Omniscience-All Knowing
Notes
Transcript
Omniscience-All Knowing
Omniscience-All Knowing
For as long as I can remember, I have always been one who liked to consume information.
I never wanted to stay stagnant in my learning and growing.
It can be about stuff that will help me in my life.
Or just random information that really holds no intrinsic value.
I just love gathering up information and sharing it with any and every unlikely victim I come across.
And especially when I was younger, I was always the “well actually” guy.
You know the guy, someone would say something like “Man, I love Dairy Queen Ice Cream it’s so delicious”
I would come behind them and say “Well actually, Dairy Queen doesn’t Serve Ice Cream, It’s soft serve. The process of making soft serve is different than Ice Cream…blah, blah, blah.”
I was that guy.
That Guy that no one wants to be around.
And the reason why, is b/c I wanted to be known as the smartest guy in the room.
Whether conscientiously or subconsciously that’s why I did what I did.
And I was that way when I graduated from bible college in 2015 on our way to NC for seminary.
To my mind I had learned a lot so therefore, I knew a lot.
There were people in NC who needed my help.
There were people who needed my knowledge.
They needed me to be smart for them.
Then I started going to Seminary.
And do you know what I learned in my first semester there.
I learned that I didn’t know anything.
I love this story I read about Sir Isaac Newton,
The Attributes of God, Volume 2: Deeper Into the Father’s Heart Chapter 6: God’s Omniscience
When Sir Isaac Newton, the great English scientist, was an old man, someone said to him, “Dr. Newton, you must have a tremendous store of knowledge.”
He responded, “I remind myself of a little boy walking along the seashore picking up shells. The boy has a handful of shells in his little hand, but all around him is the vast seashore stretching all directions as far as the eye can see. All that I know is simply a handful of seashells, but the vast universe of God is filled with knowledge that I do not possess.”
What I learned in Seminary along with how to study God’s word, create a mildly effective sermon, and other things was this:
The more you know the more you find out that you don’t know that much at all.
It can be rather discouraging.
Or it can be enlightening and fascinating.
B/c there is always more to know.
There is always more to grow.
And when it comes to knowing and growing in our knowledge of the Lord the depths are endless.
We will never know everything there is to know about God.
In this life and in the next we will simply scratch the surface of the knowledge we can have of God.
And one of the beautiful things about God is that he knows everything.
This is the attribute of his Omniscience.
This attribute means that God knows everything that there is to know.
He never learns anything. No gaps in his knowledge.
No new thoughts, ideas, or concepts.
If it is to be known, then God already knows it.
Past, present, and future.
Last week we talked about God’s omnipresence that he is everywhere.
There’s not a portion of the universe where his presence isn’t found.
And now we begin by talking about the fact that there isn’t any aspect of anything that God doesn’t know.
This is mind blowing.
That God holds all that information.
That he has never had to seek advice or look for counsel.
It is this kind of greatness that should stop us dead in our tracks and stand in awe of the God we serve.
It is b/c of his knowledge and his sovereignty that he can and does orchestrate all humanity to do what he wills and when he wills it.
In Romans 9-11, Paul is talking about the plan of God.
Specifically that his plan of redemption was always that the gentiles (that being you and me) would come to worship him and know him as the King and creator.
But Paul was getting some push back from some of the Jewish Believers.
There were many of them that weren’t coming to belief in Jesus as Messiah.
And Paul said that it was b/c of their unbelief that the Gentiles started to believe.
That Jesus death, burial, resurrection and ascention wasn’t wasted b/c the Jewish people didn’t come to believe, but this was God’s plan all along.
He knew that they would reject Jesus.
He knew that they would reject his salvation.
And the way that Paul ties this all together is at the end of chapter 11.
He Writes
33 Oh, the depth of the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments and untraceable his ways!
34 For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?
Paul is stating here that obviously we will never know fully what God is doing, but he does.
His knowledge and wisdom far exceed even what we can fathom.
God is never out of control.
He is never caught off guard.
Instead, this was all known by God before the plan was even put into place.
No one, not one of us possess any knowledge that God doesn’t already know.
Which is absolutely astounding.
So God knows everything.
That means he knows everything that has happened, everything that is happening, and everything that will happen.
But not only that, he knows everything that could have happened.
Meaning God knows all things both actual and possible.
Knowing things that could happen but don’t happen is what Theologians call middle knowledge.
This means that God’s knowledge is so infinite, so perfect, so complete, that nothing, not even possibilities escape his knowledge.
I don’t want to belabor this point too much, but suffice it to say, that there is nothing that has happened, is happening, will happen or could happen that God will ever be caught off guard about.
So what I want to do for a few minutes is talk about the depths of God’s perfect knowledge.
God Knows Himself
God Knows Himself
The first thing I want us to think about is the fact that God Knows himself perfectly.
And we may think that’s silly.
Of course God knows himself.
But he doesn’t just know himself.
He knows himself perfectly.
Pause on that for just a moment.
God knows himself perfectly.
What we know about God is that he is infinite.
That the depths of his knowledge and wisdom are unsearchable for us.
We will never know the fullness of God.
And Yet God knows himself infinitely and perfectly well.
Self-knowledge my seem elementary.
Like I know myself, why is it a big deal that God knows himself.
If we’re honest and actually take time to think about it.
We don’t know ourselves perfectly or fully.
Here’s what I mean
Have you ever discovered that you like something you previously didn’t know you would like?
A silly example to get you mind moving:
When we lived in NC there was this restaurant that we discovered that we really enjoyed.
They had a dish on the menu that had banana peppers in it.
For most of my life, I had ever given banana peppers a second thought.
I don’t even know if I was aware that they existed.
But they were in this dish and I thought I would give it a shot.
I learned something about myself that day.
I love banana peppers.
That was knowledge about myself that I didn’t even know though I thought I knew myself.
I was 30-something years old when I learned that I love banana peppers.
And I am sure that you have learned something about yourself to.
Not one single person has complete and perfect knowledge about himself or herself.
There are gaps in our knowledge of ourselves.
And we are finite beings.
Limited.
Learning things about ourselves
Now I know that that is a silly example, but God never learns anything about himself.
He is Perfectly Self-knowing.
And he isn’t finite.
He isn’t limited.
He is Eternal and infinite.
And to take it a step further, God is Triune and each person of the Trinity knows the other persons eternally, intimately, and accurately.
Jesus says in Matthew 11:27 “27 All things have been entrusted to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son desires to reveal him.”
And Paul Writes in 1 Cor 2.10 “10 Now God has revealed these things to us by the Spirit, since the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.”
This knowledge of the Trinity ties them together in perfect Unity.
They know their distinctive roles and one another perfectly well.
Each knows precisely what the other two persons are thinking, feeling, desiring and choosing.
Do you see how much difference there is between God’s knowledge and our own knowledge?
God’s knowledge far surpasses our own simply in this one category of Self-Knowledge, but that’s not all God knows.
We touched on this earlier, but God knows the past, present, and future.
I want to park on the future for a minute.
9 Remember what happened long ago, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and no one is like me.
10 I declare the end from the beginning, and from long ago what is not yet done, saying: my plan will take place, and I will do all my will.
God Foreknows All
God Foreknows All
God declares the end from the beginning.
He knows everything that will come to pass.
He is never caught napping.
He is never surprised by the things going on in the world.
He knows all things, b/c the has ordained all things.
God is not a weak and powerless God just waiting around to see what the future brings.
He makes declarations.
And remember a few weeks ago, we talked about the Sovereignty of God, meaning that God is in control of every single molecule that he created.
Well this goes hand in hand with that.
Unlike mankind who grow and accumulates knowledge, God knows all, sees all, and controls all.
And all that he knows was instantaneously known in eternity past.
God has known everything that could ever be known from the very beginning.
There is no one like him.
And b/c God knows all that will happen.
Everything that will come to pass he can make promises and fulfill them.
He can make prophecies that reveal the truth of the future to us.
He made over 300 prophecies about Jesus that all came to pass.
Why?
Because he foreknew, foreordained, and caused them to happen.
We can trust God and his promises b/c he already knows the outcome.
He already knows what will come to pass.
He already knows what will transpire.
He makes declarations in his sovereignty and power and they are done.
God knows when the world will end.
God knows when you will take your last breath.
God knows those who will believe in him and call him lord.
God knows when countries will rise and fall.
God knows when he will come again.
God knows and has known since the beginning what his plan and purposes are.
And if there is anything that God doesn’t know, if there is some future event that catches God off guard, then he isn’t worthy of our worship.
He isn’t all knowing.
He is mostly knowing.
And that’s a weak position for God to be in.
But that’s not the God who is revealed in the Scriptures.
God as he has revealed himself, knows the beginning and the end.
He is in power and control.
He foreordains events.
He knew the perfect time to send Jesus.
When the fullness of time came, Christ died and rose again so that people can come to know the riches of God’s goodness and grace.
Just last week we were doing our Wednesday night bible study on Judges.
And We read Judges 1:1-2 “1 After the death of Joshua, the Israelites inquired of the Lord, “Who will be the first to fight for us against the Canaanites?” 2 The Lord answered, “Judah is to go. I have handed the land over to him.””
Did you hear that, God said Judah is to go. I have handed the land over to him.
Judah hasn’t even stepped foot on the battle field and God has already declared that the land is his.
How can he do that?
He foreordained it.
And he knows the future.
Judah’s victory is already won.
The battle is over b/c the Lord has made it so.
B/c he has declared it, orchestrated it, accomplished it, and follows through with his promises.
If God is playing everything by ear. If he doesn’t know the future. Doesn’t know the outcome how can we possibly have hope. How can we trust? How can we have confidence?
This is all good to know that God knows himself fully, he knows the future fully, but the most miraculous part is that he knows his creation fully and intimately.
The aspects we just discussed about God for some makes God to be a little cold and distant, but the God who created you isn’t cold and distant.
Rather he draws near.
He is intimately connected to his creation.
For just a few minutes we are going to examine how God knows his Creation.
Not just the facts and figures, but really and truly knows the depth of his creation.
And he especially knows his people
God Knows His Creation
God Knows His Creation
One of the most beautiful stories in Genesis happens around Hagar and Ishmael.
Just a recap, Hagar is Abraham’s wife, Sarah’s servant.
At the time Abraham and Sarah can’t get pregnant,
So Sarah tells Abraham to have a baby with Hagar.
When Hagar Gets pregnant, Sarah is outraged.
She started to hate Hagar and abused her.
So she runs away to escape the abuse of Sarah.
As Hagar were out in the wilderness starving to death
The angel of the Lord appears to her and says
Gen 16.10-11 “10 The angel of the Lord said to her, “I will greatly multiply your offspring, and they will be too many to count.” 11 The angel of the Lord said to her, “You have conceived and will have a son. You will name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard your cry of affliction.”
And Hagar responds with this
Gen 16:13-14 “13 So she named the Lord who spoke to her: “You are El-roi,” for she said, “In this place, have I actually seen the one who sees me?” 14 That is why the well is called Beer-lahai-roi. It is between Kadesh and Bered.”
El-Roi= the God who sees
God heard her, God Saw her and God comforted her.
Not b/c she earned it not b/c she deserved it, but b/c God had compassion on her.
Nothing escapes God’s notice, not eve the birth of Ishmael the unwanted child.
God isn’t unaware of peoples trials and difficulties.
There are no obscure people in God’s creation.
There are none outside of his reach and influence.
No one can escape His penetrating gaze.
He is acutely aware and he peers into the depths of our hearts b/c he knows us better than we know ourselves.
Just as God knew Hagar, he knows all people.
1 Lord, you have searched me and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I stand up; you understand my thoughts from far away.
3 You observe my travels and my rest; you are aware of all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue, you know all about it, Lord.
God Knows You
God Knows You
David here wants us to see and acknowledge that God sees us and he knows us.
God knows everything about us.
His knowledge about us is fixed and complete.
David begins by stating that God has searched him.
This idea of searching comes from the Hebrew word haqar which means to examine, search out, or investigate.
This is the same word that is used of the 12 Israelites that went into Canaan to spy it out before they were going to attack.
These spies were to go and explore the ins and outs of the country so that they can report what they saw.
And here this same word is applied to God.
That he examines the heart of David.
He doesn’t just know about David, but he knows him deeply, fully, and intimately.
The word here for know in the last part of v. 1, is used for the relationship between a husband and a wife.
How they are to know one another fully and intimately.
And this is attributed to the Lord as well.
We aren’t somewhat known by God, but we are fully known by God in the most intimate of ways.
God knows the details of our lives.
He know when we sit down and when we stand up.
He knows what we do, what we want, and every step we take during our life.
He observes our life, our travels, our rest.
He watches over us day and night.
He is aware of every thought we think and every word we speak.
V. 4 peers into this a little bit more.
Ps 139.4 “4 Before a word is on my tongue, you know all about it, Lord.”
Even before we speak a word, God knows it.
He knew it before we thought it.
He knew it before we let it pass through our lips.
You see, God’s knowledge is penetrating.
He sees us as we truly are.
He sees behind the mask we wear.
He sees what no man can see.
When we hide behind our strength, anger, or trauma, God sees and knows who we truly are.
God knows our heart.
1 Sam 16.7 "...Humans do not see what the Lord sees, for humans see what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.””
This is why its funny that people try and hide things from God.
There’s nothing that you can hide from him.
No sin, no doubt, not one thing can be hidden from the Lord.
So don’t even try.
Instead, be open and honest with him.
Run to the one who knows you better than anyone else.
Trust him.
He already knows what you are thinking.
He already knows what you need.
God knows you better than you know yourself.
He knows the dark corners of your heart.
He knows the intrusive thoughts that you have.
He knows the words that you don’t say b/c you bite your tongue.
He knows your true feelings.
And yet he still loves you and cares about you.
In Ps 139:5 David Says
5 You have encircled me; you have placed your hand on me.
God’s hand is upon David.
Knowing the full extent of David’s brokenness, David’s sinfulness.
God still knows him.
Still love hims.
Still places his hand upon him.
God knows and sees the worst of us and still seeks us out.
He knows our ego, our selfishness, our rebellion against him and he still loves us.
God’s love for his people is so overwhelmingly amazing.
Could you imagine if you had a screen hovering over your head that displayed your most inner thoughts 24/7?
If what you thought was on display for the world to see, how many people would stick by you?
And yet, God knows it all and still forgives you.
He knows it all and still provides salvation for those who call on his name.
This puts a whole new spin on
7 For rarely will someone die for a just person—though for a good person perhaps someone might even dare to die.
8 But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Just think about that, we have been justified by Christ through him laying down his life for us.
We are not righteous.
We are not good.
We are sinners and enemies of God.
And God in the flesh died for us so that we could be redeemed.
And God chooses not to hold our sins against us.
One of the things I’ve heard before is that God forgets our sins.
But for God to be omniscient.
For him to know all, he can’t forget our sins.
Or else he wouldn’t be all knowing.
God Doesn’t forget our sins.
Now if this is true then we do need to reconcile some passages with this truth.
God does say in
25 “I am the one, I sweep away your transgressions for my own sake and remember your sins no more.
34 No longer will one teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know me, from the least to the greatest of them”—this is the Lord’s declaration. “For I will forgive their iniquity and never again remember their sin.
12 For I will forgive their wrongdoing, and I will never again remember their sins.
Now God doesn’t forget our sins b/c he can’t forget anything, what do we do with these passages.
We have to think about it this way.
God no longer remembers our sins judicially.
God has chosen to remove our sins from us as far as the east is from the west.
All our sins are forgotten in their punishment b/c X has satisfied the just penalty demanded by God.
God doesn’t punish us for our transgressions and sin against him b/c Christ already to the judgment upon himself.
God forgets our sins in his relationship with us.
He is never again going to let those sins play any part in the way that He relates to us.
Here’s what we need to take away from this attribute.
God sees, hears, and knows everything about his creation.
He isn’t distant.
He is close and involved in his creation.
Nothing escapes his notice.
Nothing ever surprises him.
So we can and should run to him for guidance.
He knows the path and the direction our life is going, so we should rely on him to take us there.
Since God knows our actions and thoughts we should be more mindful of what we say, think, and do.
We should live a life worthy of the calling he has set before us.
The fact that God knows everything should bring us comfort.
Comfort in his providence.
Remembering that the job loss, the tragic loss, the unstable circumstances in your life aren’t a surprise to God.
Find comfort that God is with you and knows the situation you are in.
Know and believe that God knows what you need even before you ask.
This can be a burden for some people, and they may ask “if God already knows what I need, why do I need to pray?”
And that’s a good question.
Now the answer may not be satisfactory, but I will say that prayer is never to inform God.
Prayer is always to conform you.
Prayer is always to reshape your heart and mind to the Lord.
We don’t pray to try and update God on our lives or the lives of the people around us.
God already knows
We pray so that our lives are conformed to him.
We pray so that our trust in him can be built.
Understand God’s omniscience gives us the framework to know that we can trust God.
Let’s pray.