Five Questions and Two Answers - [Isaiah 40:12-14]

Thank you ladies this church is truly blessed to have Both preachers and musicians. And so so many churches are have one and not the other and yet we've been given both. I have been instructed to participate in some shameless self-promotion this morning with reference to the IBS course I would encourage Do not be intimidated, please by the title of theology proper.

Theology Proper and the Need to See God Clearly

Because it's true. We are studying God himself. That's what theology means the study of God. We will be studying his attributes and That is something that we need to constantly have Revisited to us is just who this is that rules the universe and who watches over us.

When you begin to appreciate God himself God in his power in his majesty, but you get a glimpse of him Seated on his throne. It does amazing things to your life and it does amazing things to Your confidence.

How can you move through life with confidence? Because you begin to realize that you know, if it truly if he's for us Who can possibly stand against us and so I would encourage each one of you to come out.

We will have the syllabus up on the website as soon as we have determined that we're not going to run afoul of any Copyright issues or anything like that. So sometime next week that the course syllabus will probably be up on the website we again will be studying from the AW pink book the act the attributes of God and To that and added to that something from Grudem's Systematic theology.

So again, I would encourage you to come out and I great easy. What what can I say? Shortly after the events of September the 11th 2001 I preached a sermon on the sovereignty of God. At that time the country had just been jarred to its roots with the realization that life Was not after all safe and secure as we had thought that we were not isolated somehow and that surprise surprise there were evil people in the world that did not like us and Who could actually do us harm?

Up to that time. We had sort of been focused upon national threats Some invading armies that kinds of things in missile attacks from the other side of the world. And it was a great shock to us to realize that a bunch of guys With very little money and very little skill and all the rest of it could in fact do extreme harm to this country and So I had preached this sermon which Reminded us of that.

There are things that are certain in the uncertain world. The world appears to be in chaos the world appears to be very uncertain very shaky. And what is there a solid rock that we can rest our feet upon and I think it's time that we revisit that theme.

If you heard that sermon be prepared to hear things you've heard before. But things do appear to be going from bad to worse. Don't they? In particular the the eeyores of the world's otherwise known as the media are constantly running around Screaming that the sky is falling.

It appears that the economy is booming and growing but not it could turn down tomorrow. You know and oh, they don't watch out for the for the real estate bubble because it's gonna burst and and whatever it is, you know jobs are being moved offshore and ain't it awful and and everything you hear is doom and gloom and chaos and peril and pestilence and famine and sword and we Expect to see the four horsemen riding over the horizon to see any day now and so of all people Christians Should not be bothered by any of this.

It was one of the things that amazed me as we came up to the famous y2k thing. I mean y 'all got changed to daylight savings time this morning and Your computers too and yet you remember y2k. Oh the Western civilization as we know it was going to end because the all every computer in the world was going to You know implode at that moment and meltdown, of course, none of that happened, but some of the people that were running around the most concerned about that were evangelical Christians and They were the people that the least Likely to be bothered by this that they shouldn't they shouldn't have been bothered by this at all and yet they were running around.

And again, as I was just saying we need a fresh vision of God in his majesty. We need to be reminded of exactly who it is who is in charge and Who we serve and who holds us in his hands? Jesus said I have my sheep in my hands and I'm not going to lose a single one of them.

God's Sovereignty in Creation and Providence

So Isaiah faced much the same issues with the people of Israel they had by becoming man-centered they had drifted away from God and Severe judgment had been visited upon them because of this and they needed a new vision and So Isaiah provides it.

He provides it behold your God and Therein lies our hope. Therein lies our hope. The knowledge of God was desperately needed in Isaiah's day and it's desperately needed in our day. So Isaiah starts us off by asking five questions.

Turn with me if you will to Isaiah chapter 40. We're going to look at verses 12 to 14 and then at other passages as well. And these are all from the King James but he asked in verse 12 who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand and measured out a heaven with a span and measured the dust of the earth in a measure and weighed the mountains and scales and the hills in a balance.

So he asked five questions. Who measured the waters. Who marked off the heavens. Who held the dust? Who weighed the mountains and Who measured or weighed the hills in a handheld balance? All of these questions deal with creation.

Measuring and weighing imply planning and design. If you measure something, you know when you build something those of you who are carpenters, what's the old rule measure twice cut once? Although as the old boy said, you know, I've measured this and I've cut it three times now and it's still too short.

Yeah. Some of you yeah, you'll figure it out. They implied planning and design. Notice that Isaiah doesn't say anything about evolution. He doesn't say anything about things evolving. He doesn't say anything about billions and billions of years.

He talks about a Creator God who is creating by plan and design. Who's measuring. Who's weighing. Who's using a scale to to lay out the heavens and. So the answer to all of these questions who did all this?

Well God did this. God did this. Isaiah is emphasizing God God's preeminence in creation that he is preeminent. He is the one who designed. He is really there and he made all things including us. Including us and therefore He is in charge.

He is in charge and he asked. He continues on with three more questions. Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord or being his counselor hath taught him with who took he counsel and. Who instructed him and taught him in the path of justice and taught him knowledge and showed him the way of understanding?

Those verses 13 and 14 who directed the Lord who taught the Lord who was the counsel to the Lord in? The answer here, of course is nobody. Nobody. God does not require counsel from anyone. He does not require input.

God has the only original untaught mind. He requires no input. No advice. He has no needs in any sphere of his activity, particularly not from us. The fact that he uses human instruments to accomplish some of his ends is an act of mercy.

God is in a word sovereign. He is sovereign over all things. And so that is the first and important most important certainty is that God is sovereign. Everything in the universe proceeds according to his plan.

Everything he laid this plan down in eternity past. Before he created anything he had laid out the whole plan so that God has never been surprised. God has never said oops. God is not sitting in heaven.

Wringing his hands and calling together the executive committee to review this latest crisis. And what are we going to do about it? Because everything is proceeding according to plan. Almighty God is the eternally self-existent one and Because of that he has the supreme will.

He has the supreme volition in the universe. He answers to no one. He does what he does for his glory and because it pleases him to do whatever it is that he has done. He has created all things by his will and for his pleasure.

Everything that has happened all that will happen is according to his plan and decree. Listen to what the Bible says. I Am the Lord thy God. Who have brought thee out of the land of Egypt speaking to the Israelites out of the house of bondage.

Thou shalt have no other gods before me if God is The one who created all things and if he is in charge. Then he is the only one who is worthy of being worshipped. He is the only thing we should worship putting something before God.

Anything before God is Sin and it doesn't matter whether it's a golden calf or some other image that we bow down before or Something that we have created in our minds that we rate as in more important than God.

But if we're doing that that is idolatry and that is sin. Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy 4 says no therefore the Lord he is God in heaven above and upon the earth beneath there is none else and Isaiah says 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 besides me. There is no God and Isaiah goes on I am the Lord and there is none else. There is no God beside me. I Girded thee though thou has not known me. That they 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 none else. I Form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things. Do you get the impression that the Lord is trying to get across the idea that he is in charge.

He is in charge and therefore we can rely upon him. We can rely upon him. It doesn't matter how things seem to be. What God says is the way things are. Truth has been defined as what is even if nobody believes it or truth has been defined as reality.

Even though nobody believes it. Well truth is also what God says. Even if nobody believes it. Because he is the creator of all things and so God has a plan. God has a plan and his plan is supreme. His plan trumps everybody else's plan.

God has a plan and his plan is the one that will succeed. He laid it down in eternity past according to his foreknowledge. His foreknowledge the foreknowledge of God accomplished encompasses both the actual and the possible from the entire gamut of all possible events.

God has decreed that a certain subset will take place we call that predestination and His decree includes the salvation of the elect and their protection while they function in the devil's world. Right now Satan is the prince of the power of the air he functions in this realm and Yes, God is in overall command, but he allows he allows Satan to function and We are behind the lines folks you know, we are soldiers behind the lines and God protects us in the enemy's territory.

He protects us in the enemy's territory. Because God plan is unique for each one of his job for each one of his children designed for their maximum benefit. Designed for their maximum benefit. It's designed to shape us and mold us to be the men and women that he wants us to be.

He wants us to be vessels fit for the master's use so he shapes to conform us to his image. Yeah, it said that the old-time goldsmiths when they went to refine gold what they would do they put it in a furnace pot and they begin to melt it and they Would melt it down and then the impurities float to the surface because they're lighter than the gold than the pure gold they float to the surface and the goldsmith would skim the top and skim off the impurities and He would keep this process going.

Until he would see his own face reflected in the surface. Knowing that now the gold is pure and that's what God's doing to us. He's heating us up. So that the impurities float to the surface and he'll skim them off and what's he looking for?

He's looking to see his own face reflected in our lives and He will do this his plan includes Everything we need but he knows what our needs are. So often when we say well God will supply my needs we're thinking all the good stuff.

But God may know that you need some trial in your life. You need some things to go wrong in your life wrong in quotes. You need this you need Training you need adversity, but you also need rest and God knows exactly what you need when you need it and you can trust him to provide whatever it is that you need at precisely the right time and in precisely the right quantities.

And once you see that once you begin to realize that everything in your life is a gift from the Father's hand and Designed for your good you begin to stop asking why me Lord? You begin to stop asking why me Lord type of questions and You begin to replace that with what are you teaching me Lord?

Is what one Bible scholar put it when you have a trial when a trial comes into your life? You are being invited to a personal conference with Almighty God. He has something to teach you. We know all things work together says Paul.

For good that is the plan of God to them that love God to them that are called according to his purpose. And Jeremiah says for I know the thoughts that I think towards you saith the Lord thoughts of peace and not of evil to bring you an expected end.

Not only does God know the plan He knows where it's all going to end up. All we have to do is follow him. Now the next thing is that God is in the next certainty that we can deal with is that God is omnipotent?

God's Omnipotence, Omniscience, and the Believer's Security

He is all-powerful. That means he can carry out his plan. That the best plan in the world is of no use if the planner is powerless to carry them out. But God is all-powerful. None can stand in his way.

None can hinder him. He is supremely capable of carrying out his plan because all power is his. He has delivered all power and authority unto his son Jesus Christ. Great is the Lord and of great power his understanding is infinite says the psalmist.

Thine O Lord is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty. For all that is in heaven and in the earth is thine. Thine is the kingdom O Lord and thou art exalted as head above all both riches and honor come of thee and thou reignest over all and.

Then thine hand is power and might and in thine hand is it to make great and to give strength unto all. It's first Chronicles 29. God can do what he says he's going to do. Now every father here has had the experience of promising something to your child and not being able to carry it out.

You know you had that experience you you meant it when you promised it but because of circumstances because of Finances because of whatever it is. You were not able to do what you had intended to do for your child.

But you know God never has that problem. God never has that problem. Whatever he promised to do he can do because he has the capability of doing it. You know God has never made a promise that he had to say.

Well, you know I'm really not going to be able to do that. God can carry out his promises and then our next thing is that God is omniscient. God is omniscient. He is simultaneously aware of all things all the time.

Now nothing takes God by surprise. Nothing. Satan's rebellion did not take God by surprise. Adam's fall did not take God by surprise. The fact that civilization declined and the flood became necessary did not take God by surprise.

The plan of salvation the Bible tells us was laid down in eternity past. Before anything was created. Now think about that each one of you here if you are truly children of God if You are truly saved God saw you in eternity past.

He knew your name in eternity past and That means when Jesus Christ died on the cross in your place. He had you in mind. Not just not just this amorphous mass of people. He had you in mind. He had me in mind.

He had my sins in mind. He had your sins in mind specifically. It's a little staggering. But Jesus when he hung on the cross knew exactly who he was dying for. Exactly down to the down to the to the smallest detail.

So that the plan of salvation. Nothing occurs outside of God's will. David says O Lord thou has searched me and known me. Thou knowest my down-sitting and mine uprising. You know when I go to sleep and when I get up in the morning thou understandest my thoughts afar off.

Thou compasses my path and my lying down and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, but lo O Lord thou knowest it all together. Thou hast beset me behind and before and laid thine hand upon me.

If you want something to give you confidence in life that ought to do it. So God has a plan and God's plan will go forward. Now there's opposition. Satan has opposed God's plan from the very beginning.

He he has attempted to subvert it at by tempting Eve. Causing Adam to fall he has attempted ever since Genesis chapter 3. He has attempted to prevent Christ from going to the cross. He corrupted humanity.

To the point that God had to destroy all of humanity except for eight people. But Noah in the ark and Then he attempted to deflect Jesus from his journey to the cross. By tempting him offering him things.

He tried to prevent him from rising again. But in spite of all that Satan can do God's plan marches right towards its end. And all of human history all of it has been aimed at one of two things. It was aimed at Jesus first advent and now it's aimed at Jesus second advent.

Everything is moving towards that goal. Isaiah says remember this and show yourselves men. Bring it again to mind. Oh you transgressors. 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. Calling a ravenous bird from the east the man that executed my counsel from a far country.

Yay. I have spoken it. Yay. I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it. I will also do it. The historical reference there is to Darius. But it applies to us as well that God has everything in hand and he even uses unbelievers to accomplish his purposes.

He calls Darius his servant. Even though Darius was a pagan Isaiah goes on ye are my witnesses saith the Lord and my servant whom I have chosen. That you may know and believe me and understand that I am he before me.

There was no God formed. Neither shall there be any after me. I Even I am the Lord and beside me. There is no Savior. I have declared and have saved and I have shown when there was no strange God among you.

Therefore ye are my witnesses saith the Lord that I am God. Yay before this day before the day was I am he and There was none that can deliver out of my hand. I will work and who shall hinder it. So God will triumph in The ultimate end.

God will triumph. He will be worshiped. Every knee will bow and acknowledge him. Again, Isaiah, I have sworn by myself. The word has gone out of my mouth in righteousness and shall not return that unto me.

Every knee shall bow. Every tongue shall confess. So that the ones who are refusing in this life to acknowledge God and to bow before him are going to receive a surprise. They will wind up bowing. We have God's own word for that.

Now if this is the God that we're serving the God that created. The God that keeps the God that is omniscient and omnipotent. This is our security. This is our security. The fact that we serve this God is what our security rests on.

Where is the security of the believer right there? As it said, you know, you may get saved as an Arminian, but when it comes to eternal security, you're suddenly a Calvinist. Because all of a sudden we're looking at the omnipotent God as Jesus put it if God is concerned with something so insignificant as wildflowers or as sparrows.

How much more will he care for us who are his children. You remember the story Jesus is speaking to his disciples and he says not a single sparrow falls. That God Almighty God is not aware of it. Nothing happens to the least of his creation that he is not aware of it and you are more important than many birds.

You know you were created in God's image. You were created in God's image. You're much more important than birds or squirrels or moose or whatever it is and If God is aware of The suicidal squirrels that try to cross the road around here and don't make it.

How much more is he aware of you? How much more of you you know God is sovereign and he has a plan that is absolutely certain of success. Because Christ died for our sins. Believers are the only secure truly secure people on the face of the earth.

We are secure we are secure if we walk out of here and Get run over by a bus. In another 30 minutes, we are secure if you drop dead in your seat you are secure if you live another 25 30 however long it is years that that that God has for you.

You're secure. Because you know where you're going, you know, what's going to happen. If I can Plagiarize the song title we're looking for security in all wrong places. It's it's a sad commentary on our Continuing sin of unbelief that often we do run around like headless chickens in time of trial.

Like I mentioned during the during the all of the brouhaha that surrounded y2k Evangelical Christians were some of the flakiest people out there and they shouldn't have been. Even if the the doomsayers had been right.

Did we since it did we seriously think that God would somehow lose control of things. Which some individuals certainly acted that way and yet God is our divine Shepherd. He cares for his sheep. Isaiah says he shall lead his flock like a shepherd.

He shall gather the lambs with his arm and shall carry them in his bosom and gently lead those that are with young. He also said in John I am the Good Shepherd and the Good Shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

It's very significant that God refers to his children as sheep. Those of you who have been on a farm Know the domestic sheep is probably the stupidest animal on the farm. It's probably the stupidest animal on the face of the earth.

It is completely incapable of caring for itself. You take a domestic sheep and put it in the wild and it will be dead. Probably within 24 hours. It cannot do anything for itself. It has no sense of direction.

It cannot find food. It cannot find water on its own and. So this is who God uses as an example of what we are like. Sheep require a shepherd all the time. Sheep have to be led. Sheep cannot be driven.

Cattle are driven. Sheep must be led and so. This is what God uses as an example for us. And he says I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd cares for the sheep. The Good Shepherd puts himself his life.

You know everything the shepherd does is for the sheep. He puts the sheep before his own needs constantly. Now the shepherd does not sleep until the sheep are bedded down. The shepherd is up before the sheep are.

The shepherd finds the good pastures and leads them along. The shepherd prepares the good pastures before the sheep eat there. The shepherd finds the water and another characteristic of sheep is that they won't drink from running water so what a shepherd will have to do is he finds a little low spot near the creek and then he uses his staff and He makes a little a little canal over to that so that there will be a pool of still water.

Where the sheep can drink? He takes care and that's the way he takes care of us. Jesus said I am the Good Shepherd. I know my sheep and I'm known of mine as. The father knoweth me even so know I the father and I lay down my life for the sheep and other sheep.

Have I that are not of this fold? That's us folks them also I must bring and they shall hear my voice and there shall be one fold and one shepherd and. And so because our God is omniscient and omnipresent He can devote 100 of his attention to each one of his sheep all the time.

And that's a little staggering thought because this is very hard for us to imagine as we try to divide our time Between however many children the Lord has given us, you know keeping track of three or four or however many kids.

You know the idea that God Can put 100 of his attention upon each one of us all the time. Is a little bit hard to imagine but he says that that's how he does it. He says he has the hairs of our head numbered.

You know, he is intimately concerned with the details the minutiae of our lives. He is not off somewhere. He is not merely the transcendent God that is over everything. He is transcendent and over everything but he is also the personal God That is intimately concerned with all of the small details of our lives.

Nothing about us escapes me escapes his notice and So safety comes from the Lord. Ultimately the sheep are safe in the shepherds care and God will lead his children. We spend so much of our time trying to be safe.

And we get very upset when events Prove and show and hold up to us how unsafe life really is and How uncertain life really is and yet you're looking for the safety in the wrong place. Now God has established certain divine institutions to provide order and to provide structure to our lives.

He established the family. He established civil government so that there will be a measure of order and safety and and he has empowered government with the sword for the purpose of bringing justice and and guarding guarding their citizens, but ultimately Fundamentally safety is from the Lord.

Safety is from the Lord. He watches over us. He guides us. He protects us. He has numbered our days and our times are in his hands. He tells us So that we are invulnerable as believers. We are invulnerable Until the exact moment that God has decreed for us to die.

We are in his hands He says and even to your old age. I am he and even to gray hairs I will carry you a great great comfort from that myself. I Have made and I will bear. Even I will carry and will deliver you.

Can a woman forget her nursing child that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yay, they may forget. Yet, I will not forget thee. Behold, I have engraved thee upon the palms of my hands.

Thy walls are continually before me. Isaiah is saying a nursing mother will sooner forget her child than God will forget us and So our days are numbered and in his sovereign control and even though we have no promise of a single day We do have the promise that every day he has set out for us.

We will we will receive and In light of this truth, how should we live in? Light of this truth. How should we live? We should live holy every day of our lives to be ready when he calls us. The certainty that we have is not that we will live a certain number of days or that we have a guarantee of any particular Day, but that we will stand in his presence and give account of our lives and we should be ready for that.

Because that's another certainty. Until Jesus returns for his people. We're all going to die. That's certain. It's a certainty. We don't like to dwell on but it's the one thing that we all have in common.

Eventually everyone dies. Old people die young people die infants die children die. That is the great leveler of all of society. It's the great equalizer and it will visit each and every one of us until Jesus comes again.

But there are certainties even within that. First of all, our eternal souls will live on after death. Only our bodies are temporary. Our souls are eternal. And yet we expend so much time and effort. Don't we caring for the temporary?

And yet we ignore the eternal to our peril. You know, we spend so much time in the gym and so much time on whatever it is and yet We don't worry about the eternal things at all. We get it backwards so much of the time.

But Job had it, right? He said I know that my Redeemer lives and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth and Though after my skin worms destroy this body. This temporary shell yet in my flesh.

Shall I see God? Job had it, right? We will all stand before God. We will all give account. Now believers will stand before God clothed and the righteousness of Christ. But unbelievers will stand before him in their sins.

But we will all stand we will all give account. That's for certain. 2nd Corinthians 5 10. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. That everyone may receive the things done in his body according to that.

He hath done whether it be good or bad and So God is the judge. God is going to judge Both believers and unbelievers. But for believers what's hanging in the balance is your reward. First Corinthians every man's work shall be made manifest.

For the day shall declare it because it shall be revealed by fire and the fire shall test every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide and he hath built upon it. He shall receive a reward.

Your eternal soul's destiny is not in the balance That has been dealt with but your reward Hangs in the balance when you stand before God and give account. For what you have done with the life and the days that he gave you but for unbelievers.

For you, it's different. The destiny of your eternal soul is in the balance and I saw the dead small and great stand before God and the books were opened and another book was opened which is the book of life and The dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their works.

So for you it has been said and accurately so that the great white throne judgment is not a trial. It's a rendering of the verdict. The trial is over. The trial was over when you died on this earth, but the verdict will be rendered.

But that brings us to another certainty to believers eternal life is certain. Jesus said unto her I am the resurrection and the life he that believeth in me though He were dead yet. Shall he live and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.

John chapter 11. This is the great certainty in an uncertain world. By believing on the Lord Jesus Christ by placing your faith in his finished work that he died in your place. The believer can have absolute assurance of his eternal destiny.

God's work is a work of grace in us. He draws us. He gives us the gift of repentance and the gift of faith. He justifies us. He justifies us in Christ. That's positional truth and Then he continuously works a work of sanctification in us to mold us to his likeness.

We will see him and we will be like him. That is certain. The alternate is also true and certain if you are an unbeliever if you have not placed your faith in Jesus Christ then your doom is certain and Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire Revelation 20 that is also certain.

That's a certainty. So if you are here without Christ, I urge you to come and kneel at his face at his feet in faith. You are going to kneel one way or another you can count on that. That's a certainty.

But it is better to kneel in humility before the forgiving Savior than to be knocked to your knees before the conquering King and Finally and in closing God is immutable. He does not change. He can be relied on and This is the great certainty upon which all of the other certainties rest.

I am the Lord I change not. Therefore what I promised can be relied upon. What I said God says I will do. I finish what I start. For I am the Lord I change not. Therefore you sons of Jacob are not consumed.

Malachi 3 6. And Then same thing in the New Testament Jesus Christ the same yesterday today and today and forever. Hebrews 13 8. What he has said is 100 certain. He created all things. He holds the universe in his hand and he holds us in his hand those of us who are his children.

So what could we possibly fear? Let's pray our Heavenly Father our Heavenly Father teach us today This truth that you are in fact the sovereign king of the universe you have us in your hand and Therefore there is truly nothing for us to fear.

All we have to do Lord is walk with you one step at a time. You have all of our path laid out. You have show us step by step where we should go. And our ultimate destiny is absolutely secure. We thank you for that Lord.

We praise you for it in Jesus name. Amen.