The Living God

Q: What does the Bible say about God's mercy and justice?

God's character is defined as both merciful and just, forgiving iniquity while not clearing the guilty. In Exodus 34:6-7, God reveals Himself as merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth. While He forgives sins, He cannot overlook guilt; thus, He punishes sin in Christ, our substitute. This truth assures us that God's forgiveness is grounded in justice, as He enacted the penalty for sin upon Christ, allowing Him to show mercy to His people without compromising His holiness.

Q: How do we know that God is faithful to His promises?

God's faithfulness is demonstrated through His unchanging nature and His covenant promises. In Deuteronomy 7:7-8, God affirms that He chose Israel not for their merits but simply by His own will. This reflects His eternal covenant of grace, in which He promises to save His people. As shown in 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24, God is faithful to His calling and will accomplish what He has promised, proving His reliability throughout Scripture and history.

Q: Why is understanding God's compassion important for Christians?

Understanding God's compassion assures believers that He cares deeply for them despite their sins. Psalm 103:10-14 reveals that the Lord does not treat us as our sins deserve but shows immense compassion as a loving Father. This understanding helps believers receive God's grace and encourages them to cast their cares upon Him (1 Peter 5:7), knowing He empathizes with their struggles. Recognizing God's compassion deepens trust and reliance on Him in times of trouble, forming a foundation for Christian hope and strength.

Q: What does the Bible teach about God being the shepherd of His people?

God is described as the good shepherd who cares for, leads, and protects His people. In Psalm 23, God is depicted as the shepherd who provides for all His people's needs, ensuring they lack nothing. Jesus reiterates this in John 10, where He declares Himself the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep. This metaphor emphasizes God's intimate care, guidance, and the security He offers, reassuring believers that they will never be lost or abandoned but will be brought safely to eternal life.

Q: How does God's sovereignty relate to human decisions and actions?

God's sovereignty ensures that all actions align with His divine purpose, controlling every aspect of creation. Isaiah 45:7 illustrates God's sovereignty, stating that He creates good and evil and controls all aspects of the universe. This affirms that nothing occurs outside of God's ordained plan, including human decisions. The assurance is that even our free will serves God’s purposes, emphasizing that while we act, God sovereignly orchestrates outcomes for His glory and the ultimate good of His elect, thereby securing their salvation.

Well, good morning, everyone. If you would open your Bibles with me to Isaiah chapter 40. I'd like to begin our service reading this portion of Isaiah 40, where our God describes himself. Beginning in verse 12 of Isaiah chapter 40. Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with a span? and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance. Who hath directed the spirit of the Lord, or being his counselor, hath taught him? With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding?

Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as a small dust of the balance. Behold, he taketh up the aisles as a very little thing, and Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. All nations before him are as nothing. They are counted to him less than nothing in vanity. To whom then will you liken God? What likeness will you compare unto him?

The workman melteth a graven image, and the goldsmith spreadeth it over with gold and casteth silver chains. He that is so impoverished that he hath no oblation chooseth the tree that will not rot. He seeketh unto him a cunning workman to prepare a graven image that shall not be moved.

Have you not known? Have you not heard? Hath it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are his grasshoppers. that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in.

That bringeth the princes to nothing, he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity. Yea, they shall not be planted. Yea, they shall not be sown. Yea, their stalks shall not take root in the earth. And he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither. And the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble.

To whom then will you liken me? Or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high and behold, who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number. He calleth them all by names, by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power.

Not one faileth. Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, my way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God. Hast thou not known Has thou not heard that the everlasting God, the Lord, the creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of his understanding.

He giveth power to the faint, and to them that have no might, he increases strength. Even the youth shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint.

All right, let's stand together as Jonathan leads us in singing our call to worship. ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, Glory to God the Father's name, who from our sinful race, chose out His people to proclaim the honors of His grace. Glory to God the Son be paid, who dwelt in human clay, us from the dead, gave his own life away. Glory to God, the Spirit give, from whose almighty power Our souls their heavenly birth receive, and bless this happy hour. Glory to God who reigns above, the glorious three in one. who by the wonders of his love has made his nature known. Be seated.

Take your hymn books with me if you would. Turn to page 354. 354, what a friend we have in Jesus. What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear. What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer. Oh, what peace we often forfeit. Oh, what needless pain we bear. Oh, because we do not carry everything to God in prayer, have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Can we find a friend so faithful? Who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Are we weak and heavy-laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Do Thy friends despise, forsake Thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer. ♪ In his arms he'll take and shield thee ♪ ♪ Thou wilt find a solace there ♪ If you would turn your Bibles to Acts Acts chapter 14. We'll read verses 8 through 18.

And there sat a certain man at Lystra, impotent in his feet, being a cripple from his mother's womb, who never had walked. The same heard Paul speak, and steadfastly beholding him, and perceiving that he had faith to be healed, said with a loud voice, stand upright on thy feet. And he leaped and walked.

And when people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, the gods are come down to us in likeness of men. And they called Barnabas Jupiter, and Paul Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker. Then the priest of Jupiter, which was before their city, brought oxen and garlands into the gates and would have done sacrifice with the people, which when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of, they rent their clothes and ran among the people crying out.

And saying, sirs, why do you these things? We also are men of like passions with you and preaching to you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven and earth and the sea and all the things that are therein, who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways.

Nevertheless, he left not himself without witness in that he did good and gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness. And with these things, scarce restrain they, the people, that they had not done sacrifice unto them.

Let's pray. Our heavenly Father, we thank you, Lord, as always, for your word. These words in which we read, we know, Lord, these are only the words in which we have faith, this God-given faith in which you have given us, can only come by the words, the hearing of these words, and what a blessing that is to us, Lord.

And we pray, Lord, that you help us, Lord, help us as we live in this flesh. Help us, Lord, this flesh that's fighting against the spirit, the spirit that's warring against the flesh. All these things, Lord, we know have been brought unto us by you, and we pray your blessings for us. We pray your blessings also, Lord, for those in whom are going through these very, very difficult times. We know that these infirmities that we suffer in this flesh, these trials and tribulations, this world, this earth that we live, we know, Lord, these things has, in all things, has been ordained by you. And we pray, Lord, that you would help us, help us to look to him, look to the one to whom you have lifted up on high, the one in whom is our mediator, before God.

All these things, Lord. And we pray, Lord, for our pastor that these words in which you have laid upon his heart, and we pray, Lord, that you would bless him and bless us in our hearing of these words, all these things we ask in Christ's name for his sake. Amen. Keep your Bibles open there to Acts chapter 14 will be our text this morning. I titled the message, The Living God.

We looked at this last week in verses 8 through 10, that Paul seen this impotent man. He's born without a foot or maybe without both feet. And Lord healed that man. He saw that that man had faith to be healed. And that man, Paul told that man without a foot to stand up and walk. And he leaped and walked.

I mean, can you imagine how overjoyed this man was? And what a shock this was to the people to see this is a great, great physical miracle. What a blessing that was to this man. But this is a picture of a much, much greater miracle, isn't it? The miracle of salvation by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul saw that this man had faith to be saved. Well, God gave him the faith to be saved when he heard Paul and Barnabas preach the gospel. And this great miracle happened.

And you know, the flesh will always handle that wrong. False religion does not believe in one God who is over all. The false religion, they might say they proclaim one God, But he's not one God who's overall, who rules overall. Look here at verse 11.

And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonoa, or Nea, the gods are come down, plural. Gods are come down to us in the likeness of men. And they called Barnabas Jupiter and Paul Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker. What they saw was there's many different gods. Here's Jupiter and Mercury and all those mythical gods that the Greeks and the Romans had. They believe in many different gods. Not one god who is overall. And then false religion cannot believe in salvation through the sacrifice of Christ alone. They just cannot believe it. Verse 13.

Then the priest of Jupiter, which was before their city, brought oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done sacrifice with the people. These garlands are flowery wreaths of some sort that they made, and they made these wreaths to put on the sacrifice to pretty up the sacrifice, like the sacrifice will be accepted if we add the works of our hands to it.

They cannot believe. that salvation can come through the sacrifice of Christ alone. It's got to be what Christ does plus what I do in order to be saved. They cannot believe that unless God gives them the faith to be saved. And then, and this goes real closely with Dan's lesson this morning, they wanted to worship and exalt the preacher, not the message that they preached. And God's preacher won't allow that.

Verse 14, But when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard of, they rent their clothes and ran in among the people, crying out, and saying, sirs, why do you these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that you should turn from these vanities, turn from these empty idols, they're vanity, they're empty, they have nothing, no spiritual goodness in them whatsoever, and turn unto the living God. which made heaven and earth and the sea and all things that are therein. God's preachers are men of like passions, just like all of you, just like every other son of Adam. God's preachers are natural born sinners with all the weaknesses of the flesh, with the weak faith and fears and afflictions of sin, just like every other son of Adam. Anybody that tells you that God's preacher is on some higher plane than you. If I was you, I wouldn't listen to them, because that's just not so.

The Lord calls men and gives them to preach to God's people, but now listen, they're sinful men, just like everybody else, and it has to be that way. The only way a man can minister to other sinners is if he's a sinner too. The only way a man can preach the gospel with a with a heart of love and worship for God and a heart of love for you, is if he's a sinner that needs Christ just as much as you do. The only way a man's gonna faithfully point you to Christ, if that's his need too.

We're men of like passions, just like you. But Paul says, no, we're men of like passions, just like you. We're not gods in the flesh, we're not on a higher spiritual plane than you, but we have come preaching the gospel to you. And we preach the gospel to you so that you'll turn from these empty idols and you'll turn to the living God. Not a dead idol, the living God.

And Paul identifies God here as God is the creator. Now, whoever it is that created all this world that we see in its vastness and its beauty and the mysteries, you know, they just sent the Artemis rocket up and it just, They took pictures of the earth. And it's a mystery to me how that ball just keeps hanging there in space. I mean, just whoever created all this, that's God. The one with the power, the one with the wisdom, the one to make these things so beautiful and useful, that's God. That's God. And by the preaching of the gospel, here's what we know. Here's why God created the heavens and the earth. He created it as a showcase for the glory of his son, that his son would come and save fallen men out of it. That's why God created the earth.

And the living God, he's the one who's in control of all men. Now you might think I make my own decisions, I do my own thing, but let me tell you, God's in control of everything we do. Look at verse 16. Who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways. God suffered men to go whichever way they wanted to go, to seek whatever false religion they would seek, and God allowed them to do that.

Let me tell you, there's no such thing as free will. I was at a doctor's appointment this week, and he asked me if I was a free will Baptist, and I said, no, no. He'd call us a sovereign grace Baptist, or an independent Baptist, or something. Ooh, that just sounds like nails on a chalkboard to me, free will. Brother, there's no such thing as free will.

Our will is tied to our nature so that all we can do is sin. All we can do is go away from God and God allows that. He allows men to go their own way because that's his will. to give them what they want and let them go their own way. Isn't that one of the most frightening things you've ever heard of? One of my constant prayers is that God not allow me to go my own way. Because scripture says, there's a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. Going our way will never lead to salvation. It'll always lead to death. Always.

This is what God has allowed those people to do that he did not choose to save. But also, our God who is in control of the actions and thoughts of all men is never without grace. God doesn't let all men always go their own way. He intervenes in the lives of his people, doesn't he? And he reveals Christ to them, he reveals himself to his people. Verse 17, nevertheless, he left not himself without witness and that he did good and gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.

Now this is much like what, what Paul wrote in Romans chapter one, all you've got to do to know that God is that God exists is look at creation. I mean, there is no way this creation could have just randomly evolved from some amoeba and turned into the world in which we live. And to see the people in which we live, they used to be a frog and now they're, you know, human beings. That's utter foolishness.

God created the heavens and the earth. God changes the seasons. God gives fruitful times. God's the one who blesses people with good in this earth. All you've got to do is look at nature and know, at least know this, There's a creator. There is a creator. But just seeing creation and knowing that there is such a person as God Almighty, as the creator, that will not lead us to faith in Christ, will it?

So God sends us another witness. He sends us his preachers to declare unto us the living God. He sent men to preach Christ to us. so that we'll trust Christ. Not so that we'll exalt the preacher now, so we'll trust Christ. And Paul says here, we are declaring unto you the living God, so you'll turn and you'll trust him.

The living God. Now that's an eternal subject, isn't it? I mean, what a subject, the living God. And you can get some commentaries and you can read a lot about this. if you want to, the living God. But I read some of that this week, and quite honestly, I mean, some of it was okay, some of it wasn't all that great, but it wasn't a great blessing. I'm not as much interested in what men have to say about the living God. Here's what I want us to know. What does God say about himself? How does God define himself as the living God?

And there's five ways I want to show you from scripture that the living God describes himself. And I pray that when we hear this, we'll be in such awe of him that we'll fall down in worshiping and trust our souls to him. Now, first look back in Exodus chapter 34. Exodus 34. The living God, this is how he describes himself now, is both merciful and just. Exodus 34, verse five.

And the Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and he proclaimed the name of the Lord. He's proclaiming the character. When we talk about the name of the Lord, this is his character. And the Lord passed by before him and proclaimed the Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious. long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and upon the children's children unto the third and to the fourth generation. What a God that we have to preach. He is merciful and gracious to sinners.

He is long-suffering with our sin that's against Him. How long-suffering He is. How long-suffering He is with the goats that He never has intended to save. He's long-suffering with their sin, their rebellion against Him. And those of you who believe, how long-suffering was the Lord with you before He revealed Himself to you? And how longsuffering is he now? Oh, he's longsuffering with his people that he does not destroy us immediately for our sin. He could, but he doesn't do it because he's longsuffering.

He's merciful and gracious to sinners. The living God forgives sin and not just a little bit. He says he's abundant in goodness. He's reserved mercy for thousands. Now that thousands is just a number for an indefinite number of people for thousands. If the living eternal God is abundant in goodness, and he's got mercy for thousands, tell you what that means. There's mercy and goodness left for even sinners like you and me. Oh, come to him in begging for mercy. But now there's a key, key word to the whole gospel here at the end of verse six, and it's truth. Abundant in goodness and truth. and truth. When God forgives sin, he does it in truth.

He doesn't just, it's still there and he ignores it. And you know, that's what we have to do. We forgive one another, right? We just have to ignore, we choose to ignore the wrong because we're going to forgive and love one another, but the wrong is still there.

That's not how God forgives sin. Verse seven, let's read that again. Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin and that will by no means clear the guilty. Now, if you can find the answer to this question, you can find the answer to the atonement of Christ.

How can God forgive sin and never clear the guilty? How can God forgive the sin of sinners? How can he be abundant in goodness and mercy to sinners, but yet by no means ever clear the guilty? God is holy, he must punish every sin. Then how can he forgive sin? The living God forgives sin by punishing the sin of his people in Christ our substitute.

That's why God sent his son into this world, so that he could transfer the sin of his people to his son and then punish his son fully for that sin. At the cross, Christ was made guilty of the sin of his people. Now he never committed a sin. That's utter foolishness. I don't know how many times we've got to say this. Nobody thinks Christ was ever a sinner. He never committed a sin. He's the holy son of God. He's the sinless sacrifice. Yet he was made guilty of the sin of his people. And the father didn't spare him, even though it's his own son. His own beloved son. He did not spare him. He punished him fully for that sin.

That's how God can show mercy to you and me in truth. That's how he can forgive our sin in truth, because he punished Christ our substitute for it. The sacrifice of Christ made it right for God to forgive our sin, because there is no sin. There is no sin for God's people. The blood of Christ took it away. Christ already paid the penalty for that sin. God's never gonna demand it of you if Christ died for you. That's how he can forgive your sin in truth. Now let that sink in for a second. Come worship him. Come beg him for mercy.

That's what Moses did, verse eight. And Moses, when he heard this, He made haste and bowed his head toward the earth and worshiped. What a reason to trust our souls to Christ and to worship him, that he is both merciful and just. If it's a just salvation, it can never fail, can it? All right, now look at Deuteronomy chapter seven. Here's the second thing. The living God is faithful to his covenant. Deuteronomy seven, verse seven. The Lord did not set his love upon you nor choose you because you are more in number than any people. You're the fewest of all people. The Lord didn't choose good people. There's no reason in you that God would choose you.

He did just because he would. That's what verse eight says, but because the Lord loved you and because he would keep the oath which he has sworn to your fathers. hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you out of the house of the bondman from the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt.

Now this covenant, this oath that he's talking about here is God's eternal covenant of grace. And that covenant is pictured in his promise to Abraham that he would bring his seed back to the land of Canaan and they would inhabit the whole land. And sure enough, God did it right when he promised to do it, didn't he? He brought Israel out of Egypt and gave them the promised land. And all that's a picture of God's covenant of grace. God's covenant of grace is his oath. It's his promise. I'm going to save a fallen people out of Adam's fallen race. I'm going to save them. I'm going to redeem them. I'm going to be merciful to them just because I would. And I promise I'll do it.

The Son and the Holy Spirit, before anything was ever created, when only God existed, they promised each other, in this matter of this covenant of grace, that they would save God's people from their sin. The Father, He elected a people to save. He chose them out of Adam's fallen race, not because they were the mightiest or the best, they were the worst, but God chose them just because He would, and He put them in His Son. He gave them to His Son to redeem. And the son promised, Father, I'll redeem everybody you give me. So in the fullness of time, God the son became an embryo in the womb of a virgin.

And he was born as a man in the flesh, just like you and me. He lived under the law as a man, and he kept that law, obeyed that law perfectly. And then he went to the cross bearing the sin of his people to redeem them from all of their sin. He knew what horrible, horrible, horrible suffering that that would cost him. But he did it anyway. He did it willingly with his eyes wide open. You know why? Because he promised the father he'd do it. And he went and redeemed those people from their sin. And God the Holy Spirit promised that he would come and give life and faith in the new birth. Faith to trust Christ. The Holy Spirit promised I'll come to all of God's elect and I will reveal Christ to them so that they see him. And when they see him, they can't not believe him. If you see Christ, you can't not believe him. You just can't help it. You see him as he is.

You know why the Holy Spirit would come to a wretch like you and me? Why would the Holy Spirit draw this group of people out of the world to come on this country road out here to hear the gospel preached? Why would you do that? Because the Holy Spirit came to you and drew you, that's why. And when you got here, he gave you ears to hear. He gave you eyes to see. And you know why? We don't deserve that. Why does the Holy Spirit do that? Because he promised the Father and the Son that he'd do it. God's going to keep his promise. Now, God made this promise before he created anything.

I'm going to save a people out of Adam's fallen race. God created Adam, put him in the garden. He gave him Eve as a helpmate for him. And very shortly, people don't know how long it was. Most people think it was in a very, very short time, Adam sinned against God. God just gave him one law. Don't eat of this tree. And Adam couldn't help it. He ate that and when he did, he sinned against God and fell.

And he gave every last one of us his nature. And all we have done ever since then for over 6,000 years, all we have ever done is sin against God. Now, how do I know God's still going to keep his promise? I mean, it got so bad in the days of Noah, God told Noah, I'm gonna destroy the whole earth with a flood.

But he saved Noah and his family out of eight souls. He saved in that ark, which is a picture of Christ. Well, how do I know God's not gonna do that again? Except this time, he's not gonna save eight souls. He tired of the sins. He's just gonna destroy us all because of our vile rebellion. How do I know God's gonna keep his promise and save his people from their sins?

Look at 1 Thessalonians chapter five. Paul gives us the answer. 1 Thessalonians five, verse 23. And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly And I pray God, your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless into the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you who will also do it. God promised to keep his, he made this promise and there's not a hint of doubt that he'll do it because God always keeps his promise, always. All right, now look at Psalm 103. Here's the third thing. The way the living God describes himself, and this is who he is, he's compassionate. Psalm 103, verse 10.

He hath not dealt with us after our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, So great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far as he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him.

For he knoweth our frame, he remembereth that we're dust. Now that word pity means to have compassion on and to love deeply. Not just a little bit, deeply. Like as a father pities his children when they're so little they can't do something for themselves or he has compassion on them.

What an amazing thing that the holy God has compassion on his sinful people. How much compassion? You know, the heavens cannot contain God. How much compassion? does the eternal God have for his people? On Psalm 145 verse eight, David said, the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.

The heavens cannot contain him, but he's full of compassion. He's slow to anger and of great mercy. He is full of compassion for his people so that there's nothing left in him except compassion for his people. Doesn't that make sense? If Lord's full of something, that means there's not room for anything else. He's full of compassion for his people.

And the writer to the Hebrews gives us a good indication as to why Hebrews five verse two, who can have compassion on the ignorant and them that are out of the way for the he himself also was compassed with infirmity. The Lord knows what it's like to live in the body of flesh with the weakness and frailty of the flesh because he was made flesh. and dwelt among us so that everything you ever go through, he went through it first. You know, I'm convinced that one of the great reasons that the Lord sends his people trial is so that when he brings us through it, then we're able to be of some comfort and some help to somebody else. Because you can go up to him and truly say, I understand. I've been there. I understand. Let me tell you how the Lord helped me. I've been there. The Lord's been there. He has compassion on us. And then Dan talked about that definition of holy being other. Isn't that other from you and me?

We do not have compassion on someone who is in such a bad situation because it's their own fault. They made a bunch of bad decisions. You know, somebody that doesn't have any money, but refuses to go to work, or they spend their money on foolish things, now they don't have any money to buy food. We typically don't have compassion on somebody like that, because it's your fault, right? That's the way we think. Our situation, our sinful, dead situation before God is our own fault. My sin is my fault. It's not Adam's fault, it's not the fault of my environment, it's my fault.

And God has compassion on me anyway. I love to think about that. And the Lord must love his people. He must love them with this great love and this great compassion. Because look what he agreed to endure and suffer to save sinners like you and me. He had to do that with a deep, eternal love, didn't he? A compassion for us. Well, all right. I can see that. I can see that from God's word. I can see that he would be merciful to a sinful people. I can see how God would be merciful to you. I really can. I can see that. Here's my problem. Me? Even me? I have trouble with that. How can God have compassion on me? Will He?

Look at 1 Peter chapter five. This should probably be a verse underlined in our Bible. to remind us that this is what we need to do all the time. Verse seven, casting all your care upon him for he careth for you. The Lord has a people. There are a number that no man can number. And in all that mass of people, the Lord careth for you. You can say that to every one of those people. He careth for you. Isn't that amazing? Then cast your care on him. Call out to him, worship him. He cares for you. All right, now look at Psalm 23. Here's the fourth thing. The living God is the shepherd of his people. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. The Lord is such a great shepherd that cares for, that leads and guides and protects his people.

I shall not want for anything. I should not want for rest because he gives me the green pastures of his word to lie down and feast in. I should not want for the water of life because he leads me by the, by the still waters and caused me, causes me to drink. I shall not want for righteousness. because he's gonna lead me in the paths of righteousness for his namesake. I shall not want for comfort because he's gonna comfort his sheep. I shall not want. In verse six, surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. That sounds mighty good, doesn't it? Sounds mighty good. Will the Lord do it? Will he do it? Is he able to keep all of his sheep and never lose one? Never lose one?

Look what the Lord said about himself, John chapter 10. John chapter 10, beginning in verse 10. The thief cometh not but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd.

The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. He died so that his sheep will live. But he that is a hireling and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth, and the wolf catcheth them and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am 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 I have, which are not of this fold. This is talking about you and me now. Them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. The Lord leaves no room for any doubt there, does he? He's gonna have his sheep. He's gonna bring them to himself and glorify them together with him. What a shepherd. Now don't go your own way. Trust the shepherd. Trust the shepherd. Ask him to be your shepherd and to lead and guide you. Trust him.

Here's the last thing. How do I know? that God's will shall come to pass. He said, those sheep I have which are not of this fold, them also I must bring. There shall be one fold and one shepherd. Well, how do I know something's not gonna happen to make God's will not come to pass? How's somebody not gonna mess up the works here and one of those sheep is gonna get lost? Look at Isaiah chapter 45. Here's the fifth thing. The living God controls every action in his creation. Isaiah 45 verse one.

Thus saith the Lord, his anointed to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden to subdue nations before him. And I will lose the loins of Kings to open before him the two leaf gates and the gate shall not be shut. I will go before thee and make the crooked places straight. I will break in pieces the gates of brass and cut and sunder the bars of iron.

I will give thee the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places that thou mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel. For Jacob, my servant's sake, and Israel, mine elect, I have even called thee by thy name.

I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me. I am the Lord. and there's none else. There's no God beside me. I girded thee, though thou hast not known me. That they may know from the rising of the sun and from the west, there's 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. Drop down, ye heavens from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness. Let the earth open and let them bring forth salvation and let righteousness spring up together. How do we know that's gonna happen? I, the Lord, have created it. You know, God, when he created the heavens and the earth, he didn't just spin the universe and how it spins or whatever it does, you know, and then just leave it run like on its own clockwork so you don't see what happens. God created the heavens and the earth And then he directs every action that's ever been taken in it. Matter of fact, he ordained every action that would ever happen in his creation before he ever said, let there be light.

That's so. So that everything that happens today, when you get done at the end of the day and you watch the news or whatever, see what happened today, you know what happened today? Exactly what God ordained to happen before he created anything. I'll tell you what that means. Nothing, nothing can stop the purpose of God. Nothing can. And this passage shows that so clearly.

The Lord's writing this to Cyrus, King Cyrus, who's gonna come and be a mighty conqueror and set Israel free. You know when he wrote this? You know when he called Cyrus by name? 200 years before Cyrus was even born. God is telling us 200 years before this man's born what he's going to do in his life and how he's going to serve God's purpose. And the same thing is true of you and me.

Now he hadn't written it down in his word, but the Lord has ordained everything we'll ever do in his service for his purpose. And God's going to see to it. It's not something that we have to make happen. God will see to it. God will see to it. We preach and we come together as a local church preaching the gospel in this community, knowing this. God's elect are gonna be brought to hear the gospel. They're gonna, and they're gonna hear it, and they're gonna believe it, and God's gonna keep them to the end.

We don't have to keep each other to the end. I mean, I hope we love one another and help one another and encourage one another, but God's gonna see to it. that his people hear the gospel, that they believe it and they're kept to the end. So the end of this world, there's one fold in one shepherd and nothing can stop it. Nothing can stop it.

Satan tried his best at Calvary to stop it, didn't he? And his head was crushed and Lord used even Satan to accomplish his purpose of redemption for his people through the sacrifice of his son. Satan's the one that moved in Judas's heart to betray the Lord. He moved the hearts of the people to say, give us, grab us and destroy Jesus. And that's what happened so that there would be a sacrifice to put your sin and my sin away. No matter how hard anyone tries to stop the will of the Lord, his will shall be accomplished in closing.

Now look over one page of Psalm or Isaiah, excuse me, Isaiah 46 verse nine. Now remember this now, this is our reaction to hearing that our God is in control of everything. Remember the former things of old, for I'm God and there is none else. I'm God and there's none like me.

I declare the end from the beginning. From ancient times, the things that are not yet done, saying my counsel shall stand. I will do all my pleasure. Calling a ravenous bird from the east, The man that executes my counsel from a far country? Yeah, I've spoken it. I will also bring it to pass. I've purposed it. I will also do it.

Now what should our reaction be? This is the living God. He's declared it and he's going to do what he promised to do. What should our reaction be? Verse 12, hearken unto me. He stout hearted and that are far from righteousness. I bring near my righteousness.

It should not be far off, and my salvation shall not tarry, and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel, my glory. I am the Lord, I change not. His purpose doesn't change, what he promised doesn't change, and that's the reason us sons of Jacob are not consumed, because our God doesn't change. His purpose is redemption for his people, and he's gonna see it through. in both justice and mercy. And do you know what? The Lord's doing that even right now, even right now. God help us to run to him and worship him. All right, let's bow together.

Our father, we're so thankful that you've not left us to our own devices to try to figure out who you are. but that you've written us in your word to show us who you are. Father, I pray, as we've heard preached from your word, who you are, that you might be pleased to break each stony heart here. And Father, cause us to run to thee, draw us to thee, cause us to fall at your feet and worship.

Lord, you promised compassion. You promised pity for your children. Oh, be compassionate to us. Be pitiful to us. Redeem us by your mercy, by your grace, by the power of the blood of your son. Father, we ask that you'd forgive us for our sin, for our unbelief, for who we are, and that you would see us and hear us only and always in our Lord Jesus Christ. It is in his blessed name, for his sake we pray. Amen.

The Living God

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about God's mercy and justice?

How do we know that God is faithful to His promises?

Why is understanding God's compassion important for Christians?

What does the Bible teach about God being the shepherd of His people?

How does God's sovereignty relate to human decisions and actions?

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The Living God

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about God's mercy and justice?

How do we know that God is faithful to His promises?

Why is understanding God's compassion important for Christians?

What does the Bible teach about God being the shepherd of His people?

How does God's sovereignty relate to human decisions and actions?

Sermon Transcript

About Frank Tate

Comments

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