I want you to open your Bibles,
first of all, to the book of Job, Job chapter 42. I told my Sunday school class
this morning that in things pertaining to
the Lord's glory, and the Lord's instructions for
His people, and the revelation of our Lord's way and will to
His people. I feel more and more like Job
when he said this in Job 42, verse 1. Then Job answered the
Lord and said, I know, I know that thou canst do everything.
I know that, God. Oh, how I know that. There's
none beside the Lord. None can stay His hand or say
unto Him, what doest thou? I know that, don't you? I wish I knew it in my heart
like I know it in my head. I know you can do everything. Don't give me a God that wants
to and can't. Don't even talk to me about such
a God. suggest that God would like to do this and he's not
able because men resist him and reject him and refuse him. I
don't believe that. I believe he'll do what he will,
when he will, with whom he will, and his arm's not short that
it cannot save, his ear's not heavy that it cannot hear. Don't
you? He's God. He's God. Beside him there's
none else. He's God. I know that. No thought can be withholden
from thee. My innermost thoughts are as
open to God as the ground before the sun. The eye of the Lord is in every
place, beholding the evil and the good. Even Hagar, the handmaid of Sarah,
whom she sinfully gave to her husband to bear him a son, to
try to to fulfill God's purpose, to fulfill God's purpose for
a seed for Abraham. Even Hagar, after she'd been
turned out, turned out, put out on the street with her son Ishmael. Even Hagar, sitting out there
in the desert, thirsty, watching her boys' lips crack open, parched
with thirst. She lifted her eyes and said,
Thou God seest me. She named the place that, Thou
God seest me. Yeah, He does. Nothing can be
withholden from God. I tell you, there's a sense in
which that embarrasses me, but there's another sense in which
that comforts me. It embarrasses me in that God
knows what I'm thinking. That's embarrassing, isn't it?
Humiliating. God knows. God knows every thought. God
knows every evil. God knows every thought of pride
and every evil motive. God knows my thoughts. And that
embarrasses me. That humbles me. That convicts
me. Shuts my big mouth. Makes me
feel my unworthiness. Just think. He knows. Understand. But secondly, it comforts me
in this respect. That he knows I love him. And
he knows I believe him. And he knows I trust him. Now
that helps me. You may not know it, but he does.
You may suspect it, but he knows it. That's what Peter said. Peter
fell back on God's omniscience. fell back on Christ's complete
knowledge in the sense Christ kept asking, Do you love me?
He said, Do you know I love you? Because you know all things. You know all things. In verse 3, Who is he that heareth
knowledge, a counsel without knowledge? Therefore have I uttered that
I understood not. Things much too wonderful for
me. I've had to deal in and speak
of and preach things way beyond my understanding. I've uttered
things I didn't fully understand. Like I told my Sunday school
class this morning in 2 Samuel 24 when it says God moved David
to number Israel. And that was a sin to number
Israel. He ought never have numbered
Israel. He knew better. Joab tried to tell him not to,
but he did it anyway. And God moved him to. I don't
understand that. I believe it, but I don't understand
it. I don't understand it, and I
have to talk about those things. I have to stand up in front of
people and talk about those things I don't understand. I believe
them, but I don't understand them. But one thing, Bruce, I
don't need is a God I can understand. Now, I'd be in bad shape if I
had a God I could understand, wouldn't I? One thing I don't
need is a God I can comprehend. If He is like me, He'd be in
the mess I'm in. But He's far above me, and I
don't understand Him. I utter things I don't understand,
and I preach things too wonderful. And what I'm dealing with this
morning in Exodus 33, now if you want to go over there, what
I'm dealing with, I tell you beforehand, I don't understand
fully, and there are things much too wonderful, but I'm going
to talk this morning about God's greatest glory, as if I knew
something about it, Charlie. I'm going to do my best. As if
I knew something about it. God's greatest glory. We know in part, and we prophesy
in part, and we see through a glass dimly. But I'll tell you what
I know in part, and I'll tell you what I see through this glass
dimly. I'll tell you what I see. I know, number one, I know this
as best I can know it, that God's chief attribute, if such can
be said. If anything about God can be
said, Tom, to be cheap, to be greatest. I speak as a man. I don't know that we can ever
isolate any attribute and say this is above the other. But
I do say that which seems to be God's greatest attribute,
God's greatest attribute, that which reveals Him most effectively
is His holiness. Don't you think so? His holiness.
Because he said this, holy and reverend is his name. That's
his name, holy. Now I know today, and I'm not
going to fall over into this pit of speaking more about what's
wrong than what's right, but I do know today that the average
person, if you ask them, what's the chief attribute of God? Just
ask the average person on the street. What's the chief attribute
of God? What describes God the best?
They would say, I don't have any doubt, God is love. That's
what they'd say, God is love. God is love. But God's love,
my friend, is a holy love. God's chief attribute is His
holiness. Will you hear me? Will you hear
me? The Lord is in His what? Loving
temple, His holy temple. This book's called the Holy Bible.
His angels are called the holy angels. Holy and reverend is
his name. Isaiah said, I saw the Lord.
I lifted up. His train filled the temple.
The seraphims about the throne cried what? That's right, not
God is love. Holy, holy, holy. I wish I could
emphasize that. His dwelling is called the holy
place. The tabernacle was called the
Holy of Holies. God is holy. To Moses, he said,
Moses, put off your shoes. Even Moses, even my servant Moses,
even a man with whom God talked as with a friend, face to face. Moses, put off your shoes. You're on holy ground. Let's
don't get too familiar here. Is that right? Holy. And I'm
scared for my generation. I'm flat scared for the religious
leaders of this day that are too familiar with God. There's
too much familiarity with God. I'm scared for any of you who
exercise that over-familiarity with God. If you said to Moses, stand back
and take your shoes off, where do you reckon we stand? Holy. God is holy. You see, God's holiness
presents us with the cause of our problem. God's holiness, not God's love,
but God's holiness presents us with the cause of our problem.
If God is like us, we have no problem. But God being so infinitely
above us and beyond us in his holiness and us in our sin, That
presents us with this problem. Your sins have separated you
and your God. That's what caused the division,
your sins. You see, He's holy and you're
sinful. He said in Psalm 50, Thou thoughtest I was altogether
such a one as thyself. If He is, then we have no problem.
He can be our co-pilot. He can be our business partner.
He can be the the man upstairs. He can be the
good Lord. He can be somebody up there who
likes me, if he's like us. But if he's infinitely, infinitely
above us, and infinitely, immaculately, unchangeably holy, and we're
given over to sin, then that's where the problem comes in. Turn
the first Timothy chapter 6. I want you to read this. In 1
Timothy chapter 6. Here, this is what presents us
with the problem, is God's holiness. It's not God's love that presents
us with the problem, it's God's holiness. It's God's holiness. You see,
God's holiness makes necessary all the obedience, suffering,
and sacrifice of Christ. It's God's holiness that sent
Christ. to the cross. It's God's holiness
that sent Christ to the cross. It's God's holiness, God's righteousness
that made Christ walk this earth and suffer. A man of sorrow is
acquainted with grief. That's why it's God's holiness.
It wasn't God's love, it's God's holiness. God's love that gave
him, it's God's holiness that forced him to do what he had
to do, or obligated him. In 1 Timothy 1.15, 1 Timothy, I beg your pardon, 1
Timothy 6.15, 1 Timothy 6.15. 1 Timothy 6.15, which in his
times he shall show who is the blessed and only potentate. He's
the blessed and only potentate, the King of kings and Lord of
lords, who only hath immortality. who dwells in a light which no
man can approach unto. That's the light of his holiness.
No man can approach unto God. He told Moses, no man can see
me and live. You remember me reading that
a while ago? No man can see me and live. I hear people say that
the Lord came and stood at the foot of their bed. Are you still
alive? Are you still alive? I don't question you saw a vision,
but it wasn't him. No man can approach unto no man
whom no man hath seen nor can see. There was a time he dwelt on
this earth in the flesh that enabled us to look on him. Christ
stood on this earth. Paul said, I know no man after
the flesh. I knew Christ after the flesh.
I saw Him that way, and Paul did as one born out of due time,
but I don't know Him that way anymore. Somebody asked me on the phone
yesterday, long distance, called, wondering if I ever imagined
Christ on the cross and tried to see it. I try to stay away
from visions, and I recommend you do the same. To whom be honor
and power everlasting. God, you see, God's chief attribute
is His holiness. If such can be said, chief attribute
is holiness. And His holiness presents us
with the cause of our problem. If God were not holy, I wouldn't
need a Savior. I wouldn't need a mediator. If
God were not holy, we could do business as equals. We could
bargain. I could say, God, if you do this,
I'll do that. If you'll do this, I'll do that. But God, He will
not speak to nor be spoken to by a human being apart from a
Mediator because of His holiness. That's the reason. And because
of His holiness, Christ Jesus became a man and went through
the suffering and sacrifice and obedience of death in order that
God may be a just God and a Savior. One other scripture on this point,
turn to 1 Peter 3. 1 Peter chapter 3. And I tell you, if I can get
across these particular points this morning, 1 Peter 3, you
talk about a fellow being on his way. You talk about a fellow
being started in the right direction. Now, he'll be started in the
right direction here because it's God with whom we have to
do. It's God with whom we have to do, and if I can find out
who He is, The Son of God has come and given us an understanding
that we may know Him that is true. This is the true God. This
is eternal life. In 1 Peter 3, look at verse 18,
For Christ also hath once suffered for sin, the just for the unjust,
that he might bring us to God, this holy God. being put to death
in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit. See, this holy God
had to have a substituted sacrifice in order for us to come to Him.
All right, here's the second thing. Now that, we ought to
stay there two or three weeks. God's chief attribute is His
holiness. Now, what's His chief title? Turn to Revelation 19. I read
it a while ago, Revelation 19. I read this a while ago in 1
Timothy 6, but I won't bother to go over there again. But what's
God's chief title? And this literally, this literally
will slay the God of present-day preaching. In Revelation 19, 16, And he
hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written. And you see these capital letters?
King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He's the King of Kings. He's
the King who seats and unseats kings. He's the Lord of Lords. He's the King of Kings and Lord
of Lords, and that's His name. Old Nebuchadnezzar had this to
say in Daniel chapter 4. Nebuchadnezzar had this to say
when his understanding returned to him. In Daniel 4, he said
at the end of the days, verse 34, Daniel 4, 34, at the end
of the day, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to heaven,
and my understanding returned to me. I got my mind back, my
senses back, my understanding returned. And I blessed the Most
High, and I praised and honored him that liveth forever, whose
dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation
to generation. And all the inhabitants of the
earth are reputed as nothing. And he doeth according to his
will in the army of heaven among the inhabitants of the earth,
and none can stay his hand or say unto him, What doest thou?
He is King of kings and Lord of lords. He's King of Kings and Lord of
Lords. I was reading the Bible this
past week, preparing a message down in Mississippi, and I found
a scripture that somehow had escaped me. I don't remember
ever, ever, ever reading it before. but I need it at this particular
time, is found in 1 Kings chapter 20. 1 Kings chapter 20. You know how preachers say, well,
you know, the Lord is, you know how they
say, the Lord is in the good things. They write books like
bad things happen to good people, you know, things like that, you
know, as if God had nothing to do with it. They say, well, you
know, if you're blessed and God's blessing you, but if you get
cancer, God didn't want you to, the devil did that. And you know,
if you, I was one up the road from the preacher's house, there
was a family had a nice little brick home there and lightning
struck and it burned down and somebody said, well, God didn't
have anything to do with that. That was the devil. He's the
devils in the lightning, the devils in misfortune, the devils
in these things. You heard that, hadn't you? Isn't
that the general opinion? If your baby lives and God gave
it life, it dies a devil. God said it, you know. The devil
did it. Well, I want you to look at 1
Kings chapter 20, verse 28. 1 Kings 20, 28. And there came
a man of God. there came a man of God, and
spake unto the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the Lord. Because the Syrians have said,
The Lord is God of the hills, the high country, the mountains.
He's God up there. But He's not God of the valleys.
Is God not God of my valleys? Is He only God of the hills,
the high points, the Is He only God up there where the sun always
shines above the clouds? Is He not God of the valleys?
Now, I know what the Syrians were saying. They were saying
what they said back here in verse 23. You know, David said, I lift
up mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help. God gave
His law from Mount Sinai. He took Moses home from Mount
Pisgah. His son on Mount Calvary. He
met with Abraham on Mount Moriah. Always on the mountain. Wait
a minute now. And the Syrians said, and the servants of the
king of Syria said to him, their gods are God of the hills. Therefore,
they're stronger than we when we're fighting the hills. But
let's get them down in the valley, down in the plain, and there
we'll whip them, because God ain't there. And that's where we get whipped. It's when we get blue and low
and depressed and troubled and have trouble in the flesh. That's
right, trouble in the flesh. Oh, we get along fine up here
on this hill of worship and this mountain of joy where God is,
but you let us get out there amongst them, you know, out there
in the valley where the flesh attacks us and all. We just,
I don't know, like Brother Kent Clark said, we put our head in
our navel, you know, Just get down. But he's God of the mountains,
and he's God of the valleys. He's God of the valleys, in total,
absolute control. I believe that. He said, hath
not the potter power over the clay? Don't you believe that?
To make of one lump, the same lump, a vessel unto honor, and
one unto dishonor. Well, he took one seed of our
father Isaac, and beget twins in a woman's womb, And he said,
one of them I love, and one of them I hated. One of them will
bring me glory, and one of them will be a child of shame. He's able. All right, thirdly
now, thirdly. God's chief attribute is His
holiness. God's chief title is King of
kings and Lord of lords. King of kings and Lord of lords.
What do we mean by sovereign grace? God reigns in grace. That's what we mean. All right,
thirdly, God's chief glory. Now let's look at Exodus 33. Verse 18, Moses says, show me
your glory. Here's an interesting man, a
man whom God knew. The people of God were in Egypt
under bondage, in slavery. And the king, fearing these people
and fearing their God, sent out word to kill all the little boys,
kill every one of them, kill every boy born under certain
ages, kill them, wipe out every male child in Israel. The king
of Egypt said that. was a little boy born to a woman,
an Israelite woman, and she saw he was an unusual child. She
knew that in here. His name was Moses. And she didn't
kill him. She disobeyed the orders of the
king, and she took that little boy, took that little boy and
made her a basket and pitched it inside with tar and put that
little boy in that basket. and took him down to the river
Nile. That's faith, isn't it? That's believing God. And she
put him there in the river Nile, out there in the bushes. And she told his sister, she
said, now you get over there and hide in the weeds and you
watch that basket. You watch that basket. So the
sister got over there in the weeds and just so happened that
Pharaoh's daughter came down there to bathe. And one of her
servants found that little baby boy in that basket and picked
him up and brought him to Pharaoh's daughter. And God's in charge
of this valley, you know. He's God of the valleys. And
He caused all this to take place. He brought her down there and
He caused the servant to find her. And He caused her heart
to Reach out to that little boy. Pharaoh's daughter, the princess,
fell in love with that little old boy in that basket. She took
him home with her. Told her daddy, she said, I've
found me. He said, that's a Hebrew kid. She said, but I want him. I want him. And he said, aren't
you going to have him? And you know that little boy.
But here's the amazing thing. The little girl, the sister said,
The Pharaoh's daughter said, you want me to get a nurse for
that baby? You don't want to be taking care of a baby, changing
diapers and doing all that stuff, getting his formula. Yeah, she
said, you get me a nurse. So this little girl ran and got
Moses' mama and brought her up there to the palace. And Moses'
mama acted like she'd never seen that kid before. That took a
lot of grace, too. And this Pharaoh's daughter said,
will you take care of this baby? teach him and raise him and nurse
him, and she said, I'll be glad to. And that's God's providence. So Moses, he grew up in that
palace. Boy, he had the best of everything.
He had the best clothes, best food, best tutors and teachers,
but his mama taught him the ways of God. When nobody's looking,
she's reading the She's reading the word to him, I'm sure. She's
telling him about God. Telling him about Abel's sacrifice.
Telling him about who they were. Telling him who he was. Who God
is. She's telling him. She's telling
him. And so he grew up. And he got
to be about 40 years old. He was next in line for the throne,
is my guess. Schooled in Egypt. Trained in
Egypt. Powerful, rich. Let me show you
what it says about him over here in Hebrews. In Hebrews. And you know Moses enjoyed sitting
at that king's table. Now don't tell me he didn't.
You know Moses enjoyed those clothes, Mike. You know he did.
I mean, Moses enjoyed walking down the street and everybody
said, there goes Moses. You know he liked that. The rings
on his finger and the medals on his chest. Son of Pharaoh.
Next ruler of Egypt, powerful man. Don't you know he enjoyed
that? Don't you know that was a pleasure, the fame, the honor,
the riches, the comfort, the luxury, the best that everybody
had to offer was his? The best of the world. Verse,
Hebrews 11, 24, By faith Moses, when he came to years, refused
to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter. I'm not the son of
Pharaoh's daughter, I'm a son of God. Choosing rather to suffer
affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures
of sin for a season. Pleasures, they're pleasures.
All this ritual and pride and luxury. Esteeming the reproach
of Christ, or reproach for Christ. Greater riches. Greater riches? than the treasures in Egypt,
because he looked beyond Egypt, and he had respect unto the recompense
of the reward. So by faith, he left Egypt. He left Egypt, and he went out
there in the desert, and he tended sheep for God's That's right,
God's priest. He married his daughter, married
the priest's daughter, and took care of his sheep. Now you think
of where this man was, as far as the world's concerned, and
what he became. The first 40 years of his life
raised in the lap of luxury, power, prestige, pleasure. And the next 40 years, on the
backside of a desert, walking alone in a shepherd's robe, taking
care of another man's sheep. That's right. But it's not where
we are, it's whose we are. It's not what a man has, it's
whom does he know. This man knew God. God knew this
man. It doesn't matter where you are.
It doesn't matter what you're doing, if you're taking care
of your sheep or somebody else's. It doesn't matter whether you
got a gold ring on your finger or you got grease under your
fingernail. It doesn't matter whether everybody
knows you or nobody knows you as long as God knows you. And
God knew Moses. And He singled him out and told
him, I'm going to send you down there. This is 40, he's 80 years
old now. And God sent him down there to
deliver those people out of Egypt. And the Lord didn't tell Moses
everything Moses wanted to know. He doesn't have to reveal His
will completely to us. Just do what He's saying. Just
do what He's saying. I thought I preached last Wednesday
one of the best messages I've ever preached down here in Mississippi.
And Thursday night I struck out, just flat struck out. You haven't
just wish I hadn't preached it. I felt bad driving all that night. I left after the service and
drove to about 12.15 or 12.30, and I just said, why don't you
stay home, you know? But you know what I bet? I bet
more comes out of that message than that in Wednesday night.
I'd just be willing to lay odds on that. Of course, I ain't no
gambler, but I'd be willing to lay odds on that. That God will
get the glory out of my mess. And I'd get exaltation out of
that, and I thought it was so good. I'll probably never hear
from it, but I'll hear from that other one. I believe that. The
Lord doesn't have to explain things to us. He's chosen the
foolish to confound the wise. He has chosen the base and the
things which you despise to bring to note the things that are that
no flesh should glow in His presence. So He takes Moses out there and
puts him down in Egypt, and He let him out. And here he is now
in our text, and I'm going to give you this and wind her down.
And here he is. I guess upward 90 years old,
and you know what all he's experienced, and he's sitting here in this
tent, praying. And he said, Lord, show me your
way. And you know, this present-day
presumption bothers me to no end. I get real concerned about
people that are saved and sure of it. I get real upset with
people that raise their hand all the time and say they're
sure for heaven as if they're already there. That bothers me
a whole lot, especially when I read words like verse 13 of
Exodus 33. Now, this is the man I'm talking
about. This is the man we've been talking
about all this time. God's had his hand on him in such a miraculous
way, and he knew it. And he says, Therefore I pray
thee, Lord, I have found grace in thy sight,
if, if, if, if. That's Moses. And yet we're so
cocksure, but if anybody makes it, Lord, surely I will. Ain't
that right? I made my decision. Yeah, and
I hope he's made one. If I have found grace in thy
sight, show me thy way, that I may know thee. Lord, I want
to know God. I want to know God. Paul wanted
to know God. He said, Oh, that I may know
him. There's nothing wrong with being a seeker, is there? There's
nothing wrong with panting after God like a thirsty deer pats
for the water brooks. There's nothing wrong with that.
Show me your way. Show me your way. Show me your
will. Show me your word. Show me, Lord. Don't leave me alone. Don't leave
me in my refuge of lies. Don't leave me in my tradition
and ceremony. Show me your way if I've found
grace in yourself. If I have. If I have. What have you gained? Let me
ask you, what have I gained? What have we gained if we successfully
defend our experience? What have we gained? What have we gained? What have
we profited if we successfully defend our professional faith?
You say, well, but I say back then, don't shake my foundation.
I wouldn't shake yours for the world. Your foundation is not as important
as his foundation. What's wrong with seeking the
Lord? What's wrong with with crying out to God to show mercy.
What's wrong with asking God if I found grace in your sight
that I may know thee? I tell you, a lot of people,
he said, going to say to judgment, didn't we do this, that, and
the other? He said, I never knew you. Meaning, he said, show me your
way. And then down here in verse 18,
he says, Lord, show me your glory. Show me your glory. You see, God's greatest glow
is not making worlds. God's greatest glow is not working
miracles. Moses had seen all that. God's
greatest glow is not material substance. Moses had played with
that. God's greatest glow is not showing his strength and
dividing rivers. Moses had seen that. God's greatest
glow is not raining bread from heaven and water out of a rock.
God's greatest glory is something else, and Moses wanted to know
what it was. He wanted to see it. So God showed
it to him. God showed him his greatest glory.
Verse 19, and here it is. God said, I will cause my goodness.
God's greatest glory is his goodness. I'll cause my goodness to pass
before you, and I'll proclaim the name of the Lord before you.
I will be gracious. Did you know that's God's greatest
glory? Redemptive glory. His greatest glory is seen in
Christ Jesus, Christ incarnate, Christ our righteousness, Christ
our sin offering, Christ our bared scapegoat, Christ our risen
justifier, Christ our ascended substitute and savior, Christ
our reigning mediator, Christ our coming king. That's God's
greatest glory, is Jesus Christ and His sacrifice. Turn to Ephesians 1. Let me show
you this and let you study it later on your own. Ephesians
1. Ephesians chapter 1. I want you to look at this and
I'll let you study it later. Ephesians 1 verse 6. It says here that whatever he
said and done is to the praise of the glory of his grace. Well,
those first six verses talk about the work of the Father in choosing,
in predestinating, in accepting. And then verse seven, or verse
twelve, says that we should be to the praise of His glory. And
those next few verses before verse twelve talk about the work
of Christ in enriching us, enlightening us, and redeeming us. And then
verse 14, the last line says, under the praise of His glory,
and he's been talking about the work of the Holy Spirit in opening
our minds and revealing Christ to us and sealing us in Christ.
So everything the Father, Son, and Spirit do in redemption is
to the praise of His glory, for His glory, an expression of His
glory, the glory of His grace. Now, chapter 2, verse 4. But God, who is rich in mercy,
for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were
dead in sin, hath quickened us together with Christ, by grace
you are saved, and hath raised us up together and made us sit
together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, watch it, that
in the ages to come he might show throughout eternity the
exceeding riches of his grace. in His goodness, His kindness
toward us through Christ Jesus. My friends, that's God's greatest
glory, is the redemption of a soul, the redemption of a sinner by
and through Christ Jesus. That's God's greatest glory.
You want to bring God glory? Bow to Christ. You want to bring
God glory? Receive Christ. You want to bring
God glory? Submit to Christ. You want to
bring God glory? Preach Christ. You want to bring
God glory? Rejoice in Christ Jesus. Christ
is God's greatest glory. That's right. That's right. Show me your glory. But if he
shows you his glory this morning, it'll be his goodness in Christ.
That's God's greatest glory. We're dealing in that.