Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church,
located at 905 Yadkin Street in Kingsport, Tennessee, would
like to invite you to listen to a message of sovereign grace
by their pastor, Gabe Stoniker. And now, Pastor Gabe Stoniker. Our text today will be Psalm
115. If you would like to read along,
Psalm 115. And I want to begin this message
with the first three words of verse three. They say, but our
God. I love those three words. But
our God. The title of this message is
their God and our God. Their God and our God. Verse
three says, but our God. is in the heavens. He hath done
whatsoever he hath pleased. There are many gods, and I mean
little g, lowercase g gods, that exist in the minds and in the
hearts of people all over this world. Meaning there are many ideas.
that people have of who they think God is. People have some
vision in their mind of who they think God is. There are many
gods throughout the different denominations of Christianity.
People even under the canopy of Christianity have a different
view of who God is. But the fact of the matter is
there is only one true and living God. True God and
living God. There is only one God that is
in the heavens, seated on the throne. And his name is the Lord
Jesus Christ. And I want to emphasize that
word, Lord. the Lord Jesus Christ. He says continually throughout
his word, I am God. Beside me, there is none else. One, only one. There's no other
God. There's no other savior. All
of the other little g gods that men and women have made up in
their mind. The reality is they are no gods
at all. Not at all. None of them are
living, which means they're all dead. They can't do anything. People
worship dead gods that cannot do anything. They cannot save. They pray to gods that cannot
save. They're worthless. They're helpless. It doesn't matter if they go
by the name Buddha or they go by the name Muhammad or they
go by the name Mary or even many of them that go by the name Jesus.
If we are talking about a weak, helpless, worthless God that
needs us to do something for him, and does that sound familiar?
A lot of men will stand up in pulpits and talk about a God
that needs you to do something for Him. And if that's who we're
talking about, we're not talking about God at all. Therefore,
all of these false gods that men and women have made up in
their minds that are contrary to what the scripture says about
the true and living God, all of these false gods, However
many there are, they can all be thrown into one single category. They're all known as their gods,
their idols. And before we go any further,
we need to understand this. You and I both really need to
understand this. But for the grace of God, their
gods would be our gods. But for the grace of God, Had
the true and living God left his people to themselves, had
he just left them alone, all of his people would be bowing
before the idols of their gods. That's what man does by nature.
That's the sin of man's flesh. It takes the grace of God. Only
the grace of God can make a sinner see and hear and believe on and
bow before the true and living God. It takes the grace of God
to do that. So there's no room for boasting.
When it comes to believing on and bowing before the true and
living God, there's no room for pride in it, not at all. There's only room for thanks
and there's only room for praise. Verse 18, the last verse here
in Psalm 115 says, but we will bless the Lord from this time
forth and forevermore. Praise the Lord. All praise and
all thanks be unto the Lord. That's a believer's response
to God's work and God's grace. All thanks and praise be unto
him. Verse one says, not unto us,
O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory for thy mercy
and for thy truth's sake. Not unto us, everything be unto
him. Now for just a moment, let's
look at the difference between their gods, which is every false
god that exists. All of the false gods that fall
into that category of their gods. Let's look at the difference
between their gods and the true and living God. There's a big,
big difference. The true and living God who by
his grace, has allowed his people to call him our God. What a privilege, what an absolute
privilege. By his grace, he has allowed
his people to call them our God. All right, so let's see this
difference, huge difference. If you wanna follow along with
me, in Deuteronomy 32, Moses said in verse 31, for their rock He is not as our rock. And their
rock is a lowercase R. Our rock is a capital R. He said their rock is not as
our rock. The true and living God said
in verse 37, he shall say, where are their gods? Their rock in
whom they trusted. which did eat the fat of their
sacrifices and drank the wine of their drink offerings, let
them rise up and help you and be your protection. What he's
saying is they can't. You did everything for them.
Verse 39, see now that I even I am he and there is no God with
me. Now listen to what the true and
living God says. He said, I kill. That's strong language, isn't
it? See now that I, even I am he,
there's no God with me. I kill. I make alive. I wound and I heal. Neither is there any that can
deliver out of my hand. That is strong, strong language.
Moses said, oh, there's a big difference. God said, there's
a big difference. and we're gonna see in our text.
David said the same thing. There's a big difference. I pray
the Lord would cause us to see this and say the same thing with
all of these men and say the same thing with our God. Back
in Psalm 115, verse two says, wherefore should the heathen
say, where is now their God? Our God just said, where are
their gods? And David said, why should the
heathen say, where is now our God? He said, I'll tell you where
he is. Verse three, our God is in the
heavens. He hath done whatsoever he hath
pleased. Verse four says, their idols
are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. the work of men's
hands. That is an excellent description
of a false God. I pray the Lord would reveal
this to us. If in order for me to have my
God, it requires the work of my hands, I have a false God. Do you recognize the fact that
men stand up in pulpits and say, now this is what you need to
do. You need to get the work of your hands involved. If in
order for me to have my God, it requires the work of my hands,
I have a false God. If He cannot be my God without
the work of my hands, then I have a false God. If He is reliant
on me, Does that sound familiar? If he is reliant on me to take
part and do something, I have a false God. Silver and gold,
he said their gods are silver and gold, the work of men's hands.
Silver and gold in the scripture, they represent many things. But
one of the things they represent is the law. God's pure, holy,
royal law. They represent the value and
the perfection that he demands. They represent the purity that
he requires in order to be satisfied. God must be satisfied. He gave
Moses commandments concerning the tabernacle and everything
that would be in that tabernacle for man to be able to come before
him. and worship him, he said it all
has to be covered in silver and gold. All of it, the pillars,
the sockets, the utensils, the altar, everything that was required
for God to be satisfied, it had to be covered in silver and gold.
And that's a picture of the perfection of the law, the perfection that
law requires. Now, if the God that I am bowing
before says that the law cannot be fulfilled, it cannot be satisfied
without the work of my hands. I'm bowing before a false God.
If that's the case, I'm bowing before a false God. The true
and living God of heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ said, I came
to fulfill that law, for my people. I did it. He said, I did not
come to destroy it. I came to fulfill it. Christ
is the end of the law. He's the end of the deeds of
the law for righteousness. So here's the difference, right?
We're looking at this difference. A false God needs man to do everything
for him. The announcement is of a false
God. You need to do, you need to do,
you need to do. The true and living God doesn't
need man to do anything for him. Not one thing. He does everything
for man. The announcement of the true
and living God is, it's done. It's finished. Rest. That's a big difference, isn't
it? The law is fulfilled. God is satisfied. Rest. Not only is that a big difference,
that's a wonderful difference. That's a glorious difference.
Verse three says, but our God is in the heavens, he hath done
whatsoever he hath pleased. He hath done, done, not will
do, he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. Verse four says,
their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They
have mouths, but they speak not. They have mouths, they're gods.
They have, men have given them mouths, but they speak not. May the Lord reveal this to us.
May he reveal this to us. If I cannot find what my God
has said in this book, I have a Bible right here. I have a
Bible right here. If I cannot find what my God
has said in this book, I have a false God. People say all the
time, you're gonna hear people say this all the time. Well,
now, you know, God says, but when you look it up, it's not
in there. This God didn't say that. Well,
now God says, Lord helps those who help themselves. That's not
in here. Our God didn't say that. Men say things like that all
the time. If I cannot find what my God says in this book, I have
a false God. The true and living God has a
mouth and he has spoken. Deuteronomy 32 again, it says
in verse one, give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak. And
hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. My doctrine shall drop
as the rain, my speech shall distill as the dew, as the small
rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass,
because I will publish the name of the Lord. Ascribe ye greatness
unto our God. Christ Jesus the Lord. God the
Father said, ascribe ye greatness unto our God. He said to Christ
the Lord, thy throne, O God, is forever and ever. And it said in verse four there,
he's our rock. He's our rock. That rock is Christ. The Father said, give ear, I'll
speak of him. The true God said in Isaiah 55,
as the rain cometh down and the snow from heaven and returneth
not thither, but watereth the earth and maketh it to bring
forth and bud that it may give seed to the sower and bread to
the eater, so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth.
It shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that
which I please and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I send it.
What he's saying is, I have spoken it, and it shall come to pass. I'll do it. In Psalm 115, verse
five says, they have mouths, but they speak not. Eyes have
they, but they see not, talking about their gods. They have eyes,
they've formed eyes on them, but they see not. If there is
anything that my God cannot see, Anything I'll just mention one
of the most common ones that the gods of men and women. Their gods. Cannot see. If my God cannot see my sin. If there's anything he can't
see, if he cannot look straight into the depths of my soul. And
see the sin of my heart and the sin of my mind. If the God that I worship, if
I think he's just so happy with me and he's just so proud of
me because I believe that he can't really see my sin, then
I believe in a false God. If he can't see, it's a false
God. Over in Psalm 139, it says, O
Lord, thou hast searched me and known me, thou knowest my down-sitting
and my uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassed
my path, and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
For there's not a word in my tongue, but O Lord, thou knowest
it all together. You know everything. Verse 12
there says, yea, the darkness hideth not from thee, but the
night shineth as the day. The darkness and the light are
both a light to thee. Doesn't matter, you see it all.
Verse 23, David said, Lord God of heaven and earth, you see
it all. You see it all. You see me for
what I truly am. Job said his eyes are upon the ways of man and
he seeth all his goings. Over in Matthew chapter 9, this
right here is the true and living God. Matthew 9, verse 1, he entered
into a ship and passed over and came into his own city. And behold,
they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed.
And Jesus, seeing their faith, said unto the sick of the palsy,
Son, be of good cheer, thy sins be forgiven thee. And behold,
certain of the scribes said within themselves, they didn't say it
out loud, they were thinking it. They said within themselves,
this man blasphemeth. And Jesus, knowing their thoughts,
said, wherefore think ye evil in your hearts. He could see
the sin of their thoughts without them ever saying a word. In John
5, the Lord Jesus Christ said, I know you that you have not
the love of God in you. He could see straight into the
heart. He said, I know what's inside you. I see your sin. He
sees the sin of the deed. He sees the sin of the thought. He sees the sin of the motive
of the heart. But thank God that's not all
he sees. Thank God that is not all he sees. This is a glorious
passage of scripture. In Exodus 12, verse 12, he said,
I will pass through the land of Egypt this night and will
smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast,
and against all the gods, lowercase g, against all the gods of Egypt,
I will execute judgment, I am the Lord. And the blood shall
be to you for a token upon the houses where you are. He said,
and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. And the plague
shall not be upon you to destroy you when I smite the land of
Egypt. He said, I see the sin. I see
the wickedness, but I am sending my son. I'm sending my lamb of
sacrifice. I'm sending my Son to shed His
blood as a payment for all your sin. I'm going to cover you in
His precious spotless blood. And when I see the blood, when
my eye sees His blood, I'm going to pass over you. Your blood
will not be shed. And it's because His blood was
shed. Thank God He has eyes. Isn't
that what we say? Thank God he has eyes. Our God
has eyes and he can see. He sees the blood of Christ all
over his people. Back in Psalm 115, verse three
says, Isaiah 45 says, they have no
knowledge that set up the wood of their graven image and they're
praying unto a God that cannot save. Men and women all over
this world are crying out in constant prayer to a lowercase
g God that cannot hear a word that they are saying. Cannot
do anything for them. But the true and living God said,
I have heard. I have heard their groanings,
I've heard their murmurings, but I've heard their cry unto
me and I'm going to help them. I'm going to deliver them. Why
will he do that? Why will he hear? Why will he
deliver? It's because of a sweet smelling
savor that was offered up to him. That's the reason why. Verse
six goes on to say, their gods have noses, but they smell not. The true and living God said,
I have smelled the sacrifice that I provided for the sin of
my people. And it is such a sweet smelling
savor to me. For that reason, they can approach
me boldly to ask for mercy and grace to help in time of need
because of that reason. He said, I'll hear them, I'll
answer them, and I'll deliver them from all their trouble.
Verse seven says, they have hands, they're God. They have hands,
but they handle not. Have you ever heard somebody
make the statement that their God has no hands but your hands?
Have you ever heard that? He has no hands but your hands.
That's a false God. That's a false God. The true
and living God said in Psalm 98 that his right hand and his
holy arm had gotten him the victory. The true and living God has hands. He has hands and they can be
handled. You can ask a disciple named
Thomas. Our Lord entered into the room where the disciples
were and Thomas was very doubtful because he wasn't there the first
time and the Lord said, Thomas, you reach over here and touch
my hands. You touch them. You feel the scars. He said,
behold my feet. A song says, up Calvary's mountain,
one dreadful morn walked. Christ my Savior, weary and worn,
facing for sinners, death on the cross that he might save
them from endless loss. Verse seven says, they have hands,
but they handle not. Feet have they, but they walk
not. They don't walk. Goes on to say,
neither speak they through their throat. Their gods have no voice. But the true and living God,
he has a voice. You can ask Saul of Tarsus. He
was on his way to Damascus and the Lord spoke to him in such
a way that it knocked him off of his horse. Verse 29 says,
the voice of the Lord thunders. The voice of the Lord breaks
cedar trees. Somebody will say, well, I've
never heard his voice. Does he still speak out loud? He speaks
to the heart, speaks to the heart. When he speaks to the heart of
his child, this is what he says, I am, I am. And then he says, fear not. I'm with thee, be not dismayed. I'm thy God, I'll still give
thee aid. All who hear him speak, they
will say, No man spake like this man, no man ever. If any man
or woman thirst, he said, let him come to me. Come unto me,
all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I'll give you rest.
He said, Father, forgive them, they know not what they do. He
said, today you'll be with me in paradise. Oh, he has a voice. Verse seven, they have hands,
but they handle not. Feet have they, but they walk
not, neither speak they through their throat. They that make
them are like unto them, so is everyone that trusteth in them.
O Israel, trust thou in the Lord. He is their help and their shield.
O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord. He is their help and their
shield. Ye that fear the Lord, trust
in the Lord. He is their help and their shield.
The Lord hath been mindful of us. He will bless us. He will
bless the house of Israel. He will bless the house of Aaron.
He will bless them that fear the Lord, both small and great.
The Lord shall increase you more and more, you and your children.
You are blessed of the Lord, which made heaven and earth.
The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord's, but the earth
hath he given to the children of men. The dead praise not the
Lord. Neither any that go down into
silence, but we will bless the Lord from this time forth and
forevermore. Praise the Lord. Amen. May the Lord bless his word to
our heart. You have been listening to a
message by Gabe Stoniker, pastor of Kingsport Sovereign Grace
Church in Kingsport, Tennessee. If you would like a copy of this
message, or to hear other messages of sovereign grace, log on to
our website at ksgctn.org. If you would like to come and
worship with us, our service times are Sunday morning Bible
study at 10 o'clock a.m., worship at 1045 a.m., and 6 o'clock p.m.,
Wednesday evening at 730 p.m. Please tune in next week for
another message of God's free and sovereign grace.