Oftentimes, when I'm about to
embark on trying to declare the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ,
oftentimes I just feel totally, totally helpless. How can this
poor worm of a man that I am declare unto other poor worms
the infinite greatness of our God? It's just an impossible
task. And yet, the Lord has ordained
the preaching of the gospel, the teaching of His word, and
the hearing of it for His glory and for our good. So, we attempt
to bring this message from Psalm 139, and I'm entitling the message,
Wonderful and High Knowledge, from verse 6. And this is God's
knowledge of us and our knowledge of him. Such knowledge is too
wonderful for me. All that God knows and all that
he is, surely is too wonderful for me. And all of his thoughts
toward us, certainly they are glorious and wonderful, aren't
they? Precious, they're precious. His
thoughts toward us are precious. Such knowledge is too wonderful
for me, it is high. It is high as God. I cannot attain
unto it. It is high, so very high." So
the message, wonderful and high knowledge of Almighty God. What
a subject. What a subject. What a great
privilege the Lord has given unto us to know something of
His glorious character, to know something of His holy and awesome
character. He's not left us in the dark,
that's where He found us, but He's not left us in the dark.
He brought us out of darkness into His marvelous light and
He's been pleased to reveal these things unto us about Himself. He's revealed Himself unto us,
not through dreams and visions and feelings, but He has revealed
Himself unto us through His words. All Scripture is God-breathed,
all Scripture is God-given. And God has not left us just
with the mere reading of the Word, but He's given us His Word
and then promised to send the Holy Spirit who will take the
things of Christ and show them and reveal them unto us. Isn't the Book of God a marvelous
thing? And the more you look at it,
and you read it, and you meditate upon it, the more you see of
Him, His beauty, His glory, His righteousness, His redemption,
His person, His work. It's all about Him. And certainly
this psalm is no different. Psalm 139 tells us much about
the glorious, glorious character of our great God and Savior.
We see a vivid description of some of His divine attributes.
And there's at least three that I want to point out in this psalm.
We see these three things. At least these three things.
Much more, but at least these three. We see his omniscience. His omniscience. What does that
mean? That means he knows everything. He has infinite, intimate, exact,
and perfect knowledge of all things. All things. He's acquainted with everything
and everyone. All events, advents, and everything. All actions, thoughts, motives. So we see something of His omniscience. Secondly, we see something of
His, what we call, omnipresence. That is, the Lord our God is
everywhere present. All at the same time. We cannot
run from His presence. We cannot hide from His presence. He's everywhere present. This Proverbs 15, these words
are found. The eyes of the Lord are in every
place. The eyes of the Lord are in every
place. Beholding the evil and the good. His eyes are everywhere. There's
no hiding from Him. Thirdly, we see His omnipotence
and that simply means His unlimited, infinite, holy, sovereign, majestic
power. He has all power in heaven and
on earth. He has all authority over all
things. He has supreme right to do as
He will, with whom He will, when he will for his own purpose and
glory you remember back just one page turn back over there
Psalm 135 verse 5 for I know that the Lord is great and that
our Lord is above all small g gods and whatsoever the Lord pleased
that did he in heaven and in earth in the seas And all deep
places. His will will be done in heaven
and in earth. He worketh all things after the
counsel of His own will and purpose. So we see His omniscience. He knows everything. He knows
our thoughts before we think them. Now think about that. We see His omnipresence everywhere
present. We see His omnipotence, His sovereign
power, unlimited sovereign power. Such knowledge is too wonderful
for me. It is high. I cannot reach onto
it. And yet by faith we believe these
things as the Lord is pleased to reveal Himself in the Word. Now, there is nothing more dishonoring
to God than for His creation to deny the true character of
its Creator. The creature created by Almighty
God ought to honor and own the Great Creator, the Sovereign.
It reveals a wicked heart of unbelief to deny God as He revealed
Himself in the Word. Our Lord said, if you believe
not that I am, you'll die in your sin. And yet this is the
very thing we see happening in our day. And it's not exclusively
a problem to our day. It's been going on for a long
time. Ever since Adam's fall and ruin and depravity. Yet we
see this thing happening in our day. when there is a absolute,
outright denial of the true character of God as He revealed Himself
in the Word of God. They say things like, well, you
know, my God wouldn't do that. Well, your God probably won't.
But is your God the God of Scripture? Is He the God of the Bible? I'm
reminded of this verse in Romans chapter 1. I mentioned this a
couple of services ago. when the Apostle Paul is talking
about those who are taken up with idols and idolatry, who
change the truth of God into a lie, and worship and serve
the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed forevermore. They've made creature worship. They have elevated the will of
man to subvert the will and throne of Almighty God. So we're faced
with this in our day, the freewillism everywhere. I met a man the other
day who came over here to purchase some items that I had put in
the local mountain bargain hunter. Some of my flooded furniture
I was trying to unload on some people. I told him it was flooded.
I said, now this furniture has been flooded. Now if you want
it, I'll give it to you to bargain. price, but now I want you to
know it's been flooded." And one particular man came over
and looked at some furniture that I had cleaned up and trying
to get rid of, and he said, well, he said, you pastor this church?
I said, yeah. Yeah, I've been here 19 years. He said, well, I go over here
to the free will. He said, I'm a free will pastor. You know, it's my tendency just
to jump on that like a chicken would a worm, you know, just
to pounce on it. But, you know, he was here to
buy some furniture and I let it go. But it just, the very,
that coming out of his mouth, it just disturbed me. It just
disturbed me. Salvation is according to His
will. Not of Him that willeth nor of
Him that runneth, but God that shows mercy. They change the
truth of God into a lie and worship and serve the creature more than
the Creator. They've taken God or tried to. They've tried to dethrone God
and enthrone man. That's expensive, God. eternal
life is Described in the Word of God as knowing the true and
living God Our Lord said in John 17, this is eternal life that
you might know thee the only true God Jesus Christ If we don't
know the true Christ of God, we've got an idol We've got a
counterfeit we've got what the Apostle Paul said another Jesus
and who wants to and can't, who's tried and failed. Not the Christ
of God. The Christ of God is absolutely
successful, almighty, powerful. To trust the God of our imagination
is to trust a mere idol that cannot save a flea, yet alone
a vile sinner like me. A vile sinner needs one who is
mighty to save, not one who is subject to our desire and will,
we must bow to His will and desire. You remember the scriptures from
Isaiah 45 where it says, they have no knowledge that set up
wood of their graven image and pray unto a God that cannot say. That cannot say. Now let's see something of a
true character of the God that we worship. The only place where
sinner will really in reverence fall down on his face is before
the absolute sovereign God Almighty. Before the throne of the sovereign
God. Now let's learn something of
the glorious truths about the omniscience of our Lord, of our
blessed Lord. And we see that in verses 1 through
6 of Psalm 139. Oh Lord thou hast searched me
He searched me, and He searched me, and He knows me. Thou knowest my down-sitting,
my up-rising. You understand my thoughts afar
off. You compass my path, my lying
down, and are acquainted with all my ways. There is not a word
in my tongue, my mouth, but lo, O Lord, You know it all together,
all together. Now, let's look at verse 1 for
a minute. The Lord has knowledge of all
men, all things. He knows our frame. He knows
that we are but dust. Remember from our study in John
chapter 2, He deeded not that any should testify of man, for
He knew what was in man. He knows all men. He has knowledge
of all men. He knows their frame. He knows
their name. But this is talking about that
intimate, intimate knowledge and love that God Almighty has
toward His elect, His own. He knows them like He knows no
other. He knows His elect through and
through. He knows them and He has searched
them out and called them to Himself. Because the Lord has known us
from all eternity, and loved us, how long has he loved his
own? With an everlasting love from
all eternity, in due time, what happens, he crosses our path
and reveals himself unto us. He's hid these things from the
wise and prudent and has revealed himself unto his babes, unto
his children. The good shepherd does seek out
his sheep, he does find them, And He does take them home to
glory. He has searched us because He
knows us with that intimate electing what the old-timer... I remember
the first time I ran into that statement, the electing love.
I was reading Warburton's book on covenant mercy, electing love. He is electing love from all
eternity. caused Him to search us out and
take us home to glory, to make us one with Himself. The foundation
of God standeth sure, having us sealed, the Lord knoweth them."
He knows them that are His. You remember in Matthew 7, He
said to those who claim great things, He said, I never knew
you. Now certainly He knew all about
them. But he never, he's saying there,
I never had that intimate love relationship with you. Depart
from me, you workers of iniquity. I never knew you. Oh, he knows
us. He's known us with an everlasting
love. And with everlasting kindness,
he does draw us to himself. He crosses our path with the
truth. And calls us out of darkness
into His marvelous light. Now, how well does the Lord know
His covenant people? How well does the Lord know us?
Completely. I mean completely through and
through. He knows us fully and completely and eternally. He
knows us better than we know ourselves. You know the heart
is called deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.
We can deceive our own selves. The Lord has never deceived.
Men look on the outward countenance. God looks right straight to the
heart. To the heart. He knows us better
than we know ourselves. He said in verse 2, you know
my every movement, my down sitting, my up rising, and you understand
my thoughts afar off. Every movement the Lord knows. You know what that's most comforting
to me? Wherever we go, wherever we're at, on the job or in bed,
when we're up, when we're down, the Lord knows everything. He knows our every movement.
The steps of a good man are ordered of the Lord, Psalm 37. He knows
our every thought, our every imagination. Remember what Peter said to the Lord when the
Lord asked him three times, Peter, do you love me? Peter, do you
really love me? You know, just not long ago,
you said you didn't know me. Do you really love me? Remember
what he said? Finally, he said, Lord, you know
all things, you know, you know that I love you. Our every thought, our every
imagination, Verse 3, He knows our every action, our motive,
our deed, and all our ways. Out compass my path, my lying
down, and art acquainted, He's acquainted fully, completely,
acquainted with all my ways. All of them. All of them. The Lord knows our words, our
action, our motive, our deeds, what we say of Him and others,
nothing is done in secret. Playing hypocrisy before men
is one thing, but playing hypocrisy before
God is insane, because He knows the real you. He knows us through
and through. He knows every idle thought,
every idle word, every idle deed and knowing all we are accountable
to the all-knowing Lord he said in Matthew 12 every word that
you speak he said I know and you're accountable unto God for
every idle word you see he knows us through and through he knows
us through and through He is absolutely omniscient. Look at verse 5. Verse 4 says, For there
is not a word in my tongue, but lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether. Verse 5, Thou hast set me behind. He's besieged us, behind and
before. He's laid hold upon us. With His right hand. He's laid
His hand. The sovereign hand of Almighty
God. The Lord not only knows us, and not only holds us, but He
surrounds us, and encircles us, and hems us in, and protects
us. I've been reading through the
book of Job, with anticipation of someday trying to do a study
through the book of Job. But in Job chapter 1, Satan said
to God Almighty about Job, I can't touch him because you put a fence
around him and I can't get him. I can't get to him. He has hemmed us in. He has protected
us. He has beset us behind and before
and he has laid his mighty hand upon us. In great mercy he lays
his mighty hand of grace upon us to redeem us and save us and
will not Will not let us go. Will not let us go. He gives
us eternal life. You remember from John 10, he
said, no one can pluck him out of my hand. He lays his hand upon us to rule
us. His mighty hand now. He does
according to his will in the army of heaven among the habitants
of this earth and none can stay his hand. He lays His hand upon
us to rule us, to lead us, to uphold us, to save us, to protect
us, and to restore us. Aren't you glad that His hand
is upon us? We say, well, I don't feel His
hand. He didn't ask you to feel it. We believe what He has said. He said, My hand's on you. I've
laid My hand upon you. Now look at verse 6. Such knowledge,
such knowledge, all that God knows of us, such knowledge is
wonderful. His knowledge of us, His acquaintance
with us, His electing love toward us, that intimate relationship
He has with His own. He said, as the Father knows
me, even I know my sheep. Think about that. John 10, as
a father knows me, I know my sheep and I lay down my life
for the sheep. Such knowledge is wonderful. It is wonderful. It is wonderful
for me. It is high. So high I cannot fathom it. I cannot attain unto such, such. The infinite greatness of our
God It's frustrating to try to, you can't explain God, you can
just declare who he is. And that's what we try to do
in preaching. God's infinite knowledge of us is most wonderful
and glorious. Excuse me. I cannot comprehend
it. I certainly can't understand
it. I believe it. Yet by faith we know that it's
so, don't we? How do we know it's so? We believe
his word. It is only at the throne of the
Most High God, the Sovereign God, that any sinner will really
bow and worship before Almighty God. Now, we see something of
His omniscience. He knows us through and through.
All things are naked and open with the One to whom we have
to do. Now, in verse 7, down to verse
13, we see something of his omnipresence. And that simply means that he's
everywhere all at once at the same time. He's everywhere. He's everywhere. I remember what
old brother Montgomery told Maurice when he went off to Korea. He
said, son, he's over there too. God's everywhere. And that gave
that young man some comfort. I'm sure it did. Look at verse
7. The question is asked. Where
shall I go from his spirit, from his presence? Whether shall I
flee from his presence or from his spirit or from his person?
He's everywhere. If I send up to heaven, thou
art there. If I make my bed in the grave,
behold, God is there. It's everywhere. If I take the
wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the
sea, even there shall thy hand lead me, even there shall thy
right hand hold me. If I say, Surely darkness shall
cover me, even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness
hideth not from thee, but the night shineth as the day. Darkness and light are both alike
to the darkness. There is no darkness with God
because He's all light. There is no hiding from this
God who is God. Those who would pray to the rocks
and mountains, remember we've read that in Revelation 6. Those
who prayed for the rocks and the mountains to hide them from
the wrath of the Lamb, will sorely be disappointed, won't they?
All things are naked and open before Him
with whom we have to do. There's no escaping His judgment.
There's no escaping His decrees. There's no escaping His presence. You know, this has to be terrifying
to the hypocrite But I find it most comforting. The Lord is
always with us. He said, I'll never forsake you. Lo, I'm with you always, even
to the end of the earth. I'll never leave thee. No, no,
never. Never, never, never. Look at
verse 8. If I ascend up to heaven, it'll
be by His grace to be absent from the body, is to be present
with the Lord. If I stand up to heaven, behold,
thou art there. When this body goes back to the
dust, back to the ground, behold, you think the Lord will forget
us then? No, it's going to be a resurrection
day, a glorious resurrection day. When in glory, surely the
Lord is with us. When our bodies lie silent in
the grave, the Lord is still with us and one day he'll make
a new body, he'll change our vile body and fashion it like
unto his glorious body and there shall we ever be with the Lord.
Verse 9 and 10, no one can escape the grasp of his hand, his people
are called the sheep of his hand, the people of his pasture, his
hand will lead us For He is the Good Shepherd, the Great Shepherd,
the Chief Shepherd. His hand will hold us. Hold us. Come over here to Isaiah 41,
just a moment. Isaiah 41, look at verse 10. Isaiah 41, 10. Fear thou not. You see Isaiah 41, 10. For I
am with thee. I am with thee. Be not dismayed. Isaiah 41 10 for that for I am
thy God I will strengthen thee yea I will help thee yea I will
uphold thee with the right hand the right hand of my righteousness
fear not I will lead thee I will hold thee I will keep thee even
there shall thy hand lead me and thy right hand shall hold
me verse 11 and 12 Darkness or light is no hindrance
to the Lord He sees all and he knows all I'm reminded the scripture
when Abraham cast out Hagar and Ishmael and She was in a wilderness
place and hungry and thirsty and she cried out remember what
she cried out thou God seeth me There's no hiding from Him. God
is light and in Him is no darkness at all. He commands the light
to shine out of darkness. There is no darkness nor shadow,
Job 34. There is no darkness nor shadow
of death where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves. Everything is light unto Him. Verse 13. The Lord our God not
only knows all about us, Verse 13, He's possessed us. Believers are possessed. Christ
in you, the hope of glory. And that word there, possessed,
means that He owns us. He bought us. He chose us. He's possessed our very being,
our reign, my inner soul. And He's covered me In my mother's
womb. Now you think about this. The Lord our God only knows all
about us. We are His possession. We are
His possession. He chose us and bought us with
His own blood. You remember the scripture in
1 Corinthians 6. He says you are no more your
own but you are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your
body and your spirit which are His. We belong to Him. Now watch
this. How long has the Lord known us? He has known us eternally. He
has certainly known us before we ever knew anything about Him. Before we knew Him, He's always
known us. He's always been mindful of us.
When conceived and just an embryo in the womb, He covered us, blessed us in
Christ, covered us with His blood, justified us in Christ Jesus. That's what it says there. Thou
has covered me in my mother's womb. Covered with what? The
blood and righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord owns
us and we own Him now by faith. since he's revealed himself unto
us and now we can sing as the Song of Solomon says, my beloved
is mine and I am his. Thou hast possessed my very being
and covered me in my mother's womb. You remember what he said
to Jeremiah? Before I formed you in the womb,
I knew you and ordained you to be a prophet unto my people."
Think about that. The Lord has always known His
people and always considered His people in Christ Jesus, being
justified in Christ Jesus and blessed in Him. Always He's seen
His people in Christ Jesus. Now here's the last thing. Verse 14 and down to verse 22
We see something of the Lord's omnipotence and his and that
simply means his almighty sovereign power Look verse 14. I will praise
thee. I will praise thee honor thee
David said I'm fearfully and wonderfully made and Who made
David a man after God's own heart? Who took David from the sheepfold
and made him the king of Israel? Who made him? Wonderfully made. Well, you know who did so? God did. I will praise thee,
for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are thy works,
and that my soul knoweth right Well, one of the first things
a believer does realize that everything he is or ever will
be is because of God's sovereign grace. You remember Psalm 100?
It is He that hath made us, not we ourselves. It is He who has
made us, not we ourselves. He made us trophies of His grace. He made us object of His love. The Lord's name is wonderful
and everything He makes, He makes it wonderful. I am fearfully
and wonderfully made. Now you think about this. Wonderfully
made an object of His grace. Wonderfully made a new creature
in Christ Jesus. All of his works and all that
he does, his name is called what? Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty
God, the Everlasting Father. And everything he makes is wonderful. He's made us new creatures in
Christ Jesus. Old things are passed away, behold
all things have become new. Now verse 15 and 16 kind of echo
the same Sentiment that is said in verse 13, but let's read it
again. My substance was not hid from
thee when I was made at the secret Curiously wrought in the lowest
parts of the earth and here again. He's talking about Being conceived
David talking about being conceived in his mother's womb Then I did
see my substance being yet unperfect or incomplete not fully grown
and in thy book the book of God All my members were written,
which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of
them. How great is our God. Now verse
17. How precious. How precious. How precious. The Lord hath predestinated
all. And those whom he has foreknown
to be conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ before
the foundation of the world, before our days on this life,
our days in this life were even begun, the Lord has always known
us. And in thy book all our members
were written, in the book of God. Now verse 17, how precious,
how precious, how precious also are thy thoughts. Now you think
about this. In Isaiah 40 it said, all nations
before him as a drop of a bucket. A man whose best aid is altogether
vanity. Here are we just, I mean you
consider the vastness of the universe and here's One sheep
of Christ. How insignificant do we seem
in the vast picture of eternity, of the universe, and yet the
Lord has precious thoughts toward His people. That's amazing. How precious also are thy thoughts
unto me, O God. How great is the sum of them. Turn over here to Psalm 40. Amen.
Psalm 40. How great is the sum of them.
Precious thoughts. We read about his precious promises.
Read about being redeemed with the precious blood of Christ.
Psalm 40 verse 5. Many O LORD my God, are thy wonderful
works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to usward,
they cannot be reckoned up in order. If I would declare and
speak of them, there are more than can be numbered. How precious
are his thoughts! How great is the sum of them,
that the Lord of glory would be mindful of us, to choose us,
to love us, to come for us, to die for us, to work out righteousness
for us, to freely impute that unto us. Remember from Psalm
8 where it's question is asked, what is man? What is man? That thou wert mindful of him.
What grace, what amazing love. How great is the sum of them. Excuse me. One old writer said this, how
great is the sum of them, when we remember that the thoughts
that God thought upon us from old eternity continues to think
upon us every moment and will think upon us when time shall
be no more. Don't we exclaim how great is
the sum of them? The thoughts of our God, thoughts
of pardon, thoughts of supplying us with every need, thoughts
of perfecting us and conforming us to the Lord Jesus Christ,
Thousand more kinds of thoughts God has toward us. It should
fill us with adoring wonder, reverent surprise that the infinite
mind of God should turn so many thoughts toward us who are so
insignificant and so unworthy. How great is the sum of God's
thoughts toward us. Precious, precious, precious.
Verse 18 said, if I could count them, there are more in number
than the sand, when I awake, I'm still with thee." Now, in
closing, let me conclude with this. Verse 19 and following, Surely as God will justify His
own covenant people, just as surely as the Lord will graciously
redeem and glorify His elect, He will also justly condemn and
punish the wicked. Surely that will slay the wicked.
O God, David said, depart from me therefore you bloody men.
For they speak against thee wickedly, and thy enemies take thy name
in vain. Do not I hate them, O Lord, that
hate thee? And am I not grieved with those
that rise up against thee." David said, I hate them with a perfect
hatred. I count them mine enemies. Now, there's a lot there. The condemnation of the wicked
is just. Not that God needs to validate
His judgment, but He does here. He said, they speak against the
Lord. They take the name of the Lord in vain, using His name
to promote vile things. They hate the true and living
God of the Scripture. Now we are taught to love our
enemies, but we're not told to love those
who hate God. You know His enemies are our
enemies. We must not give any allegiance
or loyalty to those who ally themselves with the Antichrist. We are to contend with those
who contend against the gospel of God. Through thy precepts
I get understanding, therefore I hate every false way. Loyal
subjects, loyal subject of the king, must not be friendly to
the enemies of the king. Should they? Should they be allied
to those who are the traitors to the king? Now, we must not
hate them as men would. I realize that's a strong word. But I believe it's teaching we
should hate them as God would with a holy hatred, a perfect
hatred, as much as in us is. One old writer had this thought. And speaking for David, he said,
I hate them with perfect hatred. He does not leave it a matter
of question. He does not occupy a neutral
position. His hatred to vicious, blasphemous
men is intense, complete, and energetic. I hate them with a
holy hatred. He is wholehearted in his hate
of wickedness as is his love to God's goodness. He's energetic with wholehearted praise and
wholehearted justice against those who would rebel against
God Almighty. I hate them with a perfect hatred. Now, not the hatred that men
would use, but that holy hatred that God has. Hatred for sin. I count them
mine enemies. I don't count them as my friends.
They're God's enemies. How can I be friendly with them?
I know we've got to get along with folks. I'm not saying that. But I am teaching what this is
teaching here. We're not to be neutral or to
take just a nonchalant attitude toward those who hate God. Now
look at verse 23 and 24. Search me, O God. Here's our
prayer. We can make this prayer for this
coming year. Search me, O God, and know my heart, and try me,
and know my thoughts. and see if there be any wicked
way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Lead me in
the way everlasting. Search me. Know me. Know my heart. Faith will be
tried. Know my thoughts. If there be anything contrary
us contrary to his will contrary to his way contrary to his word
Lord be pleased to root it out and to teach me and lead me in
the way now what is the way you know what it is don't you Christ
is the way he's the way everlasting everything that God has for us
in a way of mercy is everlasting. We've seen that in Psalm 136.
His mercy is what? Everlasting. He saves us with
an everlasting salvation. He gives us eternal life. Lead
me in the way that's everlasting. Lead me to Christ, the Lord Jesus
Christ.