He that cometh to God must believe
that He is. Without faith it is impossible
to please Him, for he that cometh to God must believe that He is. Oh, that in the next few minutes
the Lord might teach us something. about what that verse of Scripture
just said. I want you to take your Bibles
and turn with me to Exodus chapter 3. Exodus chapter 3. This is the second, I guess you
would say, message in a series that I wanted us to look at on
the God that we worship. And this morning I'd like to
speak on the being of God. The being of God. That has something
to do with what Brother Neal just read. He that cometh to
God must believe that He is. Now, whenever the Lord And I'm
going to read in a moment verses 11 to 16 out of Exodus 3. Whenever the Lord sent Moses
into Egypt, He told him something that I'd like for us to consider
for a few minutes on that subject, the being of God. The Lord said, speaking by the
Spirit of God's inspiration in the Scriptures, verse 11, Exodus
3, And Moses said unto God, Who am I that I should go unto
Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel
out of Egypt? And He said, Certainly I will
be with thee, And this shall be a token unto thee that I have
sent thee, that when thou hast brought forth the people out
of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain. And Moses
said unto God, Behold, when I am come unto the children of Israel,
and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers has sent
me unto you, and they shall say to me, What is His name? What shall I say unto them? And
God said unto Moses, I am that I am. And He said, Thus shalt
thou say unto the children of Israel, I am hath sent me unto
you. And God said moreover unto Moses,
Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The Lord
God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,
and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you. This is my name
forever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. The Lord God of heaven told Moses,
I want you to go to Egypt. You say unto my people, the God of our fathers sent me
unto you. What's his name? And he said,
you tell them I am that I am sent you. I am. That is, I exist. That's what it is. I am. I exist. I be. Now, the Holy Scriptures makes
no argument for the existence of God. That is to say, it doesn't
owe the carnal mind an explanation of God's being. We're not here
to prove the existence of God. There's no way in the world I
could prove by carnal means the existence of God. Now, you know
that. The Lord Jesus Christ said in
John 1 18, no man has seen God at any time, the only begotten
Son, God only begotten, which is in the bosom of the Father.
He has declared Him. He has unveiled Him. He has told Him out. He has displayed
Him. Now the revelation, what Brother
Neal just wrote, without faith it is impossible to please God,
for he that cometh to God must believe that He is. Now let me tell you what is more
involved with that scripture than what initially meets the
ear. It does not mean that Almighty
God in the belief of His mere existence is enough for a man
to be converted. The demons believe that He exists. The conscience within a carnal
heart knows that God exists. There is a witness, a conscience, before you are converted. When you, when you lied to somebody,
when you just ball faced, just out and out, just somebody asked
you something and you just lied to them, you lied to them before
you were converted. How'd you feel? You just, you
just lied to them. How'd you feel? They said, well,
I kind of bothered me. That witness right there. that
is within is a witness of right and wrong. And that witness right
there, that conscience that you have, knows. That's what Paul was talking
about. He said when the Gentiles which have not the law do those
things that were within the law, that's right and wrong. You know
right and wrong. You know when you act disrespectfully.
You know that. There is a law written within
the heart, the conscience. So the mere understanding that God exists
is not what is being spoken of in Hebrews 11. He that cometh
to God must believe that He is. The only way that a man comes
to God, you know this, is by the Lord Jesus Christ. You know
that. And the only way that we come unto the Father by Christ
is by the grace of God. You know that. So whenever the
Apostle Paul was speaking to the Jews in Hebrews 11, and whenever
the Lord was speaking to Moses in Exodus 3, This is what he
was telling him. When they said, Who shall we
say sent you? He said, You tell them that the
God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God
of promise, the God of mercy, covenant mercy, that belief right
there, that belief that God exists as the God of mercy to me. Now that takes the grace of God.
Who sent you? The covenant God that has shown
mercy to you. To believe that that God exists. That is what it is to come to
God. So the being of God that I am talking about this morning
I'm not here to set forth that God merely exists. Everybody believes that God exists
in their conscience, in nature. The nature, the handiwork of
God is displayed in the stars and the demons know who it is. Oh, but to know that He exists
as the covenant God of all mercy. in the Lord Jesus Christ. That's
by the grace of God. The Scripture declares, Almighty God, in the beginning,
Genesis 1-1, God created the heaven and the earth. He is the
voice of nature that declares the supporting waters above.
The heavens declare the glory of God in the firmament. shows
his handiwork, the firmament. That means the supporting water
is above. That's what firmament means.
When it rains, when you see the clouds, the scripture says the
clouds are the dust of his feet. We know that he is. Now the fool
who denies the existence of God actually attempts to make his
mind agree with what his conscience knows is so. Scripture says the
fool has said in his heart that is his will, his heart. That
is his will. There is no God. But the being
of Almighty God as the God of mercy in redemption by Christ,
that belief, That belief in the being of God as He is set forth
in the Holy Scriptures is a settled reality to the regenerated saint. Turn to Job 19. Now, listen to
this settled believer. Job 19, 25. Here's what Job said. Now this
is what it is to believe in the being of God. Like I said, just
forget about just saying, well, I believe in God. The devil is believing in God. But
this is what it is to believe in the being of God in mercy
and grace. Job 19.25. For I know that my Redeemer liveth,
and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And
though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall
I see God, whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold,
and not another, though my reins be consumed within me. The being
of God Almighty to the believer is a personal and confident being. You that believe. Let me tell
you the most comforting, settling thought right now is that He
is right now to me. merciful in Christ. Who shall
I say sent me? He said, you tell him that the
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The God of covenant mercy has
sent you. Who do I say right now has sent
me? This is who I say. The God of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He who is. He who is the I Am. Job said, I know. That is, I'm taught by experience. I know this. Almighty God has
given me a heart. I know. How do you know, Job? He's given me a new heart. He's
written His law on my heart. The law of love. for Christ,
law, faith. I know, listen to this, that
my Redeemer, now there's a word, my Redeemer. I know that He's
the Redeemer, but is He my Redeemer? Is He merciful to me? That's what I want to know. That's
how Job knew Him. I know that my Redeemer, my redeeming
God, I know that He liveth. There's only one that can redeem
a dead sinner, and that's a living God. He who is absolutely able. I mean, just Job's mere acknowledgement
of God's existence, what comfort is that? He's a God of judgment. He's a just God. But he said,
I'm a Savior. Oh, the being of God in that
way. And that assurance that Job has, it made that declaration. I know that my Redeemer liveth. And this is how you that believe,
this is what you believe about God's being. He shall stand at the latter
day upon the earth." You believe that? He's coming back. You know He is. You know that
those angels that told those apostles, you men, why stand
you gazing up at the heavens? This same Jesus shall in like
manner return. You know that right now, There
is our great High Priest, whoever
liveth to make intercession. And right now, at this very moment,
He who is the I Am, He who is the Eternal God, He who never
changes, never wavers, Almighty God, right now. This is not a figment of our
imagination. We believe that He is right now. And that just
for this little vapor of a time, this little moment, this little
3 score and 10, 4 score, our God, the God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob, the God of promise, He who exists, He who
be's He's going to come, Job said.
He's going to stand at the latter day on the earth. And Job said,
in my flesh I shall see God. It won't be very long. It won't
be long. Oh, just a few more rising suns
maybe. Maybe not another. But with anxious
anticipation, you that know Him, You that believe God, you that
come to God and by faith come to God, which is the only way
to come to God, by Christ, you believe that He is covenant,
merciful, kind. Job said, I shall see Him for
myself. Mine eyes shall behold. I'm going to behold Him, not
another. Oh, I know how men, maybe not always outwardly, but
in their heart, by their actions, they deny the being of God. They deny that He's a God of
mercy. They deny that He's a God of
all grace. Why? They won't come. They won't hear. And to not come
to Him is to deny Him. They deny that He's a God of
justice. Man, woman, they won't come to
Christ and bow before Him. They deny that He's going to
judge them. Can you imagine? I mean, right
now, a man or woman without Christ. Can you imagine how Jonathan
Edwards preached, sinners in the hands of an angry God They're
like just suspended over hell, being held by less than a spider's
web. The only thing that keeps them
out of eternal hell is the mercy of God, the grace of God, the
sustaining. You just took a breath, that
air that didn't even belong to you. They deny. Deny. Without faith,
it's impossible to please Him. For he that cometh to God must
believe that He is, that He exists as He is revealed in Scriptures. Tri-unity. One God. Three Persons. I do understand. We don't even
claim to be able to explain. I was reading in the book of
John today or yesterday. I don't know. Just reading. And
here the Lord explaining, setting forth these truths. This truth.
The Father is in me. I'm in you and I'm in Him. We will be with you in you in
the Spirit of God that dwells in you. And I'm thinking, Lord, these things are too high
for me. By faith, we believe it. We don't
even claim to understand it. But we believe God. We believe
that He is. And He is a rewarder of them
that diligently Seek Him. Boy, that word just jumped out
at me. He's a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. And all of a sudden, my heart
just takes a... Diligently? Lord, can that be? Can I be one that diligently
Seek ye all that are taught of His being. Now listen, because I want you
to hear something that I need to hear too. All that are taught
of God's being. Who shall I say sent me? You
tell them that I am sent you. I exist. And who, Lord, are You? I am the God of Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob. I am the merciful God that shows
mercy to whomsoever I will. That I have the right out of
the same lump to make one vessel under honor and another vessel
under dishonor. That I exist. All that are taught, of His being
as He's revealed in His Word, they diligently seek Him. You do. You are. Because by faith you're convinced
by the Spirit of God of His being. I believe that God Almighty is
a merciful God And I believe that God's been merciful to me.
Paul said, I know whom I have believed. I didn't say I understood Him. I didn't say that. I said we
believe Him. Abraham believed God. We can't
tell Him out. Only the Lord Jesus Christ tells
Him out, reveals Him, unveils Him. What we do in diligently
seeking Him is in our heart of faith, we say, Lord, have mercy
on me. God, have mercy to this sinner.
Lord, I acknowledge, I know in part, the older I get, the more
I read, the more I think I'm able to understand something
of that. I know in part, prophesy in part.
I see through a glass darkly, O God of all mercy, teach me
something. Lord, allow me the privilege
this morning to in my heart bow before You as You are revealed
in Scripture, God Almighty, the God of life, God of hope, God
of salvation, sovereign, the being of God. This morning
there are millions, I'm sure, that are meeting together in
assemblies, kind of going through the motions.
I pray that this won't be just the motions, but that Almighty
God might be pleased in covenant mercy to reveal unto us that
He is. I'll tell you that, you know,
when He told Moses, you tell them that I am, boy, those words
just so easily flow off of our mouth. But that the Spirit of
God would give us a heart to believe it and to trust Him,
to trust Christ, to know and to say within our heart, Lord,
You're the way. You're the truth. You're the
life. No man comes to the Father but by You. Lord, have mercy
on me. For Christ's sake, Amen.