Please be seated. Our passage this evening is from Psalm 139. Psalm 139, in the middle of your Bibles about. O Lord, you have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up. You discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. You hem me in behind and before and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me. It is high. I cannot attain it. Where shall I go from your spirit or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me and your right hand shall hold me. If I say, surely the darkness shall cover me, And the light about me be night. Even the darkness is not dark to you. And the night is bright as the day, for the darkness is as light with you. For you formed my inward parts. You knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works. My soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. It's probably a poetic allusion, of course, to the womb. My frame was not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance in your book. They were written, every one of them, The days that were formed for me when, as yet, there were none of them. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God. How vast is the sum of them. If I could count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you. Thus far, the reading of God's word this evening. Children, when I put this Bible down and I take this book that's also a Bible. It's just a little different version than yours so that's why I do that and I'm used to this one. This is kind of my friend because I know where things are in it and I can find them quite quickly and that's the advantage of having your own Bibles when you come to church and when you are at home too because you can write in them and you remember that there's something in book of John and this chapter and it's kind of in that place maybe you forgot the verse but you could find it because you know that Bible very very well so anyhow don't think I'm changing books I'm still reading the Bible in John 17 it says this is eternal life to what to know God this is eternal life to know God And not just to know that there is a divine being, a creator, but to know God in all of his perfections, in his mercy and glory and grace and power and majesty and love and holiness and all of that. That's eternal life, to know that God. And you remember when we looked at some of the other attributes of God, I spoke about the book that J.I. Packer wrote of knowing God. And J.I. Packer says in his book of knowing God that knowing God, knowing all of these attributes and knowing the glories of God is the secret to Christian living. It is the secret to victorious living. It is the secret to comfort and to courage and to godliness. and many other things, but that's the secret of the Christian life to know God. And so for that reason we've been looking at a few of the attributes of God. We looked at His holiness, His love, His sovereignty before. And tonight, children, we're going to look at His omniscience. Now that's a big word, isn't it? But sometimes we say, why must we learn all these big words in church and in catechism and Sunday school? Well, you have to learn big words for lots of things. You're going to get driver's license sometime. You got to learn what an accelerator is and a transmission is. And if you don't know, you're not going to get your driver's license. And it's kind of silly if you say to your mother, where's that black thing with a cord on it that's got a couple of buttons on it? What black thing are you talking about? You mean the mouse for the computer? Yeah, that's what I mean. See, you got to learn some, you got to be able to learn some words, okay? In all of your life, you're going to learn big words and you have to just learn them, that's all. But a lot of big words are just little words making up, put together to make a big word. And if you look at the word omniscience and take it apart, there are two little words in it. One is science. You can circle that if you are looking at the bulletin or your outline. And science, of course, has to do with knowledge. And the other word is omni. Now we don't use that word very much, but omni is a word that means all. We use that sometimes when we talk about an omnitheater or omnimax theater. There are big, big screens and there's all kinds of them. We talk about that when we talk about an animal if he's omnivorous. That means he not only eats meat, but he eats all kinds of things, berries and plants. A bear is omnivorous. eats everything we use the word omni with lots of things when it comes to God we talk about his omnipotence that's omnipotence that means he is all-powerful omnipresence he is everywhere present all present and tonight we're going to think about his omniscience all-knowing and that simply means that God knows everything It's not just that God is smart. I mean, there's a lot of smart people. But God knows everything. And nobody knows everything. Not your parents, not the preacher. My children were always happy when they had a Bible test or something, or had to write something about the Bible, they could come home and ask me questions about the Bible. And most often I'd have the answer. But there are a lot of questions they could ask me that I wouldn't know. I mean, I wouldn't know how radios run, how microwaves run, and I wouldn't know, sometimes they would trick me and ask me, how do you know, why, how do you know when an elephant's been in the refrigerator? I wouldn't know that either. But God knows everything, except one thing. except one thing God doesn't know. And I'm gonna tell you what that one thing is pretty soon. So you're gonna have to listen and if I forget, then you make sure that you come to me afterwards and say, what in the world is it that God doesn't know? But God knows everything, except that one thing. God knows what's happening today in your life and in my life and in your grandpa and grandma's life and in the life of your friends who live other places, Relatives, God knows everything about today, and he knows everything about yesterday, and he knows everything about a hundred years ago, and he knows everything about a thousand years ago, and he knows everything about everybody. It's hard to imagine, isn't it, that God knows everything about everybody. And we go to an airport, and we see hundreds of people, and they're all different colors, and they're going back and forth, and some of them are running, dragging their suitcases. And you think, God knows all of them by name, who they are, when they were born, what they do. What an amazing thing when you begin to think about it. And that's what we're going to think about tonight, about God's omniscience. And the first thing that we're gonna talk about is the extent of God's omniscience. Psalm 139 tells us, talks about the extent of God's omniscience. And let's start, let's begin by thinking about the fact that God knows unimportant things, at least we think they are unimportant. In verse 2, God says, the psalmist says, you know when I sit down and when I rise. Who would pay any attention to that? Sometimes you're watching TV and you're on the floor, and then you go on a chair, and then you stand, and then you do something else, and nobody notices that. But the psalmist says, God knows when I sit and when I rise. We don't pay any attention to that. Verse three, you discern my going out and my lying down. You are familiar with all of my ways. We go in and out of the house and nobody pays much attention to that. But God knows. God is aware of it. You discern my going out and my lying down. You are familiar with all of my ways. So God knows unimportant things. at least that we think are unimportant. God knows secret things. He knows secret things that no one else knows. Listen to verse 2b. You perceive or you understand my thoughts from afar. There are not many secrets in this world anymore. If you're a politician, you know that because everything is revealed. And we have spy satellites that are hundreds of miles up in the air and they have cameras so sensitive that they can take pictures of what's happening on earth and not only see whether armies are marching or whether they're bivouacked, but they can even read license plates, I understand. And spies, of course, can put things on walls that are in telephones and listen in on your conversation. But what's up here? Nobody knows. On the East Coast, there are huge dishes that look like TV dishes, but they are about three stories high, and they're pointed out into space, and they are listening to whatever noises might be out by the stars. You could put your head right next to one of those big dishes, and they couldn't hear what was going on in there, that secret. But the Bible tells us that God knows those things. He knows our thoughts, verse four, even before a word is on our tongue, God knows it already. Isn't that absolutely amazing? Before we even speak, God knows what we're going to say. So God knows unimportant things, according to Psalm 139. God knows secret things and God knows future things. Let me begin reading verses 13, verse 13. For you created my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. So you see, God knows future things. Maybe I see a lot of children in this church, maybe you've got a little brother or a little sister that's going to be born soon, and your mother and dad tell you that you've got a wonderful secret, that you're gonna have a new child in your family, and you say to your mom or your dad, what is it gonna be, a boy or a girl? And your mother says, well, we don't know, a secret, and the secrets are nice, but God knows. And you say to your mother, is the baby going to have blue eyes or brown eyes? And she said, I don't know. You have blue eyes and your brother has brown eyes. We'll see when the baby's born. But God knows. And God not only knows what color eyes or whether it's going to be a boy or a girl, but God knows how long it's going to live. And whether it's going to be a teacher, or a preacher, or a mechanic, or a mailman, or mail person, I guess it's called today. God knows all those things. Isn't it an amazing thing that he knows it all? Not only about me, and not only about you, but about everybody in this whole world. David said when he thought about that, he said, it blows my mind when I begin to think about that. That's the kind of God I have. He doesn't actually say, it blows my mind, but in verses 17 and 18, he says, you know, when I begin to think about it, when I begin to think about, you know what I'm going to say, and you know how long I'm going to live, he says, I fall asleep, and when I wake up, I'm still not finished thinking about it. I still am thinking about it. It is so marvelous. I can't understand it. And that's what the New Testament says too. For example, in Hebrews chapter 4 verse 13, nothing in all of creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give an account. God knows secret things, unimportant things, future things. God knows everything. Then you think about that and you ask the second question, how do you react to God's knowledge? What is our reaction to that? And the first thing I think that we'd have to say, there's a certain amount of fear involved in that, isn't there? That God knows everything, that God knows what I put in the offering today. God knows if I cheated on a test last week, maybe your teacher didn't see that. But God knows that. God knows about it when I go to a city far away on business and I do things there that I wouldn't do around home. And we think, well, nobody's here, nobody's around, nobody's going to see it, but God sees it. And that's why Arthur Pink is right when he says that God's omniscience fills us with uneasiness. We don't like to be open completely. We don't like it if, we wouldn't like it if everybody knew what we were thinking. Sometimes I look at an audience like this and I see someone, I think that person is really into the sermon. But instead he's thinking about football. I wouldn't like it if everybody knew what I was thinking. Somebody comes with a new dress. And you say, oh, I see you have a new dress. But what they don't hear you saying and thinking is, I hope she got it on sale because the color doesn't do much for her. You see, God knows, but God knows what you were thinking. God knows everything. He reads your mind, your thoughts, he knows your past in absolute detail. And we would be mortified if we knew that. And the Bible reminds us, not only in this psalm, but everywhere that God knows all those things. When Cain came back from the field and God said, where have you been? Where's your brother Abel? And Cain said, I'm my brother's keeper. But God knew what had happened. He knew that Cain had murdered Abel. He saw the blood in the field. He knew what had happened. When Israel marched around Jericho and they were supposed to dedicate all of the riches of Jericho to God as a gift to him, everything. And Achan saw some very precious treasures, some nice things that he really coveted. And he said, well, you know, nobody's going to miss these. And he sneaks them into his tent. He digs a hole and he puts it under his tent and he smooths it over. And he, aha, God, nobody knows, but God knows. God knew. And when David sinned against Uriah as a faithful officer in his army by seducing his wife and instead he, instead of owning up to it he put Uriah in the front line so that Uriah would be killed and Uriah was killed and he thought finally I'm free. God knew what had happened and God sent Nathan the prophet And Nathan the prophet told him about this rich man who had a hundred sheep and the poor man who had one. God knew. When Ananias and Sapphira came in to Peter and they wanted to boast, they wanted everybody to think what big givers they were. And they came in with this gift and Peter said, is that all the money that you gave? I mean, is that what your property sold for? And they said, yes. But God knew that was a lie. That they were just pretending. So God knows all things and that's a matter of fear for us. What a terrible thing that God knows everything about us, what we think and what we do and what we say, except for one thing. God doesn't remember sins that have been confessed and forgiven. Isn't that a wonderful thought? I often think to myself how in the world can that be that God can't remember something but that's what he tells us that he cannot he does not remember sins that are covered with the blood of Jesus what a wonderful thing and that leads us also from not only a God's knowledge being a matter of fear but a matter of comfort isn't it James Boyce, in a book that he wrote in a commentary about this passage, or about the omniscience of God, suggests there are three reasons for those who know God's omniscience. The first element of comfort is that God knows the worst about us. And the first thing you think about when you hear that, how would that be a matter of comfort for us that that God knows the worst about us well because nothing is going to surprise God about you there's not a thing that God is surprised about what you've done or said or would will do in the future and what a blessing that is I think of a godly young wife that came one day and was in distraught because Friends, old friends were moving into town. And those old friends were aware of a weekend that she wanted to forget and that she never told her husband about. And she was desperately afraid that it would come out. And then would her husband ever trust her again? And if only she had told him before they got married, things would have been different, but now it's been covered up all those years. But God is not surprised by anything that has happened in our life. God has chosen us from the beginning of the world, not because we were so holy, but he decided to love us because he loved us. And there is no surprise, there's no skeleton in your closet that God is not aware of. Do you know that? There is no skeleton in your closet that God is not aware of. He knows it all. He knows the very worst about you. And still when he calls you to come unto him, all you that are weary and heavy laden, he means it. He means it. You don't have to worry about whether or not there's something that he doesn't know about your life. What a blessing to, that is that God knows the worst about us. But God also knows the best about us. And sometimes we are, that maybe is a hard thing to think about that God knows the best about us because maybe we don't think that there's much good in us. I have a brother-in-law who is a Democrat, and if there was a Republican candidate or Republican president that filled the New York Times, the New York Times was raving about, was just honoring and talking about all the good this Republican candidate did. But somewhere between the classifieds and the obituaries, there was a little thing about what this Republican did that was not so good. He would remember that. And all of the good things would not make any difference to him. All the best about that person would be forgotten. And there are sometimes people like that, aren't there? They remember something that we did years and years ago and they will not let it go. They will not let it go. And sometimes it is not something that we've done wrong, but sometimes it's a matter of being misunderstood. We try to do something right, but people misunderstand it. And then they spread rumors about us, or they spread bad news about us, or they spread lies about us. And we know they're being spread, and we'd like to tell the other part of the story, but we don't have that opportunity. But God knows our motives. Even when our motives are somewhat not so good, but God knows our motives. Hebrews 6 verse 10 says, God is not unjust. He will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you helped his people and continue to help them. What a comfort it is to know that God knows. Even though we sin, God knows we love him. I think about Peter, you think about Peter's denial of Jesus, what a dagger that must have been in Jesus' heart. Jesus is being accused of being a devil and a liar and a blasphemer and they're spitting at Jesus and slapping him and he's being accused, he's being prepared for his crucifixion. And on top of all that, he hears below someone say, as God lives, I don't know him. And it was his friend Peter who said that. And then later on, after the resurrection, of course, Jesus got all the disciples together and he called up Peter. And he asked him three times if Peter loved him. Peter knew, of course, what had happened and why it was three times. And Peter finally said, Lord, you know all things. In spite of my denial, in spite of my sin, you know all things. You know I love you. And that is how God, that's our encouragement too. God knows we love Him in spite of our inconsistencies. What a blessing that is, huh? God knows the best about us. God knows the worst about us and He forgives us. You must remember that because there are sins that are like guilt that keeps on giving. We never forget it. But God has forgotten it. God has forgotten the worst of us. It is confessed and he knows, he is, also knows the best of us. And the last thing that I want to share with you this evening is that God knows what is best for us. God is never mistaken. in his actions, in his leading us. Sometimes awful things happen to people who love Jesus. And we cannot fathom that one tragedy after another strikes them. It just seems like God is gone. When we were young, we had a young couple that lived down below us, and they were our age, and we thought that God had led us, or at least used us, to lead them back into church. And they were hardly back into church when their baby died of crib death. And we thought, where is God? Where is God in all of this? That's going to destroy their faith. And we remember that we went to their house, to their apartment, and their faith wasn't destroyed. They had a wonderful testimony. Joseph. You think about Joseph, and you think about the tragedies that he suffered, and resisting sin, and he's thrown into prison. Finally, after years and years and years, he is able to understand and able to know that while everybody, his brothers, meant it for evil, God meant it for good. God knows what is best for us. There are no unintended consequences of God's actions. We have lots of unintended consequences. The president has lots of unintended consequences. takes troops out of Iraq and we see what happens, or he invades Libya and we see what happens. There are unintended consequences. There are no unintended consequences for God. He knows what is best for us. He knows about our children. He knows about our family. He knows about the church. He knows about the future. He knows important things and he knows unimportant things. He knows all the possibilities and all the ramifications. And he knows all the possibilities and all the consequences and all the choices. And he is not limited. He is not limited in His choices. He knows all about you, and He knows all about your children, and He knows all about the future. What hope and what victory that gives us. What victory that we belong, that we are children of such a God who is not only holy and sovereign, but He is omniscient. That's our Father. That's our Father. And He's your Father if your faith is in the Lord Jesus Christ. What a blessing. Let's thank Him for it. Heavenly Father,