Lord, the King of Israel, the Lord, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts, I am the first, I am the last. Beside me there is no God. He is unique. He is the first. He is the last. He is the Lord, the King of Israel. He is the Lord. He is the King of all. Lord of hosts. That means armies of everything. I am the first. I am the last. Beside me there is no God. Alright, let's go again to 1 Chronicles. 29, this is when they took up a collection to help pay for the temple. David, right before he's going to pass and hand over the rings to Solomon. This is David blessing the Lord before all the congregations. 1 Chronicles 29. Starting in verse, let's get ten. Wherefore David blessed the Lord before all the congregation, and David said, Blessed be thou, Lord God of Israel, our Father, forever and ever. Thine, O Lord, is greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty. Who do those things all belong to? God. God alone. And for all that is in the heaven and the earth is thine. Whose? His. Thine as creator, as owner, as king and sovereign. Thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all. What's another word for head? King, lord, master, ruler, sovereign. Thou art exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come of thee, and thou reignest over all. What if I don't want him to reign over me? He reignest over all. And in thine hand is power and might. We'll learn later about the word omnipotent. Omnipotent. All power. In thine hand is power and might. And in thy hand it is to make great and to give strength unto all. He has the power. He owns it. He's the possessor of it. He's the source of it. And he can give power to his children. And he can give power to his enemies too. He can raise up the wicked for his purposes. But the source, it's His. He's the owner. He's the ruler. He is unique. He reigns over all. And you know what? His will will be accomplished. Job 23 and 13. Job 23, 13. But he is of one mind. God is not double-minded. You and I are double-minded. We have a carnal self and we have a spiritual self and we have to war against it each day. Right? He is not double-minded. He has one purpose within. But he is of one mind and who can turn him? What his soul desireth, even that he doeth. He's the ruler. He has the authority, he has the power to accomplish his will, and he will. Okay? Psalm 115, verse 3. We looked at that a minute ago, but we're going to look at it one more time. Psalm 115, just verse 3. But our God is in the heavens. Well, He's everywhere. He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased. Okay? Go to Psalm 135. So you're not very committed to reading the comments, Brother John. The words speak to themselves. The point is to teach you what the Word says. Psalm 135, verse 6. Whatsoever the Lord pleased, that did He in heaven, and in the earth, and in the seas, and in all deep places. Okay? You can read all of Psalm 135. That's a good one. That's voluntary homework too. I don't think I've even got that one listed. But that one is a good one for describing how He accomplishes His will and in what aspects. But here it gives a list in heaven and in earth and in the seas and the deep places. He is the ruler over all things, over all the earth and everything in it. Okay? Isaiah 14. Isaiah 14, I want verse 24. The Lord of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, So shall it come to pass, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand." He is the creator God. He is the sustainer God. All that is created is by Him and for Him, and He can use it to His own purposes. What He thinks happens. As He's purposed it, it shall stand. Okay? Let's go down to 27. For the Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? That means cause it to change, to make it so it's void. Who can void out a purpose of God? The answer is no man. And his hand is stretched out, who shall turn it back? When the Lord seeks out his hand to do something, no one has the power to turn it. That's why he is the king. That's why he is the ruler. He is at the top. Right? Does he need your permission or counsel for anything? not a thing. Okay? Let's look at, where are we at? We're in Isaiah. Let's stay there for a minute. Let's go to 46. Isaiah 46. Isaiah 46, I want 9 through 11. Ah, we read this, but let's do it again. Remember the former things of old, for I am God and there is none else. I am God, there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from the ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do some of my pleasure. Yeah, that's right. All my pleasure. Yeah, I've spoken it. I will bring it to pass. I have purposed it. I will also do it. Alright, let's go to the next book and look at Jeremiah. Jeremiah 18. Why are you giving us so many citations? I thought you were just going to cover two verses. Because these are themes. These are themes that when you read your Bible cover to cover, if you're looking for them, they'll jump out at you. Jeremiah 18. The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Arise, go down to the potter's house, and there will I cause thee to hear my words." So Prophet Jeremiah, the Lord told him, Get up, go to the potter's house, and we'll teach you something. So the potter's the one who uses clay to make things, right? I went down to the potter's house, and behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. The potter's wheels turns around the clay and allows him to form it with his hands to make different kinds of things. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter. He messed up. It didn't look good. So he made it again another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter, saith the Lord? Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, So are ye in my hand, O Israel. And at one instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it. And if that nation against whom I have pronounced it turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil I have thought to do unto them." Let's see how far we want to go with that. We'll go down to 10. And at one instant I shall speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build it and to plant it. And if it do evil in my sight, and it obey not my will, I will repent of the good whereof I said I would benefit them. This demonstrates God's ability to raise and lower nations, individuals. We are the clay in the potter's hand. Turn over to the next book in Lamentations, Lamentations chapter 3. In verse 37, y'all still with me? We're on God. God sent His Son, God. Right? Acts chapter 17, 1 Timothy 1, 17. Now we're looking at Lamentations 3 and 37 to look at Him as the King. Right? 3 and 37. Who is He that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not? Says who is there who's got strong enough power to have something happen when the Lord didn't desire it to? And the answer is no one, no man. Alright, again and finally we'll look at Daniel chapter 4 and then verse 35. You may say this is not a very comprehensive look at the sovereignty of God. It's just scratching the surface, but it's a good surface to scratch. But I want us to keep moving forward today to learn more about these attributes and get them at least to the high level. Daniel 4 and 35, And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing. And he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, Lord of hosts, right? In the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth. And none can stay his hand or say unto him, What doest thou? Okay? Who can stop the Lord's hand? Nobody. Who can challenge Him and say, what are you doing? Nobody. All the inhabitants of the earth, if you take all the power of mankind, of all creation, add it up against and try and fight against God, it's reputed as nothing. Zero. Okay? In Isaiah 40, it's like a drop in a bucket. Isaiah 40 is part of your homework. We'll look at that more, that whole chapter. Alright, 1 Timothy 1 verse 17. Now unto the king, ruler, leader, master, sovereign, eternal. Second thing we're going to look at. King and eternal. Alright, eternal. He does not have a beginning and he does not have an end. Alright, this is different from the word immortal. Sometimes in my head I kind of blur those two together. Eternal means He does not have a beginning and does not have an ending. He always is. That's the name He gave Moses out of the burning bush. I am the ever-present, the always current God. There was never a before God. There will never be an after God. You and I cannot be eternal. We had a beginning. He can give us eternal life, but in that sense, our life will continue on going forward for forever, but we cannot go backward. He is unique in that, that He is eternal. There was none before Him, and there will be none after Him that is like Him, right? Eternal, without beginning or ending. So in Exodus, He called Himself the I Am. I Am, not I was, not I will be. I Am. Alright, let's look at Exodus 15 and 18. Exodus 15 and 18, I believe it's going to say, The Lord shall reign forever and ever. Let's get there and double check that. Make sure we're completely accurate. Yeah. Exodus 15 and 18, it says, The Lord Master, the I Am, Jehovah there, the Eternal God, shall reign ruler forever and ever. How long? Forever and ever. He is eternal. Genesis 21, Abraham would plant a grove over Beersheba and he would there call upon the name of the Lord and he would call Him the Everlasting God. This is Genesis 21 and 33. The Everlasting God. It says, 21, 33. And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba and called thereon the name of the Lord, the everlasting God. Everlasting God. He has no beginning. He has no end. I think that's Jehovah Shammah, but I'm not worried about the Hebrew. He has no beginning and no end. Job 36 and 26. Let's find it. Job 36. 26. Behold, God is great, and we know Him not. You cannot understand Him. He's too big. You cannot know everything about Him. Neither can the number of His years be searched out. You cannot determine the number of God's years. It's infinite. It can't be counted. It cannot be determined. God is great, we know Him not, neither can the number of His years be searched out. Go to Psalm 90. Psalm 90 and verse 2. Psalm 90 and 2. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hast formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. There's no beginning, no end. The eternal God. Psalm 93, verse 2. Thy throne, throne, who sits on a throne? A ruler, a leader, a master, the king, thy throne is established of old, thou art from everlasting. So you're saying the same thing over and again. Yes, I am. Learn it. Internalize it. Isaiah 43, verse 10. I know I'm going fast. Isaiah 43 and verse 10, I, even I, am the Lord, and beside me there is no Savior. I am the Lord. Isaiah 43 and 10. I, even I, am the Lord, and beside Me there is no Savior. I have declared and have saved, I have showed, when there is no strange God among you, that ye are My witnesses to say of the Lord, I am God. I'm reading 11 instead of 10. Ye are witnesses, saith the Lord, my servant whom I have chosen, that ye may know me, and believe me, and understand that I am he. Here we go. Before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. He is eternal. There's no one else. He is unique. No God before him and there won't be a God after him. Okay? Go again to Isaiah 57 and 15. For thus saith the High and Lofty One, that it habiteth..." Where's the inhabit? Eternity, thus saith the High and Lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy. I dwell in high and holy places with Him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit. So you've got also the God that is far off and the God that is near, but He inhabits eternity. He dwells outside of time. Time is a construct for you and me. Time is, by definition, is a measure of space between two points. God doesn't have a first point and He doesn't have a last point. You and I have a starting point. And by His work, we'll go on forever in His glory and with eternal life. We have an existence in time. God doesn't. He is outside. He inhabits eternity. The everlasting and eternal God. Okay? One to the King, eternal. What's next? Immortal. Now one to the King, eternal. Immortal. Immortal. What does that mean? It means unchanging. Another good preacher word is immutable. that which cannot change." Another good preacher word is incorruptible. You and I are corruptible. We are changeable. We are mutable. He is not. He is incorruptible. Malachi 3 and 6, probably the clearest one to find, if we can find that. That's the last book of the Old Testament, struggling to find it like I was. Malachi 3 and 6, For I am the Lord, I change not. That's pretty clear. I am the Lord, I change not. You get that again in James chapter 1 and 17. Every good and perfect gift cometh down from the Father of lights, of whom there is no turning or shadow of variableness. Right? Quoting there, so let's make sure we get it just right. James 1, 17. Every good and perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness. A variable is something that changes. Neither a shadow of turning. Not even the slightest little bit. Not even the perception of turning. Our God stays the same. Okay? King, eternal, immortal. Unchanging. I am the Lord, I change not. No variables. No shadow of turning. How about Psalm 102? Psalm 102, verse 25 and 27. Of old thou hast laid the foundation of the earth, the heavens are the work of thy hand, Creator. They shall perish, but thou shalt endure. What'll perish? creation will perish, but thou, Lord, shalt endure. Yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment." You wear your clothes long enough, eventually they're going to wear out. "...They shall wax old like a garment, and as a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed." It's referring to the change of this corruptible world being burned up and Him putting something new and perfect unchanging, immortal, in its place. They shall be changed, but thou, Lord, thou art the same, thy years have no end, eternal, the children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established before thee. The Lord is the same. He does not change. So again to Romans 1, we will not spend much time in this. A lot of this chapter, we'll probably ask you to read over the course of this week. But just this one clause, Romans 1 and 22, professing themselves to be wise, they became fools and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into the image made like to corruptible man, to birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things. It's referring to those who are of this world, who are worshipping these idols, worshipping the creature rather than the Creator Himself. He said, you changed the glory of an Uncorruptible God. One who does not change. An immortal God. Okay? Uncorruptible. Alright? And we already looked at Numbers 23 and 19 where it said that God is not a man that he should lie, neither the Son of Man that he should repent. Our God does not change. Okay? Unto the King. Eternal. Immortal. What's next? Invisible. Okay? You may say, well, that's kind of obvious. Well, let's just establish it. John chapter 1. Verse 18, No man hath seen God at any time. Only the begotten Son, which is in the bosom of His Father, He hath declared Him. Verse 118, No man hath seen God at any time. John 4 and 24, God is a spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. He is invisible. No man hath seen Him. God is a spirit. John 5 and 37, and the Father himself which hath sent me hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape." And again, go to Colossians 1 and 13. Colossians 1 and 13, "...who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son, in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins Don't worry about Jesus here. Verse 15, Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature? For by Him were all things created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created by Him and for Him, and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist. The only clause of that I wanted from that is 15, Who is the image of the invisible God? And finally we go to Hebrews chapter 3. Y'all still with me? Not chapter 3, I think it's chapter 11, verse 3. Well, maybe it's not. Yeah, it is verse 3. We'll just start with verse 1. Hebrews 11 verse 1, Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen, for by the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, Creator, so that things which are seen were made of things which do not appear. Our invisible God. Okay. Now unto the King, eternal, immortal, invisible. What's the last one? The only wise God. Preachers use the good Latin. Omni, science. Omniscient. Omni meaning all. Science meaning knowledge. Trust the science! It means knowledge. Who has all the knowledge? God. God alone. Okay. I'm not so concerned about you knowing Latin. I really don't care if you can list off omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent. But if you know that He is God of all knowing, He's the all-knowing God of all knowledge, that's good. Psalm 147, verses 4 and 5. So from the only wise God, He has all knowledge. Psalm 147, verses 4 through 5. He telleth the number of the stars. Our Lord knows the number of stars. He calleth them all by their names. He's got an individual name for each of the stars. We can't count high enough to count all the stars. As smart as we are, and the greater telescopes as we've got, we can't even see them all or count them all, but He knows them all and He knows all their names, okay? And that's just a little glimpse. Verse 5, Great is our Lord, and of great power omnipotent, all power. His understanding is infinite. There is no limit on God's understanding. How high are His ways and thoughts? Infinitely higher than ours. They are infinite. Isaiah 40. We're just going to pluck a couple verses. Isaiah 40, 13 and 14, "...who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counselor, hath taught him..." Who is the Lord's teacher? Do you have one? No, it's rhetorical. "...with whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the paths of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed him the way of understanding?" Nobody. Nobody. Verse 27, Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the Lord, my judgment is passed over from my God? Verse 28, Hast thou not known, hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, eternal, everlasting God, the Lord, the ruler, the creator of the ends of the earth, creator, fainteth not," he's not tired, he has no limits, he's got all power, he doesn't need you to revive him, "...neither is weary, there is no searching of his understanding." You cannot search out all the understanding of God. His knowledge is infinite. Alright? Let's go to Acts 15, briefly. Acts 15, verse 18. Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world. He knows it. He knows His works. He knows His creations. He knows. Everything, your internal thoughts, He knows. Every word that you say in the dark, He knows. Everything about how every creature that He's created works and operates, because He maintains and sustains it, He knows. Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world. He has not learned anything. Alright, Romans 11, 33. Do 36. We labbed 36 earlier. We're going to get all 33 to 36. Oh, the depths of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God. How unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways are past finding out. They're infinitely higher than our understanding and our knowledge. Don't limit God in your mind. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, or who hath been his counselor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? Who does the Lord owe? Nobody. For of Him, Creator, and through Him, Sustainer, and to Him, the Ruler, the One who deserves, and is rightfully so, all the power and the glory and the honor. That's how it ends, right? The honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. For all things to whom be glory forever. Amen. And finally, we'll get Hebrews 4.13. Hebrews 4 and 13, neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight, but all things are naked and opened under the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. I've got a little bit more to say. We're going to keep going. So I couldn't find a verse that had these last two attributes all lumped in together in one, so we're just going to talk about it. It's everywhere present, right? We've alluded to that. Everywhere present. Omnipresence. Everywhere at one time. All right? That is an attribute of God. You cannot get away from God. There's no far hill you can climb or hole you can dig down to escape from God. He's everywhere present at once. Now this is very different from pantheism that says He is everything, that God is this rock. He is separate. God is separate from His creation. There is the Creator and there is the creation, but He inhabits all of creation at once. He is everywhere that He can be everywhere at once. Jeremiah 23 and 23. Jeremiah 23 and 23, right? Yeah. I, am I a God at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off? This is asking the question, am I a God of only being close at hand and not also a God that is far off? He is both. And that's hard for our heads to wrap around. I can only be in one place at once. And as a husband and a father and a pastor, I feel stretched mighty thin that I can't be in more places that he doesn't have. That's trouble, right? Am I a God at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off? He is both. Can any hide himself in secret places that I should not see him, saith the Lord? Do not I fill heaven and earth, saith the Lord? Is your perspective about God grounded in biblical truth, or is it some kind of deformity that we just kind of picked up based on our emotions, our thoughts, of what we think God ought to be like? Let's purify our vision of God, and I can guarantee you, your vision of God ain't big enough. Ain't powerful enough. He isn't smart enough. Your thoughts of Him are far, far short. Okay? That's not an insult against you. I'm in the same boat with you. Okay? 1 Kings 8.27. I didn't know you were going to get a sword drill today. Flip really fast and keep going. Alright, 1 Kings 8.27. Let's get there. But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, the heavens and the heavens of heavens cannot contain thee, how much less this house that I have built it. It's the same thing we heard from Solomon earlier. That was in Chronicles. This is in Kings. But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Yes, He's on the earth. Behold, the heavens and the heavens of heavens cannot contain thee, how much less this house that I have built it. He cannot be bound. He cannot be limited. Isaiah 57 and verse 15. Isaiah 57, 15. Thus saith the High and Lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy. I dwell in high and holy place. with Him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." Earlier we looked at this in the context of inhabiting eternity. He says, I live, I dwell in the high and holy place, outside of creation, bigger than all big. That's where He dwells. But also, listen to where He dwells. Close to you. Not just far off, but also close. with Him also that is of contrite, lowly, humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." He's with you, closely, intimately. Don't forget that. Psalm 113. Verses 4-6, The Lord is high above nations, and His glory above the heavens. Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high, who humbleth Himself to behold the things that are in heaven and in the earth? Did you ever think about that? That God has to humble Himself to look down upon the stars, much less all the way down unto us as His lowly creatures. And yet with what great love He bestows upon us. He humbles Himself to behold the things that are in heaven and in the earth. Psalm 139, 7-10. Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Whither shall I flee from thy presence? This is the psalmist asking, where can I go to get away from God? Where can I go? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there. If I bake my bed in hell and the grave, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, if I could have wings like a dove and just fly away and go as far across the sea as you can think, even there shall thy right hand lead me and thy right hand shall hold me. You're being held, you're being sustained, you're being eternally cared for by God. You cannot get away from His presence. So everywhere present, nowhere absent. Omnipresence. Last one, all-powerful. And this is closely related to being the king, the ruler, because the ruler rules because he has all the power. There's no stronger man who can come and bind him. All-powerful. Latin, omnipotent. All-power, potentate. Remember that word describing Jesus, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, the potentate? We may use that and describe, man, that was potent. When you're drinking something that's way too strong or smells really strong or someone's perfume is too strong, that's potent, right? And the inverse of that would be impotent, someone who doesn't have power, okay? Don't care if you know Latin. I care that you know God is all-powerful. Alright? Genesis 18-14, I won't turn there, but this is when Sarah and Abraham are doubting about God's ability to give old Sarah, who was barren, who'd been barren all her life, and now she's old and barren, give her a child. His answer is, is there anything too hard for the Lord? No, because He has all the power. His purposes will be accomplished because He has all the power. Jeremiah 32 and 17, we'll turn to that one. Jeremiah 32. 17. Ah, Lord God, behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power, and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee. Man, isn't that encouraging? Again, we're talking about Him as the Creator. He's made it by stretching out His arm, because He's got great power, and there's nothing too hard for He. That's who you're going to when you're praying, to the One who has all power. Okay? All power. Isaiah 59 and 1. I got three more references, kids. Y'all hang on there. We're almost there. We're gonna go back to Isaiah 59 and 1. Behold, or look, pay attention, the Lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot save, neither is His ear heavy that it cannot ear. Is there anything too hard for the Lord? Is there a weight that He can't bear? Is there a task that He would like to perform that He does not have the might and the ability to do? The short answer is no. The Lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot save. Matthew 19 and 26, when Jesus is talking about rich men going into the kingdom of heaven and saying it's easier for them to pass through the eye of a needle than to get into the kingdom of heaven, and the disciples are just freaking out. They're like, who then can be saved? And He says, with men it is impossible, but with God all things are possible. Why? Because He's got all the power! Okay? And finally, Revelation 19 and 6, and this is why we use the term Omnipotent itself. Revelation 19 and verse 6. These are, I heard His word, a voice of great multitudes, a voice of many waters, and a voice of many thunderings. So you've got this massive swell of noise up in heaven. And this is what they're saying. They're saying, Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth. That's who you serve. God sent His Son. This is a little scratching of the surface about the attributes, the characteristics. Let's stick with attributes of God today. That He is unique. It's the King, the Ruler, the Sovereign. He's eternal. He has no beginning and end. He is immortal. He does not change. He's the only wise God. He has all knowledge. He is everywhere at once and nowhere absent. And He is all-powerful. That is your God. Think on these things. Dwell on these things. And over the course of this week, write this down. Psalm 50. Psalm 104. I'll send it out in the Facebook Messenger too, in case you don't have to. Isaiah chapter 40. Romans 9, 1 through 26. Romans 1, 18 through 25. Now, you don't just get to be passive readers in this. I want you to come prepared Wednesday night to give us some examples of these attributes and where they show up in these verses. The verse described is the sovereign king, his creator, sustainer, immortal, eternal, invisible, the only wise God, all present, all powerful. The goal is that the Word of God, the Word of Christ would dwell in you richly, This requires some labor, some effort on our part, some studying, some trying to do some memorization. Because if we're charged to be ready to give an answer of the hope that we have, if any man asks us, well, we need to be ready to answer. And generic platitudes only go so far. But if you can say, thus saith the word, and then you show in the word, that gives substance. That gives weight. Thank you all for your time and attention this morning. forward to hearing your thoughts Wednesday night and going to farther