“Behold Your God!” (Part 4 of 4)

It's easy for any of us times to be tempted to despair. The question of God really cares today on Truth for Life.

Alastair beg explains why we can confidently rest in God's promises.

Today we conclude our series title, behold, your God, Alistair's teaching from Isaiah chapter 40 were in verses 12 through 31 so God the creator without any outside help God. The counselor and no need of advice and then got created the universe and keeps the universe under his control loop back up adverse 21 and hear the questions come. Do you not know. Do you not hear has it not been told you from the beginning.

What is Isaiah doing here was essentially saying listen you know this. You know this, you've had it. You've seen it on display. You know that this is the case so you know better he speaking to the people of God, the ones who are complaining under saying my way is hidden from God and so on. He said you know better than that to despair of the power of God to doubt the care of God to deny or despise the wisdom of God. Now how does he address this is invokes you know these things you you know you Herod.

You know it's been true from the beginning.

You've understood this. If you like from the foundations of the earth. This is foundational truth to you and you know that it is he that is the living and true God who sits above the circle of the earth, here's another amazing picture is a picture of the fight that God is so transcendent and he is above and beyond everything he's eternally is not trapped by time he's not trapped by space. He sits above beyond around if you like the circle of the earth. What is he doing what he's upholding and maintaining that which he has made us what he's doing member reset this morning.

Big thoughts of God, and small thoughts of ourselves first on you fly it. That's what some assessor if only for no timesaver how small everything is sits above the circle of the earth. How small. What's he doing well. Colossians tells us that in Jesus his all things are are holding together in him this, you see is the basis of our security that they the picture of grasshoppers doesn't appear there for the first time an actual fight. If you remember from Sunday school days, your old 12 men went to spine Canon 10 were bad and two were good. I remember that the bad fellow said it's a terrible place is full of great giants and and is not a good idea to go there but to follow set I was Caleb and Joshua said well it is full of great giants. In fact, they are so big that we appear to ourselves as grasshoppers who can read that in numbers and in chapter 13. That's exactly what is happening here.

Don't you know you Herod. You do know this is foundational. The same God who stretches out the heavens like a curtain with a picture that is the very fineness of the heavens of you like like a gauze you know you have to be in Jesus stretches it out and who is this God while he is the God who brings princes to nothing and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness. Those who serve in office of any kind of office pastors, policeman politicians, schoolteachers, will never spend one hour longer in that position than that which God has intended is impossible because the God who upholds everything according to his power is the God who controls all things, and so it is that when we think has we think of the moment of all that is going on. We realize what a seller tree and necessary reminder. This is, he makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness the word of this use. There is the same word that is used in the very beginning of the Bible in Genesis 1 where he says the earth was without form and void.

That is, that is the word that is used in other words, the air in that condition was unfit for the purpose for which it was created unfit for the purpose for which it was created. And that's what God does.

He makes them unfit for the purpose they will notice that it is just a breath is just a breath, scarcely only planted scarcely other song scarcely is there stamp taken root in the earth when he blows on them and the weather, the Tempest carries them off like stubble. If this were another context we good.we have a sidebar and talk about it in very practical terms, I don't want to do that. But here's the point. Just as the stars remain in place, not according to some kind of mechanical necessity, but on up on the basis of if you like the Creole tutorial purpose of God. Man looks up in the sky and says we can explain this no God's word makes things very, very clear, they are not held in place by mechanical necessity, and neither are the rulers of the world they will come to an end note, I will. I wonder if you have your Bible, to turn from moment to the 45th chapter, we we were in 44 but now 45 and five here we go. I am the Lord.

This comes again, again, doesn't I am the Lord, and there is no other beside me there is no God. I equip you, you do not know me that my people may know this is this is a word.

Incidentally, just to Cyrus who is going to be the instrument of God in the unfolding of his purposes. I equip you, so you do not know me, you get the point that God raises up people, surprising people that people may know from the rising of the sun and from the West that there is none beside me. I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I meet well-being and create calamity. I am the Lord who does all these things are, here's the point. The will and purpose of God from all eternity stands behind everything light and darkness pain and pleasure. Peace and calamity. In fact, if you're using a King James version.

It doesn't say calamity. It says evil, which is a good verse to go for coffee and talk to your friends about. But here's the point. Nothing, nothing can spring into action without gourds see so and nothing can run beyond the boundaries of his purposes. It is impossible because he is God. You see, unless we get a hold of this, then we will we will inevitably fall into the great pit which suggests that somehow or another Lord is only sovereign in our life's when everything is pleasant. I get this all the time for B was about either that the devil must've done this one because I know God is only on the side of of of pleasure. He is not he is nothing to do with pain or nothing to do with calamity my loved one she's got everything to do with calamity my friend a tear. My good friend, my much less friend.

He said if God were only sovereign in life, pleasantness, what an endangered species. We would be to take that he leads us in paths of righteousness for his namesake rights on 23. One of the paths of righteousness while green pastors yes what else the deep valley of the shadow of death, both the valley of the shadow of death in the green pastors are the paths of righteousness. God knows what he's doing. He knows what he's doing on the macro level and he knows what he's doing on the little level all we shouldn't be discarded if things appear to us to be out of control. They're not out of control. From our perspective.

Maybe, but not from the one nuisance I would say the circle of the universe. What who is called the galaxies in the space. No, they can't be. He's the creator is the counselor is the controller and finally is the comforter. By then, verse 27.

Why do you say Jacob and Spiegel, Israel, your my people why you saying this why you keep saying things like, it seems that the Lord has forsaken me, or that he has forgotten me again. Let's be honest. Surely there are times in our life's in the journey of faith when we find ourselves more leaning in this direction than in the triumphant assurance and joy of things we know we can identify. I think with the though the word of the people in the size the Psalms you know by the rivers of Babylon.

We sat down and we went how are we going to sing the Lord's song in a foreign land and people come to mean so you know, America actually beginning to feel like a foreign land or not. Here's a real danger. Let me tell you what it is the dangerous and is a real danger if were not careful and we need to nudge one another continually on this.

This notion, we are constantly in danger of applying and merely political, social, and national terms.

The issue is not about our nation.

Who are we.

We are the people of God called by his name called from the dark and delivered from shame.

One holy race Saints everyone because of the work of Christ Jesus, the son, we are the community of Jesus as who we are and I assume we are first of all, and that's something that we going to have to learn as Christians for as long as God spares us in this 21st century because otherwise we will continue to ride the roller coaster socially, politically and nationally up to the top and down to the bottom to the top and down to the bottom with every passing cycle, such as the one we've just been through, it is not that we disregard the don't but is not the issue.

Christ is a King and his kingdom is an international community and we by his grace are made part of that.

So what should be our concern here is the concern we are to have. We ought to be concerned about the sluggishness of our worship. We are to be concerned about the feebleness of our own personal prayer life's we are to be concerned about the lack of zeal and the manifold cowardice which fills so many of our hearts in relationship to evangelism coloring away, hiding behind religious platitudes and statements that really mean very little anybody at all because were not prepared to say that the word of God is fixed in the heavens and if we live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God means what God says about gender that means what God says about marriage that means what God says about everything and that you see is the issue far easier just to take it on some kind of political level will get the student that fixed and so on.

I been here now for goodness knows how long.

I don't so long. Like I cannot believe that we still at the same program that we were in 1983 when the people began to give me all the political leaflets. You gotta do this, Pastor. You've got affixes better this will go down and so on and saw no absolutely not. People of misunderstood my comments. I recognize that I should make half of the comments, but if you knew the ones I Back you would applaud me for the few that I've actually made no God, why did you forget us look at us here did what what what's going on, Lord you I don't think you could see was going on. If you disregarded us, can a woman forget her nursing child. The answer to that.

Of course, is by God. Even she may forget, yet he says I will not forget you. I have actually grieving you on the palms of my hands now who says this or this is where we end the everlasting God says this happened you know, haven't you heard of course you have the Lord is the everlasting God is the Creator of the ends of the earth while he doesn't faint or grow weary of course, he can grow weary would it be terrible if he grew weary of us would not be quite dreadful. God says I'm fed up with you. Alister weary of year this year that the next day we weary of that church. Now it would be understandable. I think actually would be justifiable list. In my case because we grow weary of God. Now I don't want to know.

I don't think so. Now this very demanding. He doesn't grow weary.

He gives power to the faint, the one who is no might he increases strength. So when we are bewildered by life form are tempted to lie down in the grass in the middle of the thing where the track goes round 400 m or whatever it is, so you know what I am going to check this now my civil, money can happen because we know that you faint and they grow weary.

Even athletes they get tired, they have to go and get that Gatorade or whatever else it is in those who went through the Marine school they actually know what it is to be exhausted, but here, those who wait for the Lord those who wait for the Lord. Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord, I will explain the weakness of the contemporary church in absence of waiting, waiting. In other words, resting in the assurance that the promises that God has made. He will fulfill.

It is the expectation of the fulfillment of the promises of God to the people of God in the experience of the exile that allows them to keep your chin up and to keep going forward and this is the same for you and me soaring like eagles running, walking, I don't know. I don't know if I've done much soaring regular running either I settle for walking this help me look for help me walk, I mailed to walk for another week. Every good and then minivan get running out after I get a walking down maybe we could soar. He says says it we can soar our congregation could soar.

Human even with mass on our yard definitely soar with my son, you see is the expectation of the fulfillment of the promises of God that keeps us going that keeps us on our toes, but we understand that you look forward to your birthday and so on. Say well it's not much of a day, but whatever your birth years or something like that might be.

You know me well enough to know that for seven years. I wrote letters to a girl in the hope that you know I might manage to triumph over all the American boys who had access to her while I was far away American boys who had muscles in places that I don't even have places and in the and and so it was the whole it was the expectation and so was she worth the wait 52 years later I'm telling you, definitely worth the wait. Some of your young people some of your just not even 20 years old. Listen to those of us who are older God is worth the wait to wait upon him to trust him to rest on him to be prepared to say you can have the totality of me. I'll go wherever you want me to go and I'll stay there for as long as you tell me to stay and I'll do whatever you want me to do and I forsake every idol that I've raised up that says to me no you can't do that because of this, and you can do it because of that and you and so on and done without Lord, I want to wait upon you, and I want to see your promises fulfilled in the same forces which are well there's the point we began with the word of comfort. We were introduced to the gentleness of the shepherd. God, the vastness of God and we end with the shepherd. God I I find myself singing to myself sometimes to imagine imagine the shepherd. God singing this to me. Alister, when you weary feeling small frontiers are in your eyes are dry them all. I'm on your side when times get rough and friendships can be found when you're down and out when you're on the street when evening falls, so hard, I will come for you. I'll take your part when darkness comes in. Pain is all around like a bridge over troubled water I will leave me down. It's that lay me down that kills me when I think of Paul Simon you going to be crazy to think that he can write that lyric without knowing who it is who lays down his life for the sheep. I am the good shepherd.

The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

The awesome God steps down into time and bids us Are all upon him, and if we will, he will keep us all the way to the end and through the end because he's promised to do so in the promises he makes.

He keeps so we can trust that's Alister reminding us that God will never forget.

Forsake his people listing to Truth for Life. Thousands of Alister's sermons can be listen to downloaded and shared for free, truth like mobile app also on our website. The teaching library is completely free to access because of partners like you who give monthly to help offset the cost.

In fact, it's the monthly giving from blisters we call true partners that makes the free archive possible. So if you are one of our true partners. Thank you for giving the gift of solid biblical teaching to others.

If you're not yet a true partner.

Today is a great day to join the team and it's easy to do. Just visit Truth for Life.org/true partner you can establish a true partner giving right online only takes a few minutes or you can set up your giving over the phone when you call 888-5887 88 Is Our Way of saying thanks for being a true partner. We invite you to request both of the monthly book recommendations. They were featuring a book titled the all sufficient God, written by Dr. Martin Lloyd Jones this book is a perfect supplement of the series. We just concluded when you read this book, you'll get to know God as he is revealed to us in Scripture.

You learn to rest securely in his provision in the title is the all sufficient God book is yours by request today.

When you sign up to become a true partner can also request the book with a one-time donation.

Click the image on our app or visit our website@truthforlife.org/donate Bob Lapine with your neighbors be surprised to learn that your Christian tomorrow will see how our lives ought to reveal the truth about her membership in the family of God, the Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life where the Learning is for Living