Those of you in the tape family, we're glad to have you worshiping with us. This is J.B. Messer bringing the message tonight in the absence of our pastor who is visiting in one of the missions. It's been a gracious day today as we worship the Lord together from the early morning broadcast. How many of you heard the pastor this morning telling about how God saved him? I'm enjoying these messages all over again. I've heard them several times, but every time I hear them, it's a blessing. The Lord dealt with our late pastor and brought him to know the Lord, to salvation. And then the Sunday school hour was gracious and the worship hour. The Lord has been dealing very tenderly and graciously in our hearts. Pray together for us that the Lord will continue to move. The simplicity and the sublimity of the doctrine of God is found expressed in the first verse of the first chapter of the book of Genesis. In these very simple words, in the beginning, God. In the beginning, God. God doesn't take anyone's time to explain what God he's talking about because there is only one God. All the other gods are the figment of man's imagination. The gods of wood, the gods of steel, the gods of gold, the gods of silver, even the gods that are in the imagination, those are all gods that are man-made. There is only one God. In Psalms 86, the verses eight through 10, the psalmist tells us, among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord. Neither are there any works like unto thy works. All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name. For thou art great and doest wondrous things. Thou art God alone. And then Hezekiah, in the 37th chapter of Isaiah, prayed this prayer. He prayed unto the Lord, saying, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, who dwelleth between the cherubim, thou art the God. Even thou alone of all the kingdoms of the earth, thou hast made heaven and earth. And then in the same prayer, he further says, of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations and their countries, and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were no gods. but the work of men's hands, wood and stone. Therefore have they destroyed them. Now therefore, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord, even thou only. And then in Isaiah 44, six, we find, thus saith the Lord, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts. I am the first, and I am the last, and beside me there is no God. Now we could go on quoting other passages of scripture, showing that there is only one God, but I think everyone who has sat under this ministry any length of time at all knows that there is only one God, and that is the God that we worship. Now when I'm speaking of God here, I'm speaking not only of God the Father, but to God in Trinity. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. This God has always existed, for He is the Eternal One. He is the Eternal God, has always existed. There never was a time that God did not exist. There never was a time that there was not God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. They existed from eternity. I know it's hard for our finite minds to understand eternity. We can think back just as far as we can think and just continue to think and think further back and further back. And then even beyond that, there never was a time that God did not exist. God is eternal. He is the everlasting one. Now God is perfect and complete within himself. We don't serve a little tin God, we worship a perfect, a powerful, and a complete God. A God who is sovereign, a God who does as he pleases, when he pleases, and as he will. Some years ago our late pastor brought a series of messages on the God of the Bible. If you have a copy of that old mimeograph messages, I wish you'd get them out and read them back over again. It'll do your heart good to go back over them and read them and study them. The God of the present day religious world is not the God of the Bible. The average church member today thinks of God as being a little effeminate, frustrated, helpless being who is sitting on the sideline waiting for sinners to give their heart to him as the invitation many times goes. But God is sovereign and controls this universe. It'll do you good to go back and read the first chapter of Ephesians and there you'll find how God is sovereign and The first chapter of Ephesians, one of the greatest chapters in the whole Bible. Now, I want us to look tonight at the divine perfections of this sovereign, eternal God. First, I want to name some of them, and then we'll go back and discuss one or two of them as we have time. God is perfect in his decrees. Those things that God has decreed, those things that God has purposed or has determined is going to come to pass. They're complete. And they're perfect. God is perfect in his knowledge. He knows all things. God is perfect in his foreknowledge. Well, you say, what's the difference between knowledge and foreknowledge? Foreknowledge has to do with God's election. Knowledge has to do with things and places as well as people. But foreknowledge has to do with God's elect, or people that he has chosen under salvation. God is perfect in His superiority or His supremacy. God is perfect in His sovereignty. God is perfect in His unchangeableness or in His immutability. God is perfect in His holiness. God is perfect in His power. God is perfect in His faithfulness. God is perfect in His goodness. God is perfect in His patience. God is perfect in His grace. God is perfect in His mercy. God is perfect in His love. And also, God is perfect in His wrath. Now, God does not make a mistake. God has never made a mistake. God doeth that which is right at all times. I don't know how you feel about it, but this makes my heart to rejoice, knowing that I have such a God as my Savior, a God who cannot be frustrated, a God whose will cannot be crossed, who cannot be thwarted in his purpose. I want us to turn, if you have your hymn book there, turn to 329, and let's read the words of that song. It has a special meaning to me. 329, the solid rock. My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. On Christ, the solid rock, I stand. All other ground is sinking sand. When darkness seems to hide His face, I rest on His unchanging grace. in every high and stormy gale my anchor holds within the veil. Now notice the third verse, his oath, his covenant, his blood. What could be any stronger? His oath, his covenant, his blood support me in the whelming flood when all around my soul gives way. And sometimes it does, it seems as though God goes off and leaves you for a while. When all around my soul gives way, he then is all my hope and stay. When he shall come with trumpet sound, oh yes, I will in him be found. I like to read it that way. Oh yes, I will in him be found, dressed in his righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne. Do you have that Christ as your Savior? Do you know that God of the Bible? the one who redeems by his precious blood, the one who gave himself for us that he might redeem us unto himself. Listen to God's word in 2 Corinthians 5, 18-21. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation, to wit that God was in Christ. reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us. We pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. Notice that last verse. For he hath made him who knew no sin to be made sin for us. that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. God has made him who knew no sin to be sin for me, that I might be made the righteousness of God in him. That's grace. That's mercy. Now let's notice, first of all, the decrees of God. Brother Pink gives us a definition of the decrees of God as being His purpose or His determination with respect to future things. God's decrees are perfect. God's decrees are complete. There are certain things that God decreed before the foundation of the world should come to pass, and they're going to come to pass, just like He decreed them. Listen to Acts 15, 18. Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. Before God created the world, and you think along with me, before God created the world, he had already determined or decreed every event that should ever take place during the existence of this universe, from the time it was created until it will be destroyed by fire, according to 2 Peter 3.10. But the day of the Lord shall come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, and the earth also, and the works that are in it shall be burned up." Every event up until this present hour has happened according to God's decree that they should happen. Everything that will happen tonight Tomorrow, next week, next month, next year, and so on until the end of what we know as time, will take place according to God's decrees, as God decreed it before the foundation of the world. The death of Christ on the cross of Calvary, we're told in Acts 2.23, was a determinate counsel of God, For as it is by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken and slain the Lord Jesus Christ. It's an amazing thing to me that before God created man, before the world was spoken into existence, before a man was created, God, knowing that man was going to sin, provided from before the foundation of the world, a savior for him. Before God created man, before man was placed on the earth, God had already provided a ransom for man, a means whereby man could be saved and be given eternal life. The salvation of every one of God's elect was predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will, according to Ephesians 1.11. The ninth verse of that first chapter of Ephesians tells us, having made known unto us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself. Now God did not create this world and then leave it to run itself, but he predetermined every circumstance and how that every issue would be resolved. Even the wrath of man is being made to praise God, for Psalm 76, 10 tells us, surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain. God is making the rebellion and the violence and the unrest that we see all around us in the world today, He's making that even to praise Him. He decreed how and when each one of us will meet our death or whether we remain until the rapture of the church just before the tribulation. The more I think about the knowledge of God, the more I think about the wisdom of God, the more I try to Fathom God, we are made to say we don't understand anything of God except what is revealed in his word. Now let's notice some of the characteristics of the divine decrees of God. The decrees of God, first of all, are eternal. All the decrees of God were wrought out back in the eternities before the world were created. It is not necessary that God would have to make any adjustments to the world because he made it perfect in the beginning. God didn't have to reprogram any of his works, as man has to do with his work sometimes, his inventions. Everything works out according to God's plan, according as God purposed it. Listen to Psalm 3311. The counsel of the Lord standeth forever. the thoughts of his heart to all generations. Notice also Proverbs 19, 21. There are many devices in a man's heart, nevertheless the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand. We notice secondly, the decrees of God are wise. Everything that God did, he did well. He does it in a wise manner. That doesn't mean that we can always see the wisdom of that which God does, for we can't see very far. We endure but for a time, and then we pass on. But listen to what God said, what is said of God in Isaiah 46, ninth and the 10th verses. Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is none else. I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning. and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure. The wisdom of any undertaking is found in its completion, in its final completion according to plan. When we look upon a completed building that was built according to the architect's plan, we see the wisdom of his plan in the completed building. Notice Psalms 104, 24. Oh Lord, how manifold are thy works. In wisdom thou hast made them all. The earth is full of thy riches. Then again, the decrees of God are free. God was under no compulsion as to when or to where or how he would make any of his decrees. Listen to Isaiah 40, 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 him the way of understanding? Who has taught God anything? If you want to find something that's interesting to read, something to tell you about God's creation, You look in the 38th through the 41st chapters of Job. After Job's companions had said all that they were going to say, and Job had made his speech, then the Lord asked Job a bunch of questions. Where was you when such and such a thing was done? Can you create such and such a thing? It'd be interesting to go back and read those chapters. But at the end of it, when God had finished questioning Job, Job said, I know that thou canst do everything. and that no thought can be withheld from thee. Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? Therefore have I uttered that which I understood not, things too wonderful for me which I knew not. The counsels of God cannot be set aside. They are absolute and they are unconditional. That which God decrees or that God determines to be done is done. In the beginning, God said, let there be light, and there was light. Notice 2 Thessalonians 2.13. But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation. Back in the beginning of time, before God created the world, every one of God's elect was already specified. They were already named. God knew their names and knew who was going to be saved, how they were going to be saved, and when they were going to be saved. Because God hath from the beginning chosen you unto salvation through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth. God not only determines to save men, but he also determines to give them faith whereby they may look to Christ and believe him. The bringing to pass of the decrees of God rests with God himself and not upon the wishes or the will of the creature. Then now, that follows one of my favorite passage of scriptures in Romans 8, 28. For all things work together for good to them who love God, to them who are called according to his purpose. God works all things according to his purpose. And he worked all things for good to those who loved the Lord. Now let's know something about the knowledge of God. God's knowledge is complete. God's knowledge is perfect. God's knowledge is closely akin to the decrees of God in that God knows everything. Not only does he knows everything past, but he knows everything present and everything future. He knows all creatures, whether they be animals, fish, fowl, human, or even inanimate objects. He knows all things. He knows every event of every one of his creatures, past, present, and future. God has never yet been taken by surprise. God has never yet been taken surprise, neither can be because he knew everything that was going to happen back in the eternities. God knows everything, no matter whether it's performed in the bright sunlight or in the darkest midnight. Daniel 2.22 tells us, He revealeth the deep and secret things. He knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him. Also in Hebrews 4.13, 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. And then in the 12th verse of the same chapter, he tells us that he is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Nothing can be hidden from God. He knows even the very thoughts and intents of our heart. He knows what we plan. He knows what we think. He knows what we desire. He knows what we want. and he knows everything about us and everything about this whole world. Listen to Psalm 139, one through four. Oh Lord, thou hast searched me and known me. Thou knowest my down sitting and mine up rising. Thou understandest my thoughts afar off. Thou compassest my path and my lying down and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my tongue But lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether. Now the amazing thing to me, and that which makes the grace of God shine out so graciously, is that even though He knows all about me, yet He loves me. Even though God knows all about me, yet in spite of that, He loves me. He knows all of my thoughts, all of my schemes and my plans, He knows all of my sins, all of my faults, all of my desires, and all of my longings. And praise God, he knows all of my needs. And he said that he will supply them according to his riches and glory by Christ Jesus. No wonder then that it's the love of God that breaks the sinner's heart and brings him to Christ for salvation. The wrath of God doesn't break a sinner. But it's the love of God, when that sinner sees how God loves him, that's what breaks his heart and brings him to know Christ, brings him to the feet of Christ, crying for mercy. This is one of the most comforting thoughts in God's word, that God loves us, even in spite of the fact that he knows all about us. Now that same thing ought to scare the daylights almost out of a person that is not saved, because knowing that God knows all about you, Knowing that God knows your heart and that you're someday going to be brought to judgment, unless you know Christ, unless you're brought to repentance and faith in Christ, then you ought to cry unto him for mercy. The children of Israel, though they were hidden in their groves while they were worshiping idols, they thought they were hid, but God knew all about them. Isaiah 66, 17, and 18 tells us, They that sanctify themselves and purify themselves in the gardens, behind one tree in the midst, eating swine's flesh, and the abomination and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the Lord. For I know their works and their thoughts. It shall come to pass that I will gather all nations and tongues, and they shall come and see my glory. Adam and Eve could not hide themselves from God in the Garden of Eden. He knew just exactly where they were and he called them and they came out and had to acknowledge their sin before him. No human eye saw Cain kill his brother, but God found him out. Achan thought he had done something smart when he hid that golden wedge in his tent, but God knew about it and revealed the fact Ananias and Sapphira thought they'd put over a fast one on God when they kept back a portion of the property that they sold, but it cost them their life. Numbers 32, 23 says, be sure your sins will find you out. God knows everything. Notice Psalms 147, 5. Great is our Lord and of great power. His understanding is infinite. That word infinite means that there is nothing that God does not know. His understanding is not restricted by time or by circumstances. God knows the future just as well as he knows the past and the present. Acts 15, 18 tells us, known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. And then let's turn to Psalm 139. I'd like to read a portion of that. We read some of it a while ago, but I'd like to read some other verses. Psalm 139, beginning with the fifth verse. Thou hast beset me behind and before, and hast laid Thine hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me. It is high. I cannot attain unto it. We can't understand the wisdom of God, even though we know that He is wise. Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Can I hide myself from God? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there. If I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, surely the darkness shall cover me, even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee, but the night shineth as the day. The darkness and the light are both alike unto thee. We cannot hide from God because he knows everything. He knows whatever we do, whatever we say, whatever we think. There is nothing that is hid from God. Now we could just go on and on telling about what God is, how gracious God is, and how good God is, but God is merciful. And that's the thing that makes my heart to rejoice, that God is merciful. God had mercy on me one day, brought me to see that I was a lost sinner, brought me to see that I was doomed and damned under the judgment of God. And then he brought me to see Christ as my Savior. He showed me that Christ died for my sins, that my redemption was wrought out on the cross of Calvary, and that Christ paid my sin debt to the Utmost Father. Has he done that for you? Do you know Christ as your Savior? Is there a longing in your heart to know Him? If there is, then it's because God put it there. because it's not natural, it's not nature to want to be saved. But if there is a longing in your heart to know Christ, then you may find him, you may know him. I was made to rejoice this morning when a lady told us that the Lord saved her this past weekend. And we ought to be constantly looking for God to save sinners and expecting every week, every day, every moment to hear someone say that the Lord has redeemed him. May the Lord deal graciously with our hearts. My heart is going out to you who do not know the Lord, that you will turn to Him and that He will redeem you by His grace. Let's stand. Our dear Heavenly Father, we thank Thee tonight for Thy mercy. We thank Thee, Heavenly Father, for Thy grace, for Thy love that Thou hast toward us. And dear Father, we pray that Thou will be with each and every awakened sinner, both here in the auditorium and out in radio land, that they may be brought to know Christ as their Savior and their Lord, whom to know is life eternal. Guide us and lead us. Teach us thy will day by day, for it's in Christ's name we ask. Amen.