Behold your God, James Smith The Attributes of God, 1863

The more we have to do with man, the more his littleness, fickleness, and emptiness appear. But the more we read, think, or have to do with God, the more His greatness, majesty, and infinite sufficiency is discovered.

He proclaims Himself the great and mighty God, the Lord Almighty is His name, Great in counsel and mighty in work, infinity, omnipotence, and eternity, find a home and a center only in Him. His greatness is unsearchable. There is more in the works of His hands than even the angels have ever discovered. There is more in the words of His mouth than mortals ever conceived. His glory is great unto and above the heavens.

Behold your God!" Isaiah 49. Look at His goodness! It runs an endless circuit, supplying millions and supporting all created existences. Oh, how great is His goodness! Look at His grace, saving innumerable multitudes from hell, saving them at the greatest expense in the freest possible way, saving them to the highest honor and greatest glory. Oh, the exceeding riches of His grace!

Look at his judgments. He sweeps the ancient world with his broom of destruction. He makes the cities of the plain into a hell on earth. He overthrows Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea. He encavens Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and their households in the belly of the earth. Oh, if we could look into hell, or listen for a moment at the door of the bottomless pit, How dreadful would his judgments appear! We cannot fathom them, but we must exclaim with the apostle, O the depths of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!

Look at his power! He speaks a world into existence, sustains it, supports every creature upon it, and perhaps millions of worlds beside it. All these things are alike easy for Him. Difficulty is with man, not with God. Ah, Lord God, behold, You have made the heaven and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for You.

Look at His wisdom. It is infinite. Read it in creation's ponderous folio, then turn to the glorious plan of grace, Here is a display of the manifold wisdom of God. Angels are learning it, and we can scarcely make out its alphabet at present. But we have God for our teacher, eternity for our duration, and heaven for the place where we shall fully learn the greatness of the wisdom of God.

Look at His holiness. It is so bright that no mortal eye has seen or can see it in its unveiled glory. Now we see but a poor reflection. We have but some faint discoveries, For he is glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, Constantly doing wonders.

Look at His mercy. It is a boundless ocean, without bottom, bank, or shore. The manifestations of mercy are innumerable. The proofs of His mercy are like mountains piled on mountains reaching to the heavens. The overflowing of His mercy has supplied the needs of unnumbered multitudes. who is so great a God as our God. He is a mighty and awesome God, yet so glorious and kind that the feeblest petitioner need not fear.