¶ ¶ ♪ Oh, God. Amen. The Lord reigneth, let the people tremble. He sitteth between the cherubims, let the earth be moved. The Lord is great in Zion, and he is high above all the people. Let them praise thy great and terrible name, for it is holy. Let's call upon the name of our God in a moment of silent prayer. Mm-hmm. Praise him, all creatures, here below! Beloved congregation, in our Lord Jesus Christ, our help stands in the name of Jehovah, who has made heaven and earth. Grace, mercy, and peace be granted unto you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, through the operation of the Holy Spirit. Amen. We turn in our Psalter. This morning to Psalm 99. Psalm 99, and we'll sing together selection C. Jehovah reigns supreme, let nations tremble now. He dwells between the cherubim, let earth before him bow. Four stanzas of number 99C. for holy is our God. The King Almighty lives, just as men do in faith. He rules his people righteously and brings his justice We now attend to the reading of God's law. We'll read that law of God as it's recorded for us in Exodus 20. God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any raven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them. For I, the Lord thy God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me and showing mercy, unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. In it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day. Wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. Honor thy father and thy mother. that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor's. Jesus gives us a summary of the law in these words that he spoke in Matthew 22. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy mind, and with all thy strength. This is the first and the great commandment. And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. We'll respond to the law by singing together Psalm 19. Psalm 19, selection D. Most perfect is the law of God, restoring those that stray. His testimony is most sure, proclaiming wisdom's way. We'll sing the first four stanzas, and then stanzas seven. One through four, and then stanzas seven of Psalm 19D. God's perfect is the love of God. His glory goes astray. His testimony is for sure. Let's come before God's throne of grace and prayer. Our Almighty God and our Heavenly Father, for Jesus' sake, we come into Thy presence in the morning hour of this day that Thou has set aside for the worship of Thy name. And we pray, Father, that Thou wilt accept our praises and our worship of Thee. Thou art a great and a glorious God who sits enthroned in the heavens, far above all that which is creature. And even we, as men and women and children, are but small creatures of thy hands. And as we bow in thy presence, we do that with fear and reverence, because we know that thou art God. and that we are but the creature who is called upon to serve and worship Thee, our Creator. We're humbled before Thee as well because we know that Thou art a holy God. We sing of Thy holiness and of Thy majesty. We're reminded of the fact that we in and of ourselves are sinners and not worthy of anything from Thee. We come here before Thee to worship Thee only for the sake of Jesus Christ, who has covered us in His blood, and who has Himself, by means of His work on the cross, made us worthy so that we can come into Thy presence and worship Thee. We're thankful, Father, that Thou art a merciful God and Father, who shows to us that way of salvation in the cross of Jesus Christ alone. There are so many in our world, the vast majority of people in our world that have not been shown that way by Thee. Thou has chosen to reveal Thyself to us in Thy grace. And we're thankful, Father, that we might know Thee as that great, that sovereign God of heaven and earth who reigns over all, who moves all the creatures of thy hands in order to fulfill thy sovereign will and good pleasure, a God who for the glory of thy own name has saved unto thyself a church in this world and has called her out of the darkness in order that thy praises might be sung and lifted up throughout all of this world. We're thankful that we can belong to that church universal in this world. We're thankful, too, that in this morning hour we might be reminded of Thee, though often in the busyness of our lives we forget about who it is that we really serve, that great God of heaven who holds all things in Thy hands. And we are reminded again in Thy Word to lift up our eyes unto Thee and behold Thee, and to know that Thou art our God, who is our refuge and our strength and our ever-present help, God who dwells in the midst of Thy church and Thy people, and a God who is therefore strong to save, not only to deliver us from sin, but ultimately to deliver us from this world of corruption and into a new heavens and a new earth, and that through Thy Son, Jesus Christ, God of the Covenant, a God who dwells with us in Thy love and in Thy great care. Even as we bow before Thee in this day, Father, we pray that Thou wilt accept our praise and our gratitude for the gift of our salvation. Thou bless us as a congregation, we're thankful unto Thee that Thou wouldst dwell in the midst of Thy church wherever she might be gathered, and that therefore, even in this day as we worship Thee, Thou art present together with us too, and that we can experience Thy fellowship and Thy favor in perhaps the highest possible way as we gather together in Thy house here on earth. We pray that thou wilt bless the labors that are performed here in our midst by our elders and our deacons. We're thankful for office bearers in the church that can represent thy son, Jesus Christ, who is the head of the church. and that they in their rule in the church, whether that be over the souls of thy people, whether that be over the financial needs of thy people, they rule in the midst of thy church, then Jesus Christ himself is present ruling over us. We are thankful, therefore, for the persistent and the faithful labors of office bearers in our midst, guide and protect and give wisdom and strength to the elders as they take oversight of the preaching in this day, as they watch over our souls as watchmen upon the walls of Zion, the deacons as men of mercy who not only collect of the alms but who care for the poor in our midst as well as the financial needs of our congregation. Thou bless, Father, especially our pastor. We're thankful for him. We're thankful for the faithful labors that he performs for us from Sabbath to Sabbath, not only proclaiming thy word from the pulpit, but taking thy word with him into the catechism classes as well as the societies and from home to home. We're thankful, Father, for his diligent labors too in the gospel. We know how busy that one can become in the gospel ministry and we pray give unto him strength therefore, physical stamina, but also the spiritual strength that is needed to be able to preach the word to us and together with the elders to lead and to guide us as a church. We thank thee for him and his family here in our midst too in our congregation. We pray, Father, that Thou wilt bless us as the Church of Jesus Christ, that we too might experience with one another the communion of the saints, the communion that we know revolves around Thy Word, the communion that we experience together as we study that Word together, We pray that Thou wilt bless us in this way as a congregation, too, that by means of the various societies we can gather together and discuss openly Thy Word with one another. Not only hear that Word in our societies as we're directed into them, but that we might seriously discuss that word with one another in order that we might sharpen one another in the gospel. Bless us, therefore, in that communion that we share around thy word, the communion that we also share in using our gifts and our talents on behalf of others in our midst in the church. We're thankful for our fellow saints, We view ourselves as fellow members of that body of Christ, members that need one another, so that when a member sorrows, then we can sorrow with that member and rejoice with those who rejoice, but that we too might always be there to give words of encouragement to one another, especially those who are in need. Guide those, Father, in our midst who need Thee in special ways, Many are the afflictions of thy saints. Thou dost lead us oftentimes as the sovereign God of heaven and earth, whose hand directs all things. Thou dost lead us oftentimes in very difficult ways. Sometimes Thou dost send sickness in life, afflictions, diseases that can affect us not just a day or two or a week or two, but sometimes can affect us for the rest of our lives. And we struggle with those afflictions in life, and we pray, Father, that Thou wilt sustain those who need Thee in these ways too in our midst. to guide and to direct them, knowing that thy hand is always a merciful hand and a good hand that blesses thy people in every circumstance of life. There are those who are alone because thou hast taken from them a spouse, perhaps in death, or perhaps through sin. We pray for them, Father, that thou too will dwell with them in a special way so that when they experience loneliness in their lives, and we know that that oftentimes comes when thou dost take away a spouse from them, that they might come to thee, our God, and know that thou art a friend. Sovereign friend, we're always Thy servants, and yet Thou dost establish a covenant of friendship with us, and Thou art our friend, and we can speak with Thee through our Savior, Jesus Christ, who is closer than a brother. Thou give unto us, therefore, In our times of need and in our times of loneliness, the necessary grace to come before Thee and Thy Son to pour out our hearts and to find in Thee a constant helper. There are those, Father, in our midst who suffer because of their struggles with perhaps depression or sin. We pray, sustain and strengthen them too that they might know that As God, Thou art the one who directs the affairs of our lives and that in such a way that we are blessed by Thee, so that encouragement might be given too to these saints in their particular needs. We're very mindful of our homes and families because we realize that there too Thou must dwell. So, Father, we pray, bless us in our relationships with one another in the home, especially husbands and wives. May we establish a godly marriage, a marriage where we become so interdependent upon one another that we can hardly see the fact that thou wilt separate us through death, hardly be able to understand the hurt that that can cause. May we love one another as husbands and wives, finding in each other our help and our strength. May we, as parents, lead our children also so that they might see that love that we have for one another in marriage and desire that for themselves in their lives. So direct us, Father, as children in the home. to obey parents, to honor them for their place, to look up to them for guidance and care and protection. And wilt thou teach us, Father, obedience as children? Give unto us parents' diligence to instruct our children in the fear of thy name too. Father, we ask that thou wilt be near unto the single saints in our midst. They too have their particular needs and strengths in their particular place in the midst of thy church. Both I'll give unto them what they stand in need of, too, to be an active part in the midst of thy church, and that together with the family, so that we, as fellow members in the body of our Lord Jesus Christ, might indeed uplift and uphold one another. Now, Father, we pray that Thou wilt now guide us and direct us by the Spirit of truth in this morning hour to lead and direct us also into the way of Thy Word, so that that Word might be our guide in our lives, and in this week to come we might use it to powerfully to lead us and direct us in a way of holiness and thankfulness before Thee. Be near unto Thy servant. Strengthen him unto that task that he might proclaim Thy Word and Thy Word alone, and teach us through that Word to behold Thee, our God. We pray this in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and for His sake alone, amen. We now will worship the Lord with our offerings. The first collection this morning will be for our general fund. The second will be for the benevolence fund. We remember what Jesus teaches his disciples, that the poor we have with us always. ♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪♪ We turn in our Psalters once again to Psalm 93. Psalm 93 You have noticed the Psalms that we have been singing glorify the name of our God, and we're told to look upon Him in all of His glory. We're going to be reading Isaiah 40. And Isaiah 40 directs our attention to how great our God is. And one of the attributes to which it points, or He points, is that of His omnipotence. And Psalm 93 sings of that. Jehovah sits enthroned in majesty, most bright appareled in omnipotence, and girded round with might. We'll sing the four stanzas of Psalm 93. Oh their voice in majesty. Our mighty heads aboard are hung, above the raging sea. Our testimony torn, in faithfulness We turn in God's Word this morning to Isaiah 40. Isaiah 40. Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned, for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, because the Spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it. Surely the people is grass. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of our God shall stand forever. O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain. O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength. Lift it up, be not afraid. Say unto the cities of Judah, behold, your God. Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand and his arm shall rule for him. Behold, his reward is with him and his work before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd. He shall gather the lambs with his arm and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young. Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance? who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counselor, hath taught him, with whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding. Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance. Behold, he taketh up the aisles as a very little thing, and Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. All nations before him are as nothing, and they are counted to him less than nothing in vanity. To whom then will ye liken God, or what likeness will ye compare unto him? The workman melteth a graven image and the goldsmith spreadeth it over with gold and casteth silver chains. He that is so impoverished that he hath no oblation chooseth a tree that will not rot. He seeketh unto him a cunning workman to prepare a graven image that shall not be moved. Have ye not known? Have ye not heard? Hath it not been told you from the beginning Have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers, that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in, that bringeth the princes to nothing. He maketh the judges of the earth as vanity. Yea, they shall not be planted. Yea, they shall not be sown. Yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth. And he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble. To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal, saith the Holy One? Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number. He calleth them all by names, by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power, not one faileth. Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, my way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God? Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not? Neither is he weary. There is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint and to them that have no might He increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint. As far as we read God's Word this morning, Our text is found in verses 12 through 14. Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with a span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance? Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counselor, hath taught him? with whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding. Prophet Isaiah prophesied against the nation of Israel for her unfaithfulness and unbelief toward Jehovah. The priests offered sacrifices to Jehovah, but then on their same altars or upon another altar, or offered sacrifices also to the heathen gods around them. The prophets of Israel were prophesying lies. The men in Israel were accused by Isaiah of drunkenness. And the women walked about with stretched out necks and wantonness. The nation of Judah was indeed ripe for judgment. So that now in the main, the prophecy of Isaiah was that of judgment, judgment against this unfaithful people. And yet, we find in the chapter before us words of comfort. Because in the midst of his condemnation of the sins of this sinful, unbelieving nation, we find Isaiah speaking also to the elect remnant, according to grace, that was left yet within that nation. And those few elect people of God within the nation lamented the sad condition of that church, of that nation at that time. And they feared. They feared because of the destruction that they did see definitely was going to befall the nation. Although many in the nation there thought Jehovah didn't even see their sin, these people knew that Jehovah had seen their sin. So Isaiah now speaks to them in the chapter that we have before us and in the chapters following. And those are some very beautiful chapters in Isaiah. He speaks to them words of comfort. Verse 1, Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her. The comfort that God's people, however, that were in Judah would find, would be found only if they looked upon God Himself. their faithful God. And that's why we find in verse 9, O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain. O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength. Lift it up Be not afraid, say unto the cities of Judah, behold your God. And now in the verses following in this chapter, that's what they are made to do, to examine, to look carefully upon, to behold their God. We find in verses 10 and 11 that God is described there as a good shepherd. A good shepherd who leads his sheep. Who loves his sheep and leads his sheep. In the verses that we consider now this morning, there are three rhetorical questions that Isaiah asks the believers in Judah. Rhetorical because, of course, the answer to those questions is already implied in the questions themselves. Isaiah uses them in order to make this particular point. Who is so absolutely powerful as our God? As our God? Who is so absolutely wise as our God? And the implied answer to those questions, of course, is no one. To whom then will ye liken me, saith God, the Holy One of Israel? The questions we consider today are all asked in order that the elect remnant in Israel might be forced to look upon their God, because it was that God alone who could give them comfort in the midst of their distress. So in our sermon this morning, we're going to take a look at just how powerful our good shepherd is and how wise he is. And that every event now that would befall this nation of Judah and every event that befalls us in our particular lives and in the subsequent history of our present world is under God's sovereign rule and under God's sovereign command. Before considering these questions, however, we ought to take note of the fact that he uses some very earthy examples to point out the truth of God's power and wisdom. The prophet does not become involved in some kind of lofty, dogmatic dialogue about these attributes of God that we'll have before us. He's not speaking to you and me now in abstractions. He does not launch off into some deep theological discourse that the children sitting here would not even be able to understand. Isaiah uses something very real to every one of us sitting here in order to make his point. Look at God just as He reveals Himself to you and to me in the creation. It does not take anything more than to behold God by means of the very works of God's hands. And then compare Him. Compare Him to man, so that you have the Creator and you have the creature. A comparison that is made here. So we behold God then, and we behold God through the spectacles of creation. And as we do, we come to the conclusion by means of these questions that this great, all-powerful God is our God. The God who rules heaven and earth is the God of His people. And the God who loves His people so dearly that that powerful hand is always for us. So we keep that in mind this morning as we consider our omnipotent and omniscient God. our omnipotent and omniscient God. In the first place, the idea that's expressed there. Secondly, the comparison that's made between God and man. And then finally, the comfort that God's people receive from this. So, let's consider then, this morning, the first question that's asked us in verse 12. Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand? and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance." You know, people of God, our hand is a very useful instrument of our body. We use it, perhaps without even thinking, for almost everything that we do. Try to cook or to bake in your kitchen without the use of your hands. Try to operate a computer without the use of your fingers. Try to perform your earthly labors in this world without these hands. Have you ever considered that the hand can be used for something different than that, too? The hand can be used as a measuring device. We have all of our fancy measuring devices today, a measuring cup, a tape measure perhaps, or a ruler, or an odometer, or what have you, to measure different things. The idea of the passage before us is that the hand can be used also as a measuring device. For example, we can cup our hand and we can hold a certain amount of water or some other type of liquid in the hollow of our hand. Or we can stretch out our hand and we can make a measurement from the tip of our tongue or the tip of our thumb to the tip of our small finger. Or we can use our forefingers and our thumb to sprinkle a certain amount of salt or some kind of spice into that which we are cooking. Well, that's what Isaiah is speaking about here when he speaks about the hand of God. Now, especially for our children's sake this morning, God doesn't have hands. God's a spirit who dwells in heaven. So when Isaiah is speaking about the hand of God here in the passage that we have before us, he's not speaking about the fact that God has a hand, but he's using that hand, describing God with a human characteristic in order to make a point for you and me. It's called an anthropomorphism. That's the big word for it. Ascribing to God human characteristics. And we well know that when Scripture speaks of the hand of God, it's really speaking about the power of His providence. God, as it were, by His hand, the Catechism tells us, upholds and governs all things in this world. So when Isaiah speaks here of the hand of God, he's really speaking about the power of God's providence in this world. But notice. God has measured in the palm of His hand the waters of this earth. What man is able to take all the waters in our present world and hold them in the hollow of his hand? And our answer would be, well, no. No man can do that. That's impossible. God does. All the rivers, all the lakes that abound with water, added together with all of the seas, God holds in His cupped hand. Consider the seas, the oceans, their vast underwater world, the depths of which man has only begun to explore. I mean, your discovery channels on television show of creatures that have never been seen before, discovered miles and miles below the surface of the water. All that water is held in God's hand. Isaiah says it's measured there. In other words, God knows every drop of water. that the oceans, or the seas, or the rivers, and the lakes hold. And He directs them exactly in the way that He should go. When they meander their way down from the mountains, and they meet such huge rivers as our Mississippi River, or when they flow out into the oceans. God directs all of that water, and He has measured it with the palm of His hand. We can understand well what Jeremiah says too concerning God. In Jeremiah 5, verse 22, If I can find it. Nehemiah 5, verse 22. Fear ye not Me, saith the LORD? Will ye not tremble at My presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree that it cannot pass it? And though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail? Though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?" Consider that. We think that the seas stay in their place because of the sea level. No. God holds the seas in their bounds by His hand because He holds them in His all-powerful hand. What man is capable of measuring the waters of this earth? And then, too, we are told here in verse 12 that God has meted out the heavens with a span. And what is meant by that, of course, is the span of a hand. The measurement from the thumb to the small of the little finger. God has measured out now the sand of this world, all the dust, all the dirt, all those innumerable little particles of sand by the seashore. He has numbered them all in the span of His hand. Once again, that figure of God's hand is being used here. And once again, We look at such a beautiful picture that Isaiah draws for us, and we see that there is not one man that can even count a handful of sand and all of its little granules in his hand. And yet, God has them all measured. And we're reminded once again of the fact that all of this soil in the world, gravel, clay, peat moss, what have you, all of that is measured in God's hand. And then, of course, there are the heavens. The heavens that stretch out before us, that man cannot even plumb because, after all, those galaxies out there are by the millions. And man can look through his giant telescopes and see stars afar off, and he can send out his space probes and try to do that. And yet God has measured the heavens with the span of His hands, too. It's all measured by God, you see. Measured in such a way that the psalmist could say this now in Psalm 8, verses 3 and 4, when I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained. What is man, that thou art mindful of him, and the Son of man, that thou visitest him?" Well, the universe is held within the span of God's hand, that vast, glorious universe. And then, of course, we have the shores that are by the seas, and these are measured now by God's hand as well. Translators disagree on the meaning of that word measure here that Isaiah uses here, that he measures out the earth and its expanse with a measure. What's meant by that measure? Some say, because literally it means third. Third. So people will say, well, it means maybe a third or two thirds of some kind of an unknown measuring device. But the Latin Vulgate, I believe, translates it the right way. And it translates it as three fingers. Once again, we use that figure of the hand, didn't we, where we sprinkle the salt or the spice into our food. God, in all the vastness of this earth and everything that it contains, it's held between His three fingers. So we have here a beautiful figure of God's great power. No man can do these things. Only God can do them. And then there's that added figurative language now of the mountains and the hills of the earth being weighed in a scale and in a balance. And those words that are used here in our English version are correct. The scale is something that we step on and it measures its weight, right? You step on that scale and the needle, or the digit, whatever it is now, moves exactly to that point of the weight that is on that scale. And then the same thing can be true on that of a scale. The same is true of a balance. So you have a balance here, right? On one side, so you put the weight on the one side, and when you get to the other side, then the other balance goes up, and you can determine the weight of something. Well, God has determined the weight of the mountains and the hills of the earth. And man can maybe carve a way through the mountains, but no man is able to weigh a mountain. No man is able to put the mountains in their place as God has done. Spreading them out through all of the earth. Now, what do these questions bring to our minds about the God whom we serve? That's ultimately the question, right? That's being asked here. What stands on the foreground in these questions? the omnipotence of God. The very fact that God is all-powerful. And that, children, is what omnipotence means. All-powerful. God is all-powerful to do exactly what His hand has determined to do. Our Father is omnipotent and that You can't deny. A God of might and miracle is written in the sky. It's written in the seas. It's written in the mountains and hills of this world. It's written in the stars and in outer space. Our God is omnipotent. He's great, and a God that is greatly to be praised in the city of His God. Certainly, if this great God of heaven and earth is so mighty, and He is, that's what Isaiah is pointing out to you and to me, then who need fear that He's also strong to save you and me? As wretched of a sinner as we might be, our God is strong. to save too. It took a miracle. It took a miracle to put the world in place. It took a miracle to hang the stars in space. But when he saved my soul, cleansed and made me whole, it took a miracle of love and grace. and that we are made to see in the passage that we have before us. Need God's people in Judah ever fear? That great God of heaven and earth was their God, a God who would never leave them and a God who would never forsake them, because He was a God who saved them. And we need never fear, no matter what circumstance of life through which God might lead us. Because that great God of heaven and earth who holds everything in the palm of His hand is our God. And He is powerful, all-powerful to save you and me from our sins. And He has done that through the all-powerful work of our Savior Jesus Christ on the cross. It was there that Jesus Christ took upon Him the burden of our sin. And it was there that He fought against our foe, Satan, in this wicked world. And He won the victory for us in that great power so that He broke the bondage of our sin and has set us free through the powerful work of our Savior there at the cross. He's justified you and me. We who were guilty before God and deserving nothing but God's wrath in our lives and judgment, as Isaiah was pointing out to Judah, that God, through Jesus Christ, powerfully paid the price for our sins. And in paying the price, set us free so that now we are the redeemed of God. That was the comfort, you see, that Isaiah was now trying to give God's people in Judah. We'll find that in connection with our last point, too. But then, let's move along to the next questions that he asks. And we're going to take the next two questions together, because they point out another attribute of God, and that's God's omniscience. That is, the fact that God is all-knowing. We read in verses 13 and 14, "...who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being His counselor, hath taught Him, with whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding. Can we begin to imagine once what it took to build Solomon's Temple in all of its grandeur and all of its beauty. And we begin to imagine what it took for those Egyptians to build those pyramids in order to reach that perfect peak at the top. No doubt, they used what we would call today all kinds of architects and engineers and professional companies of construction workers to accomplish those great feats. These men were skilled. They were highly trained, after all, in their area of expertise. They must have had years and years of experience behind them. They must have been taught. They must have been educated in the way now that they put their knowledge to use. They no doubt consulted with one another in the building of these edifices because, after all, many minds put together They can choose just exactly the right way to construct them. Magnificent, amazing feat that man is able to perform. Believing saints, behold your God. Examine Him. And look at the seas. And look at the universe. And look at the mountains and the plains around us. Even in our own land, if you were to take a trip across our country. Examine the intricate design of this creation. Look at ourselves. How fearfully and wonderfully we are made. All of that together. All of that together makes up this huge, magnificent, amazing structure of the world or the creation that we live in. I mean, the Temple of Solomon, the pyramids in Egypt, any other structure that we might look on with our eyes today, pale. in comparison to the majesty of our God that we see in the creation around us. Look at what God built. Now let's ask the questions of verses 13 and 14. Who directed the Spirit of God? when that Spirit of God moved upon the face of the deep. And God triune, through that Spirit, brought forth this world in six days. The Holy Spirit's the giver of life. The Spirit, O Lord, makes life to abound. Who directed that Spirit to create all things? No one other than the triune God, of which, of course, the Spirit is one. Who was God's counselor? Isaiah asked. Before the foundations of this world were laid, God existed. No one was there with God. So with whom did God consult? What wise and mighty men did He sit down with? And did He consult about how to build this universe? Where did God receive His instruction, His education? Who taught God His trade, Isaiah asks? Who instructed Him to do exactly what He has done and what we see that He is doing right now in this world? Who said to God, who said to God, well, maybe that's not the best way of doing things. Maybe you should try a different way. This way is faulty, God. Who said that to God? That's what Isaiah is asking when he says, who taught God the path of judgment? Who taught God the right way of doing things, the way that he is doing things? Whom did God need to plan the entire universe and then exactly every little detail that was worked out in that universe until the very end of time? Who directed God to do that? No one. No one. And that's because God didn't need anyone. He's the all-knowing. He's the all-wise God. The omniscient God of heaven and earth. Look at the universe. How many millions of solar systems that we can see in this world. Look how the planets orbit around the sun and the moon around the earth. The music of the spheres we speak of. The harmony of the planets cry out to you and to me of that wisdom of the God whom we serve. The plants dependent on the rain. The animals dependent on the plants. Man and beast dependent on the air that we take in. The plants dependent on the air that we breathe out. All of that, a bold testimony, don't you see, of the knowledge and understanding of God. The laws of nature that man has been able to discover so that we can develop this present world in the way that we have. Those laws of nature have always been there. And then God gave man the knowledge to discover them and to use them. But they were always there. The DNA strands that make up a man or a woman's genetic makeup so that if one little DNA strand is mutated, causes illness, disease, even death. Can man make all of this? Can man even control all of this? Oh, the depth of the knowledge and of the understanding and of the wisdom of our God. All God had to do Speak a word None of this was a big deal To our God All-powerful world word, that's all he spoke wasn't difficult Wasn't difficult because he's God now he Isaiah says behold that God Examine him. This is the God whom we serve. This is this is a Our God, the one who leads us, the one who feeds us, the one who preserves us in the salvation that he has earned for you and me in our lives, that's our God. Now, there's implied in these questions a comparison. And that, too, we want to take a brief look at, even though in a certain sense we've already been comparing God to man in our first point. There's a comparison. We want to bring that to the foreground in order that you and I might understand where we stand in connection with that Almighty God. When we make that comparison, beloved saints, Then the conclusion that we come to is that God is so great, and you and I are really puny little creatures of the dust. Man at his best is really no one great, even though he thinks that of himself. God through Isaiah points that out repeatedly, not only in this chapter, but in the chapters that follow this too. God alone is God. And there is no one that can be likened unto God. He has no equal. And man is but a little tiny creature in the hands of a sovereign God who leads man exactly in the way that He chooses, just like He does all of the rest of His creatures. And that's true as far as man's strength is concerned. Can man hold the waters of the earth in the hollow of his hand? Can man measure the entire universe with the span of his hand? Can man hold the soils of the earth with the pinch of his fingers? What is man that God is even mindful of him? And we bring this up because the world in which we live Boasts of the power of man It always has I mean What had happened in Isaiah here in the former chapters is Rabshakeh, the Assyrian captain had come and he had made fun of God himself and said to the Israelites in Jerusalem, this God will never be able to deliver you out of my hand. I'm great, I'm powerful. This God won't be able to do a thing. I mean, look at all the other gods, they couldn't do anything. Your God won't do anything either. And then, of course, God destroys Rabshakeh and his entire army. But man likes to boast in his own power. Likes to do that. And he does that in our world today, too. We know that. We know that. Look at what great feats I've accomplished. in buildings, in medicine, in technology, in warfare, whatever. Look how great and how powerful we are as the United States of America. And then we look at vain man in his computer-enhanced movies that he likes to make. And in those movies, he makes out men and women as these powerful superheroes that are able to do things that only God is able to do. And everybody's entertained by that to the degree that man begins to think that he is some kind of a superhero. And that he has these kinds of powers. And he doesn't have them. And when everything is said and done, man is a man. And he is so small in comparison to the great God of heaven and earth that you and I serve. What's implied then in those questions once again that's asked by Isaiah here? We just flipped down a couple of chapters to Isaiah 45. As I said, all of these chapters now really build on each other. Beautiful chapters in Isaiah. We read in Isaiah 45 verse 12 this, I, God, have made the earth and created man upon it. I, even My hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their hosts have I commanded." And because this is true, this is God's answer now to proud, boastful man in that same chapter, Isaiah 45, verses 9 and 10. Well unto him that striveth with his Maker, Let the potsherds strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioned it, what makest thou or thy work? He hath no hands. Woe unto him that saith unto his father, what begettest thou? Or to the woman, why hast thou brought forth? God alone is all powerful. God alone has the strengths. Even the strength that we possess is that which God has given to you and me. And likewise, that God is all-knowing and all-wise in His ways, who is man. Man must gather together with many counselors in order to keep from making errors. Man has to be educated. Man has to learn his skills. He has to be instructed. He has to be taught in knowledge and in understanding. And even then, that knowledge and understanding of man is so, so limited. Man might become adept in doing certain feats, but then he is not able to do other things. Man is not so knowledgeable. And those young men and young women who attend colleges and universities where these professors like to stand before you and boast of their knowledge, and then try to convince you that believing in This great and this mighty God is all foolishness. Those professors are fools themselves. What is man like unto God, who is infinite in knowledge and taught by no one, and who is wise in everything that he performs? So what is man in relation to God? We, beloved saints, must bow the knee always before our Creator. And we must kiss God's Son, lest He be angry. And when the enemies of God and of Jesus Christ rise up against the church and attempt to break outside of their bounds, they fail. And God in the heavens laughs at those puny attempts of man. We bow before the living God. In the last days in which we live, we know that that anti-Christian kingdom is going to arise. And that kingdom is going to be a kingdom of man where He worships Himself as the Supreme One of heaven and earth. We know that that kingdom comes about. We know that in that kingdom, God's church will be persecuted. We know that oftentimes the wicked of this world seem to have an upper hand against the church and against you and me, just as it was true in Judah's day. And he'll establish his kingdom. For a time, he will. But not against the will of God. He'll do that exactly because God himself is directing him to do that. And that, in order to bring about the final coming of Jesus Christ our Lord. You see, that's the beauty of it all. This hand of God and powerfully directing all of his universe, he directs it because Jesus Christ stands at the very heart of everything that he does. Jesus Christ came in exactly that moment of time that God determined in the fullness of time. And Jesus Christ is going to come again at the end of time so that every event that's taking place right now in our world and in all of the creation around us, every event swirls toward that second coming of Jesus Christ our Lord. And that according to God's sovereign will. So wicked man will not serve God. But you and I, who have been given the eyes of faith, have now just examined who our God is. And we bow before that living God. And when we bow before that living God, then we find comfort. Behold your God, beloved saints, omnipotent, omniscient, in all of his glory, in all of his majesty. who upholds the universe in his hand. If that God is for us, nothing can be against us. Nothing. That was the point that was now being made to the remnant in Israel or in Judah. See, they were despairing. They were asking the question, has God forgotten us? Does He love us no more? Has He forsaken us, that few of God's people left there? They asked that question in Isaiah 49, verse 14. But Zion said, the Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. We'll let God answer those saints. and answer us too sometimes when we fret. Can a woman forget her sucking child that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of My hands. Thy walls are continually before Me. There's nothing more reassuring than the words of Isaiah to the church at that time. God never forsakes his people. He never forgets you and me. Has he not provided us a Savior? Has he not redeemed us from our sin and our guilt? So that our only comfort in life and death is that we belong to that faithful Savior, Jesus Christ? No. Our only comfort in life and death is that we belong to that sovereign God who sent Jesus Christ for you and me. We're purchased with a price. We belong to that God. And that means this great God of heaven and earth has graven His church and has graven the name of every individual saint on the palm of His hand, the same hand that controls all of the universe. So we say it with the Apostle Paul, nothing will ever separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen. Father in heaven, we are thankful that thou art our God and we are thy people. Again, we realize how small we are, that thou art even mindful of us is a wonder. And we're mindful of the fact that we are sinners, and yet thou hast sent thy Son, who powerfully has delivered us from our sins, so that we now belong unto thee, our God, and thou wilt use everything with thy all-powerful hand for the good of thy church and the salvation of thy people. We are thankful for that, Father. We're comforted also in our lives, because we know that that's true in whatever circumstance of life we face. But thou go with us now in this day, bring us back at the appointed time tonight. For Jesus' sake we ask these things, amen. Psalm 47. We sing together Psalm 47, selection C. Praise the Lord, ye lands, nations, clap your hands, shout aloud to God, spread His fame abroad. Praise Him loud and long with a triumph song. Bow as ye draw nigh, for the Lord, the Most High, terrible is He in His dignity, and His kingdom's girth circles all the earth. Let's sing the three stanzas, number 47C. Patience, clap your hands. Shout aloud to God. Spread his name abroad. Praise him loud and loud. ♪ Glory to our King ♪ ♪ He is Lord of all the world ♪ ♪ Magnified is His worth ♪ ♪ This is majesty, understanding we ♪ Israel, Israel, Israel. God, eternal King of Kings, Who only lives at people's end, Performing wondrous things. great and glorious name forevermore. Amen. And let his glory fill the earth from shore to shore. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be and abide with you all. Amen. We pray that you were edified by the preaching of the gospel today. Please join us for worship if you are ever in the area. For more information about our church, beliefs, or worship times, please visit our website at prccrete.org.