The God We Worship (Part 1)

Q: What does the Bible say about worshiping God?

The Bible teaches us to worship only the Lord our God and to serve Him alone. The Bible clearly instructs us to worship God exclusively, as seen in Matthew 4:10, where Jesus states, 'Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.' This fundamental principle emphasizes the need to recognize God's sovereignty and authority. In Deuteronomy 28:58, worshiping God is connected to fearing His glorious name, indicating that our reverence for Him should be at the core of our worship. True worship involves a deep knowledge and honor of God, which leads to obedience and a life dedicated to His service.

Q: How do we know God is sovereign?

We know God is sovereign because Scripture declares His absolute control over creation and His will. God's sovereignty is a central tenet of Scripture, confirmed through passages like Isaiah 45:5, where the Lord claims, 'I am the Lord, and there is none else.' This indicates His supreme authority over both the heavens and the earth. God acts according to His will among the hosts of heaven and the inhabitants of the earth (Daniel 4:35), which reinforces His position as sovereign. The reality that nothing can thwart His plans demonstrates that He is indeed the Almighty, governing all facets of existence for His glory and the good of His people.

Q: Why is knowing God important for Christians?

Knowing God intimately is essential for Christians as it defines our relationship with Him and informs our faith. Knowing God is of paramount importance for Christians, as it is through this knowledge that we attain eternal life. John 17:3 clearly states, 'This is life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.' This knowledge goes beyond mere intellectual understanding; it involves a relationship characterized by reverence, love, and obedience. A true understanding of God shapes our motivations, transforms our lifestyles, and ultimately affects our eternal destiny. In knowing God more deeply, we learn to worship Him genuinely and position our lives in accordance with His will.

Q: What does the Bible teach about God’s revelation?

The Bible teaches that God reveals Himself through creation and through His Son, Jesus Christ. Scripture reveals that God provides testimony of Himself both through creation and in the Person of Jesus Christ. Romans 1:19-20 asserts that the invisible attributes of God, His eternal power, and divine nature are evident in the world around us, leaving humanity without excuse for failing to recognize Him. Additionally, Jesus, as the ultimate Prophet, has manifested God's character and name to us (John 17:6), granting us insight into the fullness of God's love, mercy, and will. Through these revelations, we are called to understand, worship, and respond to Him with reverence and gratitude.

In the tenth verse that Brother
Carl just read, the Lord Jesus told Satan, it
is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve. I would like to preach a few messages on this subject,
the God we worship. I feel that it is needful that
we consider what the Scriptures have to say about Almighty God. Who is He? The entire series
under the title, The God We Worship, I've actually entitled the message
today, Knowing the God That We Worship. Thou shalt Worship the Lord thy
God. I want you to turn. There's going
to be a few turning pages in Scriptures, but we would do well
to have our Bibles. Have a Bible when you come. Pick
your Bible up and look at the Word of God and read the Word
of God. Faith comes by hearing, hearing
by the Word of God. We believe what we believe according
to the Scriptures. Deuteronomy 28, 58. Deuteronomy
28, 58. The Lord said, If thou wilt not observe to do
all the words of this law, that are written in this book, that
thou mayest fear this glorious and fearful name." Here is His name. The Lord thy
God. You know, when the Lord Jesus
told Satan, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, You know, we read over things
so quickly and just, we miss. I want you to turn back to Genesis
17.1. Genesis 17.1. The Lord God is
speaking to Abraham. Genesis 17 and when Abram was
90 years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram and said unto
him, I am the Almighty God. Walk before me and be thou perfect. My, what a demand. This is not up for debate. It's not up for question. I wonder how perfect he meant. Genesis chapter 6, verse 1 to 3. Then the Lord, capital L, capital
O, capital R, capital D, and when you see that in all
capital letters, we're going to understand right now what
it means. Then the Lord said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see
what I will do to Pharaoh. For with a strong hand shall
he let them go, and with strong hand shall he drive them out
of his hand. And God spake unto Moses and
said unto him, I am the Lord Jehovah. And I appeared unto
Abraham, unto Isaac, unto Jacob by the name of God Almighty,
but by my name Jehovah." was I not known to them." Now to worship, that is to kiss the hand. When you come down and you look
up the word worship, that's the first thing that interpretation
comes at. To kiss the hand. That is to
reverence. To bow. to worship the Lord thy
God. We've got to know Him. Know Him. John 17.1. John 17.1. John 17.1. These words begged
Jesus and lifted up His eyes to heaven and said, The hour
has come. Glorify Thy Son, that Thy Son
also may glorify Thee, as Thou hast given Him power over all
flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as Thou hast
given Him. And this is life eternal." Boy,
I'm telling you, if we should ever stop and let a statement
arrest us, Right there. This is life eternal. What is the bottom line? What
is the basis? What is the source? What is the
heart? What has the Lord Jesus Christ said concerning life eternal? This is life eternal, that they might know Thee. the
only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. Oh, may
God give me a heart to know Him." That's what Paul said. Oh, that
I may know Him. And to know, I know, is more
than just a mere speculative acquaintance The devils have a speculative
acquaintance. The demons know who he was. That demoniac that came up of
the Gadarenes, we know who you are. A mere speculative acquaintance. Knowing God is more than that. It is to have and possess a just, a true, a right view
of Him. And I'll tell you the first,
the first, the heart, the first evidence of a man that knows God, he reverences Him. He fears Him. He reverences Him. He loves Him. He honors Him. He obeys Him. He bows. He bows. Lord, what would You
have me to do? Everything else is going to fade.
Everything else is going to burn up. Everything else is going
to be gone. All of the things, mess and stuff
that we thought was so important. Everything that stole our time.
Everything that stole our heart. A man that knows God reverences
Him. Oh God, give me a heart. to know you, because I don't
have the ability. I'll tell you this, He's known
by one source. He's known one way. I know that
the Scripture says, according to the Word of the Lord Jesus
Christ, this is life eternal, that they may reverence, love,
obey that they may know a new heart, one taken up. Don't talk about, you know, as
I said, the devils know Him. The devils know Him with a mere
passing speculative shoot from the hip. Yeah, I know God. Yeah,
I know God. A man that knows God, a woman
that knows God, they bow. How is He known? John 17, 6, I have manifested
Thy name. I've manifested Your character.
I've manifested Your attributes. I've manifested Your law, Your
will. I've manifested Your mercy. That's
when He says the name I have manifested thy name unto the
men which thou gavest me out of the world. Thine they were,
and thou gavest them me." Listen to this. They have kept thy word. They've kept it. Ask them. Ask the men if they've
kept it. And this is what the men are
going to say. wretched man that I am. Things that I would, I don't.
You know, the Lord said they kept it. A man, a woman that
keeps God's Word, God Almighty sees the heart. Man looks on
the outside. God sees the heart. How needful. if He is the One
that manifests the name, the character of Almighty God. Oh,
what must this verse of Scripture mean to us? This is My beloved
Son in whom I am well pleased. Hear ye Him. Hear what He has
to say. So what we know concerning the
Lord thy God We know by the Lord Jesus Christ who is God's prophet. God is one prophet. One true,
faithful, just, holy prophet in Himself. He who is altogether
lovely. Nothing about Him that's not
lovely. Hear Him. Oh, to have the blessed privilege
to be able to meet here this morning and to know that this
is the way that Almighty God is going to speak through His
prophet, that God is going to speak, that God Almighty is going
to manifest His name through His prophet, the Lord Jesus Christ, and that the Lord Jesus Christ,
God's prophet, I have manifested Thy name unto the men that you
gave me out of the world." There's no other one that speaks. You say, well, you're here. You're
here this morning. Turn to Romans 10. Oh, I agree. God's been pleased
to raise up preachers. Romans 10, verse 13. Whosoever, Romans 10, 13, shall
call upon the name of the Lord, whosoever shall call upon Him
whose character and law and will and mercy and goodness, whosoever
shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Don't leave me to this mere little
lip service. Anybody, anybody that's got a
mouth, anybody can voice words. The world looks at that and says,
you know, listen to this prayer that I'm going to pray and repeat
after me. You know, and they're listening,
they're mimicking for me to call. He's got to give me a heart to
call. I'm not going to call without a new heart. I'm not going to
call upon Him without new life. I'm not going to cry without
being made anew from heaven, born again, born from above.
How am I going to call? How? Whosoever shall call on the name
of the Lord shall be saved. But how shall they call on Him
in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in
Him in whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without
a preacher? And how shall they preach except they be sent as
it is written? How beautiful, how timely are
the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring
glad tidings of good things. How? God Almighty has been pleased
to reveal Himself through His prophet. And the prophet who came into
this world, sent of the Father, now has sent forth His servants.
And His servants, they preach. The Lord our God, thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God. He is set forth as the only true
God. There is only one God. There
is only one God. One big G God. There are a lot of little g gods.
Isaiah 45, verse 5 says, I am the Lord. I am Jehovah. I believe in my heart that the
God that I worship is the God of His Scriptures. How much,
Marvin, do you believe that? I'm resting my soul. I'm resting
my eternal soul on the God that I worship. is the God set forth
in these scriptures. I believe that He is absolutely
God, sovereign, almighty, He who does as He will in the army
of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, and nobody, nobody
stays His hand. Can you imagine that? Man says, the only hands that
God has is your hands. The only mouth that God has is
your mouth. Well, where was my mouth when
He spoke everything into existence? The little G God of this world
that men bow to, and they are thinking that they're doing Him
a favor. by giving Him their heart or
trying to pull His chestnuts out of the fire. He's no God. That's no God. I am the Lord. When Moses came to Pharaoh, he
said the I Am, the Lord said, let my people go. Pharaoh said, Who is the Lord
that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I know not
the Lord, neither will I let Israel go. I don't know Him. Yeah, you're right. Yeah, you
don't. If you did, you'd bow. If you knew Him, you'd worship
Him. If you knew Him, you'd fall. In your heart, you'd fall. In
your heart, you'd be before Him in the dust. In
your heart, you would. Carnal man now, though he doesn't
know, that is, know effectually, know savingly. Though he doesn't
know God, he's not been left to himself without a witness
of God's being. Man is without excuse. I want you to turn to Romans.
Turn back to Romans 1. There's no excuse. No excuse. There's no excuse for anybody.
None. Romans 1, 19 and 20. Romans 1,
19 and 20 says, Because that which
may be known of God is manifest In them that it actually it's
manifest to them. For God has showed it unto them
for the invisible things of him from the creation of the world
are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made,
even his eternal power and Godhead so that they. Are. Without. Excuse. Almighty God is known. He's known in creation. That's what the Scripture says.
The invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are
clearly seen. It is enough for a man or a woman
to look outside And to see the things that are outside in the
creation of this world, the stars, the trees, the ground, that's
enough evidence to put you in hell forever. You're without excuse. I just don't feel as though that
the worship of God is just not that important to me. Be quiet. You're without excuse. I just I just don't have a heart.
I just. It's just not that big a deal. Be quiet. I'm just I'm just too busy. I got too much stuff to do. Be
quiet. Be quiet. Believe me. Man will never forget what Almighty
God has said concerning the revelation of Himself. They are without excuse. The
creation bears the record of Almighty God. But I'll tell you
another thing. There's another record, and it's
a conscience. Romans 2, 14, 15 says, For when
the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things
contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law
unto themselves, which show the work of the law written in their
hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts
the mean, or that which is between one another, while accusing or
else excusing one another." What does that mean, Paul? What do
you mean? What do you mean? Paul the Apostle, under the inspiration
of the Spirit of God, has revealed one other witness. We've got
the witness of creation, and there's a witness of the conscience. And this is what Paul, under
the inspiration of the Spirit of God speaking the words of
the prophet himself, Christ himself. This is what he said. Man is
born with a conscience that knows right from wrong. Yes, he does. Yes, he does. Yes,
he does. As I've said before, you know
I never taught one of my kids to lie. I never did sit down
and tell them, say, now listen, there's this neat little thing
you can do, and a lot of times it'll get you out of stuff. It's
called lying. And all you have to do is, and
I never, you know I never did. It just came so natural. Liar. Man comes forth from his
mother's womb, a liar. And he knows right from wrong.
You know, you know right from wrong. You take a man that's broken
the law, you know what he does? He loves darkness. He loves it.
He loves darkness rather than light. Why? Because his deeds
are evil. Let's do this in the night. Let's
do this after the sun goes down. How about two in the morning? That's better. Everybody's gone. You know what that is? That's
a witness that Almighty God has put. And it's enough. A man, a woman is born with a
witness within himself." That's what it says. When the Gentiles,
which have not the law, God gave the law to the Jews. Gave them the law. Thou shalt
not, thou shalt, thou shalt not, thou shalt. When the Gentiles,
which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in
the law, in their heart they know the difference of right
from wrong. That was the precept. That was
the concept of the law. Right and wrong. The law. They're a witness unto themselves. But knowing that God exists and
knowing God, that is, knowing and possessing a heart that loves
and reverences and honors and obeys and longs after. There's
a difference in knowing about God and knowing God. One heart
has nothing toward Him. The other one longs after Him
and sees and knows and beholds the frailty in this flesh. And it grieves. And I'm telling
you, the more that a man is taught by God's Spirit concerning the
God that he knows, The more he sees of himself, the more he
hates himself, the more he loathes himself. He is just not satisfied
with himself. He longs to hear more of the
glory of Him that has been revealed to him. This is life eternal,
if they may know thee. Every rational human being, every
demon, knows that God exists, but only a regenerated sinner.
Knows Him as the covenant God. Knows Him in electing grace.
Knows Him in redeeming grace. Knows Him in regenerating grace.
Knows Him in keeping grace and preserving grace. This is God. This is the God. This is Him. Last scripture. Turn to Matthew
chapter 11. This knowledge is by sovereign
grace. I don't have the ability. I can
make all kinds of notes, and I can go to the right scriptures,
and I can set forth the truth, but there's only one way. that
a man knows God. Hear the words of our Lord, Matthew
11, verse 25, At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank Thee,
O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid
these things from the wise and prudent, those that think themselves
to be wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even
so, Father, for so it seemed good in Thy sight All things
are delivered unto Me of My Father." Now think what he just said. All things are delivered unto
Me. And no man knoweth the Son, but
the Father. Neither knoweth any man the Father,
save the Son. And He to Whomsoever the Son
will reveal Him. Oh, blessed Lord Jesus. You who as wisdom, the wisdom
of God. You who God Himself, the Word
Himself made flesh. You who came into this world to redeem, to save that which
was lost, that which fell in the garden. Lord Jesus, You,
who are in the midst of your people, who walks in the midst
of the seven candlesticks, the churches representative of all
the churches of God, you who hold the stars, the pastors in
your hand. Lord Jesus, have mercy on me. Speak to my heart. Lord, may
the things of this world Grow dim by Your grace, by Your power,
by Your good pleasure. Help me. Help me. Teach me. Oh, that I may know
Him. Knowing the true and living God
is the evidence of a new birth. May the Lord be pleased to call
out of darkness His people. May He be pleased this day to
reveal unto those that He has everlastingly loved the glory
of the Lord Jesus Christ. For it is in Him alone, it is
in Him alone that we know God. May the Spirit of God bless these
words to our heart. For Christ's sake, and for our
good. Amen.

The God We Worship (Part 1)

What does the Bible say about worshiping God?

How do we know God is sovereign?

Why is knowing God important for Christians?

What does the Bible teach about God’s revelation?

Sermon Transcript

About Marvin Stalnaker

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The God We Worship (Part 1)

What does the Bible say about worshiping God?

How do we know God is sovereign?

Why is knowing God important for Christians?

What does the Bible teach about God’s revelation?

Sermon Transcript

About Marvin Stalnaker

Comments

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