The Greatness of God (Isaiah 6) - Part 4 — Paul Washer

I So appreciate many people have come to me this weekend and said, you know, brother Paul we we Listened to you on the internet things like that. And I think it's very important that I really want to share something.

God's Glory Through the Weakness of Men

That's very important to me. It's frightening if I don't share it. And I've never shared this publicly yesterday. I shared it with the pastor and But uses the weakness of men and For you young guys out there who are thinking about going in the ministry as I said yesterday Don't think that if God uses someone it's because they've reached some spiritual level That other people haven't reached and therefore for some reason God has put his hand upon them.

God is in all of this endeavor to get glory for himself. And it must be that way. Because of this if the universe is to be set right God must be the epicenter everything must flow from him and everything must return to him and All praise belonging to him and that is why God always takes that the weak the ignoble the vile and and uses that.

Now when I say that if I leave it there you'll think oh, that's that's really humble no, it's true. And I'm gonna prove it. I was walking to the church the other day as walking through the parking lot and I Just began to weep.

Because I realized something that someone had told me a couple of days prior. And I've had other people tell me this they said, you know better Paul I might not always Agree with you, but I know this you're going to tell the truth as you see it and you're not afraid.

And the reason I began to cries because you need to understand something the two marks of My life and what was destroying my life prior to coming to Christ. I Was probably one of the greatest cowards you've ever met in your life.

I Was so insecure that I could not return Something at Walmart that I bought Because I would think that the shopkeeper would get angry with me. Also, I was an infamous liar. I Lied myself into Terrible situations in college and then moved to the University of Texas thinking I was going to get a new start.

And the two things that most marked my life prior to conversion was cowardice and Not telling the truth. And now look people come and say Boy, you tell the truth and you're not afraid of anybody. But see you don't under do you see what I'm trying to tell you God doesn't look for someone who's a truth teller and someone who's courageous and say oh I found my hero.

He takes the most vile person he can find and then he says this is what I'm going to make up to understand that because anything outside of that is idolatry pathetic Idolatry and then even in the midst God can strengthen the man to be courageous to say things whenever men are mashing their teeth at him, but you don't see inside of totally frail and shaking and afraid.

Or God coming down in power and strengthening you so you preach and then and then pulls back when you walk out in the parking lot. And you think yourself? Oh, what have I done? And so you must see That everything is of God.

And that there are no Great and noble men of God. There are only pathetic weak men of a great and merciful God and All for one rejoice in that and There is a sense in which I I hope that I am sincerely following Christ and that I'm seeking to follow him and live in a manner worthy of my vocation.

But then another thing it is good when I am exposed as a disappointment. When someone hangs around me long enough to go I have this all the time people come to know me and they're disappointed. Because I eat and laugh and tell jokes and things and and sin fall short and stumble and and all sorts of things and as I've read biographies.

Which has a very very good thing to do if they're dead. But as I read biography, sometimes I'm extremely disappointed. And that a man is lifted up so that you think He's arrived to a place where he's being so used.

I Think it would bring greater glory to God if the weaknesses of men were exposed. That all men might glory in God alone. Another thing as I've done throughout this this teaching that we've had here. I've given you little snippets of What I have some of my best friends.

Refining the Spiritual Palate Through Theology

Men who lived a long time ago and I've read to you something from them. And the reason why I'm doing that is this and I want to iterate what I said, I think yesterday morning. You're not born knowing how to appreciate art.

That's why they have art appreciation class. But one of the bad things about the arts is that whenever a culture is corrupt It most quickly manifests its corruption in the arts. But in order to appreciate Monet or Renoir or something.

It's almost as that you must learn you must refine your palate as I said yesterday also to learn how to. To go somewhere and eat other than a smorgasbord to go to a place and eat because it's delicious not just because you get a bunch.

You almost have to refine your palate in the same way. You want passion for Christ to be burning and continuous? You must think great thoughts of God. But you must learn to do that. You must you must come and convince yourself that when you read through something like First John for it.

God is love if there is enough in that passage to hold you throughout all of eternity. One of the things that I've discovered is is it down through the ages? There were ministers. Who did not run around putting out fires.

They weren't entertainers. They weren't movers and shakers. Neither necessarily great leaders. But they would spend 10 hours a day alone with God. Something we would do well to return to. But I'm going to read something just to introduce you to another one of these fellows a dear friend of mine by the name of John Flavel.

John Flavel. I've entitled this The father's bargain, but this comes out of Flavel's book his first volume in his works and Actually, it's volume 1 page 61 but I just want you to read and Think about the way these men thought and then you'll come to understand more and more of how they could have such a deep Spirituality to them.

The Father's Bargain and the Justice of God

Flavel writes this here. You may suppose the father to say this is before the foundation of the world when driving his bargain. Listen. When the father drives his bargain with Christ for you. The father speaking my son.

He was a company of poor miserable souls. They have utterly undone themselves and now lie open to my justice. Yes, that's what salvation is about. The justice of God is our greatest problem and our injustice and the dislocation that those two things cause.

That's what salvation is all about. How to resolve this problem of the justice of God and the sinfulness of man. He said they now lie open to my justice. Justice demands satisfaction for them. Now don't think as was wrongly portrayed in the the first film on the Chronicles of Narnia.

But when God says that justice requires being paid. Do not think that there's some higher principle of justice Above God that he himself has to submit to that's not true. When God says that justice demands satisfaction.

For the sins we have committed it is God's own justice. It is God's own attribute he demands satisfaction. It's not some principle over him whereby he is saying I want to save you. But I can't because there's this principle of justice that even I must submit to that's not true.

But it is the very justice of God His own in himself. He must be consistent perfect one attribute not conflicting with another. Now he says this justice demands satisfaction for them or will satisfy itself in the eternal ruin of Them.

Either justice will be satisfied by some means Sins will be paid for or the sinner will pay by their eternal Ruin. Now the problem with hell in most intellectual pseudo intellectual minds is the duration of it.

But what you have to understand is two things. Hell is eternal it is infinite. Because you have sinned against an infinitely worthy God your crime is so high. And see people do not realize today how wicked and heinous sin is and the reason why is they don't know who God is.

Leave an example if you woke up to me today and just Laughing while you're gonna slap me on the back and go man. I wanted to kill you while you were preaching this morning in Sunday school. There's no law against that.

You do that to the president of the United States as an adult and you're going to jail. You see there's a difference. There's a difference in authority. There's a higher authority which makes the crime more grievous more heinous.

You have sinned against an infinitely worthy God if you are judged in that sin. If you're judged in that sin Then know this all of creation. Heaven and earth will stand up on the day that you are judged and condemned and they will applaud.

Because then all minds will be set right and they will recognize you are deserving of infinite Punishment because you've sinned against an infinitely good God. Secondly never suppose that those in hell are repentant.

They continue on and the father says in a rhetorical question to the son What shall be done for these souls and thus Christ returns. Christ answers? Oh my father such as my love to and pity for them that rather than they shall perish eternally I will be Responsible for them as their guarantee.

Now this sets before us a problem. But first of all something must be explained and then a problem. The thing that must be explained is this do never think that the son Came to save us in his love from a hateful father.

Never forget that for God. The father so loved the world he gave his only son. Now there is a sense in which the death of Christ saves us from God. How is that we had sinned against God the wrath of God was against us the wrath of God would judge us the justice of?

God would make sure that justice was done and when Christ died on the cross. He took away our sin. He paid the price for us and saved us from the wrath of God. But you need to understand it was also the love of God that sent the son to do that.

But also here's the great problem. When people say that I ask them sometimes I say why did God send his son and they say well because God Loves men. Now you've got a bigger problem. Not just why does God love men?

But how can God love men? What do you mean if God loves men? There's some terrible explaining to do. You see what would ever motivate a holy righteous God to love? Heinous rebellious wicked Sin-loving sinners when you think of Adolf Hitler does he draw from your heart love?

Doesn't create love. Do you want to pour out love on Adolf Hitler? Well, you are far worse before the throne of God. So if you say well God saves why does God say because God loves us, but why does God love us?

When we get back to this that Jonathan Edwards was so fond of speaking up speaking up for his own glory. To manifest his greatness my favorite passages is found in Deuteronomy where this occurs. Israel.

Christ's Sufficient Atonement

I loved you. Because I loved you. It's a taunt actually it is a taunt. Why did you love us because I loved you. Why did you love because I loved you and I loved you because I loved you. And what he's saying is Every good thing that comes from me is not drawn out of me by some virtue and merit in you if I were to Look at you and give you what you deserve.

There would be no love there would be only wrath and judgment because of your wickedness your fall in this your depravity. But I love you. I set my seal of love upon you because of me. It all has to do with me.

That's why salvation is such a work of grace. Now He says oh my father such as my love to and pity for them that rather than they rather. Then they shall perish eternally. I will be responsible for them as their guarantee.

Bring in all thy bills father. Everything they owe you. That I may see what they owe thee. Lord bring them all in that there may be no after Reckonings with them. They say what does all that mean? He said father Bring in everything that my people owe thee every bill everyone To the great from the greatest to the least everything they owe thee bring it here that I may calculate it and die.

With such a quality and in such a way that after I die. The payment is full and never again will these bills be reckoned to them. There'll be no debt outstanding after I pay now believer. That is a great comfort.

That is marvelous, you know, you ought to be jumping or something right now. You ought to be weeping. You ought to be about to bust. Sometimes we should weep over the dullness of our own hearts that we can hear these things and Then wonder where will we eat after that's over?

He said bring them in that there be no after reckonings with them at my hand shall thou require it. This you hear these statements throughout the Old Testament when the people of God have totally failed and God swears by his own right hand.

God is going to Triumph with his own right hand that own right hand is his son. I will rather choose to suffer their wrath than they should suffer it now be very careful here. There is a heresy abroad That basically teaches this.

That Because of the sufferings inflicted upon Jesus Christ. The wrath inflicted upon Jesus Christ by the hands of men. The fact that men nailed him to a cross and that men put a spear in his side and a crown on his head.

That that the affliction heaped upon him by the hands of men pays for our sin the wrath of men. All the physical suffering and the wrath of men had something important to do with our atonement. But you must understand this the preachers today are totally missing it when they do not define this for you.

He died under the wrath of God. I hear preachers say I'm gonna spend an entire hour preaching on the cross or every Easter. There are these cross messages that are what I used to call in Spanish and I'm really a romantic.

Oh, it's the romantic gospel. It's all about the physical sufferings of Christ from which I do not want to take away. But then they will totally miss that the one who came in the likeness of sinful flesh.

Bore our guilt was forsaken of God and crushed under his wrath. So when he says that That he will suffer their wrath. He's not simply referring to I will let men crucify me. He wasn't afraid of a cross.

I Spent a lot of time dealing with this on in one of and one of the things that at the workbooks that we work through. They're at the at our little Bible Institute. Do you actually think I? Hear people say well Jesus Christ, you know, they're in the garden was was just sweating drops of blood because of the rain and cross really and yet after Christ ascended.

There have been countless millions of Christians and they're in early Rome countless tens of thousands of Christians that died crucified upside down. Covered in pitch and set on fire and yet many of them went to the cross singing hymns joyfully.

Are you going to tell me that the captain of their salvation cowered in a garden afraid of a cross? While they themselves went there marching singing the hymns of Zion. Wasn't a cross or a whip was that he would bear sin and his father would forsake him and His father would pour out the full force of his holy wrath his holy hatred against our sin upon him.

Now this is upon me my father upon me be all their debt. Now the father responds. And listen to this very carefully but my son. If thou undertake for them You take their responsibility upon you. Thou must reckon to pay the last night.

You must pay down to the very last. And then he says expect no abatements. This. This is why language is so important. The reason why Satan works so hard in our educational system. Words mean things. These words are important.

Expect no abatement. What does that mean? Well, we say the storm abated it it died down it lessened. My trials have abated they have lessened. And what he's saying do not expect son. That I will lessen in any form the punishment when it falls upon your shoulders.

Expect no mercy, if I spare them. If I spare your people I Will not spare thee. If I spare your dad. If I save these sinners. Then I will not spare thee at all. The son says Content father. Let it be so.

Charge it all upon me. Now remember the one who says charge it all upon me is the one who prior said bring out all the bills. Let me see them. This was not a romantic notion of someone not knowing what he's getting into.

He knew exactly I am able to discharge it. Now let's stop there for a second. That's an amazing statement. Actually John flavor here is saying that Jesus of Nazareth is God. Let me go back to what I said yesterday this foolish.

Singing at times that say there's songs that say God looked all over the earth and couldn't find a perfect man to die. He looked all over the heavens and couldn't find a an angel willing to die. 10 ,000 perfect men and 10 ,000 perfect angels willing to die could not have saved us.

The one who died on that tree had to be of infinite worth. When Jesus says I am able to discharge it I am God. And I have the power to redeem and my life is my life and it is an infinite worth and Though it prove a kind of undoing to me.

Modern vernacular though it disintegrate me though it impoverish all my riches. Empty all my treasures yet. I am content to undertake it. I'm content to undertake it. So when we're sitting there channel surfing preoccupied with things that have no worth or value or excellence.

Theology That Transforms Christian Living

If we would only begin to study scripture and study those who have gone before us. We begin to think great thoughts about God and what he has done for us in Christ and that will transform our lives. And None of this Christian bookstore stuff all these little books on all these little Principles and all these little rules and regulations and how-tos and formulas.

Because once you're mesmerized by the person of God and what he's done for you in the cross. You are constrained compelled no other argument. It is enough that Jesus died and that he died for me. And that's Paul as we went through just briefly.

That's Paul in Romans 12 making the great change 11 chapters of what God has done for you in Christ and then he comes to now. By the mercies of God based upon the mercies of God in the first 11 chapters live this way.

Based upon what you know that God has done for you in Christ live this way. Ephesians first three chapters deepest theology in the Bible least the most Eternal and otherworldly theology in the Bible. And then he comes to chapter 4 and says therefore.

Spiritual Starvation and the Need for Deep Theology

We are dying from an ignorance of God. Our physical diets are just manifestations of The spiritual malady that's striking us here in America. Do you realize that most Americans are starving to death? Do you know that?

Is it when we eat we're overweight also? Yes, but what we eat is like eating sawdust. It's bad. Most of what we eat is not good for us. And although we eat much twice as much as what we need what we eat is worthless.

And so therefore in reality our bodies break down and we starve. It's the same way in Christianity running to and fro from here and there. Seeking a word from the Lord and there is not and missing the greater thing.

Our bookstore should be at least half full with nothing but books on the attributes of God. Well, it's the cross of Christ and that will solve most of the problems. Well, that's it. That's an introduction.

Isaiah's Vision of the Sovereign Lord

So let's go on to our settlement now. I Want to spread Isaiah 6 and I promise I won't too long. Just the King James. Isaiah 6 and the King James is just so beautiful. I use new American standard all the time, but the King James in the year that King Uzziah died I saw also the Lord high and lifted up and his train filled the temple and above him stood the seraphim each having Six wings for two they covered their face.

But two they covered their feet and was two they did fly and one crying to the other. Holy Holy Holy is the Lord of hosts. The earth is full of his glory and the post of the door moved at the face of him who cried and the house was filled With smoke and then said I woe is me.

But I am undone from a man of unclean lips and I dwell among the people. Let's just do a brief a brief review of what we've gone over. First of all in the year of King Uzziah died in the year that he died in the middle of political chaos.

What did God do? For Isaiah, did he put a white man in office? Did he fix Congress they do this or that? No, he did. What was best. He gave him a view of God in the year of turmoil in the year when so much is happening I mean the Roman Empire is being birthed all sorts of things are going on.

But what did Isaiah need to see the Lord? That's what you need. That's what I need to see him saw The Lord and it solved most of his problems in a moment. Of course, it created some also. I saw the Lord.

Of course the word here is that and I but later on in verse 3 it's going to be Yahweh. So don't let any cult or sect tell us That this is a lesser God. They do that because John tells us in chapter 12 that the one Isaiah sees here is the Son of God.

And there's no way around it as John Gill said he's not an upstart God. This is God a very God. In the year that King Uzziah died I saw also the Lord. Now in seeing the Lord it presents, of course a problem.

We all know that that no man has seen God. But what we're seeing here what the prophets saw were manifestations of his glory and not the fullness of God in his essence because their mind could not comprehend it and if their mind could Comprehend something of the true essence of God their language Would fail them and eventually drive them mad as I said just the beauty of God which someone ought to write a book on this.

Just the beauty of God. If you caught a glimpse of the beauty of God, it would drive you mad. It would be so spectacular that unless your mind and heart was supernaturally strengthened. You would not be able to endure it.

And remember what I said, this is eternal life to track down this God. This is what you're going to be doing throughout all eternity. And the evidence that you're going to do it throughout all eternity is that you're doing it now.

Because eternal life begins at conversion and the evidence of conversion is that you desire to know him and Jesus Christ whom he has sent. But if your religion is just a ticket to heaven as in most cases in the south.

You're on the road to hell, but there's no desire. No passion. No hunger now make no mistake. We're all brain. We all have dullness of heart. We all fight against the flesh. But know this if there's no desire for you to know him.

Just him. Not your best life now or what you can get out of him, but him. And there's deep-rooted problems. In the year that King Uzziah died. I saw also the Lord sitting a settled sovereignty not a ringing of the hands.

A God who is the author of history. Author of the present author of the future not one who can simply as the pastor said this morning. Look through some corridor of time that people always talk about and then respond to what he sees.

He knows the future because he's the author of the future. He's the Lord over it. And he directs and decrees all things according to his will. So I'm on a throne. Lofty and exalted. I love what Matthew Henry says his throne was very high.

His throne was very high. Now for the young preachers here. Let me give you a lesson on Something I had a professor tell me one time. He says Paul I want to bring you to a point where you can sit out in the middle of a field and Meditate so deeply that you can hear a caterpillar walk across the grass a hundred yards away.

Now, I know that sounds just too mystical. But just what Matthew Henry said his throne was very high you want to be able to sit for days sit for days. Just thinking about what that means. There's enough there to take you through an eternity of eternities.

His throne was high. I Know he studied all the scripture. He decided that his life practice would be to comprehend something of Psalms 23. Let's think about that. The Lord is my shepherd. The there's a long there's a whole lot of work on that one.

Notice. It's a definite article. Not a but his holiness. His Unique he's the Lord not a Lord among many. It just goes on and on young men in all the noise and all the bother learn to sit alone. We seated upon the throne.

Remember what I said, there will not be a changing of the guard and do not think you can wait out this administration. There is no voting. It is not a democracy. It is absolute lordship so that the New Testament can refer to Jesus as a tyrant and rightly so We have the idea of tyrants.

It's a bad person because absolute power corrupts. Absolutely, but Christ is a tyrant, but he's good. CS Lewis brought that out very well. Chronicles of Narnia. Talking about Aslan the little creature said why is he safe and the other one said of course, he's not safe.

He's a lion, but he is good. Is Jesus safe? No. Not at all. What will he do to your life? Absolutely destroy it and we build it in his fashion. That is why when we tell people as I said. When we tell people we walk up to people in evangelism and say God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.

That's absolutely worst thing we could ever tell a human being. Because you're talking to a man who loves himself and has all kinds of plans for himself. So when you walk up to him says God loves you he says I love me, too.

Well, this is great. God is wonderful. I have a wonderful plan for my life and he's gonna jump on my bandwagon. He's gonna love me as much as I love me and he has plans even greater than what I'll take this kind of God.

No, I'm gonna tell you about a God who's gonna disintegrate every every Molecule of your reality that's different. Yes. Two different Gospels two different gods. It says lofty and exalted. And the train of his road through the temple there was no place in that temple where anyone could stand that they were not being touched by the Sovereignty and the majesty of the Son of God believer.

That is a wonderful piece of news for you. Unbeliever that's the most terrifying thing you're ever going to hear good news and bad news the good news is as One old preacher used to say the good news. I've got good news and bad news.

The good news is this God is here. The bad news is this God is here. Depends on what side of the line you're standing and it says it talks about the seraphim and didn't you love what Spurgeon said about them?

It's making those you asked me to tell you about the seraphim. How can I they've covered themselves? With two wings they cover their faces. With two wings they cover their feet. And what are they saying look not unto us.

Not unto us be the glory but unto him be the glory. Notice those six wings usually used for service, but here they're retracted two of them two sets of them rather two thirds of their Endeavor and their activity and their strength is dedicated to something other than ministry.

It's dedicated to worship. No, there's where we fall short. So busy doing so many things. Martha Martha if he doesn't need seraphim he doesn't need you. But he does call you to worship. He does call you to be there.

In that throne room and through the blood of Christ you can run in where where angels fear to tread. But remember what we learned this morning in Malachi we sniff at all these privileges and Are mesmerized by other things.

So he said the seraphim stood above him. Remember some people have problem with that. How can the seraphim be above him and damage tells us? Well, maybe it's a possibility in Hebrew that they weren't above him.

They were above his robe and that is a possibility in Hebrew. But here's what I want you to understand when you know your God and you know, there's no competition. It doesn't matter where everyone else stands.

He's not like the little kings of Europe who used to get mad if someone taller walked in the room. Or had to have their throne set up higher than everybody else because they were insecure now. He knows who he is.

He has no competitors. It says in the six wings with two he covered his face with two he covered his feet and with two he flew. They cover their face though. Their beauty is so spectacular. If they cover their face.

Their beauty would drive you mad. It would be too much for your mind to comprehend if they cover their face. Bashful in his presence is one of the father's tells us. And the two they covered their feet.

Spurl says that it's been covering their creatureness. But they're recognizing before him their creature and not God. And notice as I said Seraphim means burning ones. But here's what you need to say.

They seem to be on fire simply because they are reflecting the holiness and the glory of the one seated upon the throne. Know this that all their splendor and all their burning and all their holiness and all their glory is not inherent.

It doesn't spring forth from these angels. It is derived. It comes forth from God. That is why when it says that there is the heavens are unclean in his sight. So it says something like he finds foolishness even among his angels.

It does not mean that heaven is dirty. It just means this. God alone is inherently holy. Everything else is dependent upon his holiness. Everything else flows from him. That's why Jesus made a remarkable statement when he says he had life in himself.

That's blasphemy unless he's God. So two wings and covered his face with two he covered his feet and with two he flew. Rapid. Oh. How dull my heart is to just jump. Constantly on the move, but our hearts become dull.

It's like when a man first meets the love of his life. He's so quick to move advanced before her to open a door. To be at her aid to show his devotion and then gradually there's a dullness that sets in a wickedness.

It shows the dullness of the heart. Two things actually the dullness into which the heart has fallen and the fact that very possibly. The first part of all that devotion was self-centered expression.

And not so much love. Always be wary. He's worthy of us jumping. I used the word yesterday. Flying the people today only think that flying means to fly to move in the air. But to fly to flee to be quick to jump.

And quick to stay. There's an entire sermon. I'm just learning to stand and not move until he gives you the command now. It says in one called out to another and said holy. Holy. Holy is the Lord of hosts.

We don't have much time to go to this. We went through it yesterday, but the whole idea is. If you want to know who God is the primary thought that ought to pop into your mind the moment anyone mentions anything of deity is that he's holy and Holiness is not primarily referring to moral purity.

That's what people get very confused. Holiness is primarily referring to separateness distinctness. Uniqueness there is no one like him. He is unique he is holy in his righteousness, there's no one righteous like God.

He's holy in his love. There's no one who loves like God loves and that's what you've got to be very careful because you try to draw comparisons. God is like this or God love is like this. No, my friend.

There's no comparison that can be drawn. He's utterly and totally distinct and unique. And one called out to another holy holy holy the theme of heaven. Resonating off of every wall is the holiness of God that he is Transcendent and no one is like him.

What does it mean for a believer to be holy? We didn't touch on this. So let's just grab it for a second. What does it mean for a believer to be holy? A lot of people think holiness is separation from from bad things.

No, those are the first seeds of holiness. You separate from in order to run to. You separate from you're a mighty fine legalist, but it's separate from in order to run to. Holiness is hardly even mentioned in American Christianity today.

But holiness ultimately even in the believers life is not more purity holiness ultimately. Is Esteeming God as God ought to be esteemed or living a realistic life. Recognizing God is absolutely everything.

God is unique. No one's like God. God takes first place second place third place fourth place in every place in every thing. He is on top and below and in the middle. Because it's not just a ranking system where God goes first and after you've given him his time then something else follows.

No, he's in everything. First and I've no other gods before him beside him. Behind him. He enters into no conjunctive relationship. It is not God and country God and men. It's God alone. That is what the attitude of the man of God must be primarily.

Hallowed be thy name thy name. Be esteemed as it ought to be esteemed Infinitely worthy of Everything. I love what Abraham Cuyper says that when Jesus Christ comes back He's gonna stretch forth his hand upon this world.