Mighty God

Grace to you and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a great honor to share the Word of God with the saints of Durbin Memorial Baptist Church. Our church exists by grace, for glory, in love.

Many of the songs we sing come Christmas time are bright and cheery. From “Joy to the World”, to “Hark the Herald” and “Go Tell it on the Mountain” there are upbeat carols. Then you have the peaceful and quaint, “Away in a Manger”, or “Silent Night.”

But sometimes in the Christmas season, we aren’t feeling very bright and cheery, nor peaceful or quaint. We can look at the seeming chaos going on around us and be tempted to despair.

This was the case for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow when he penned the poem that eventually turn into the Christmas Carol we know of as, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” With a melancholy tune, you may be familiar with the Third stanza, “In despair, I bowed my head, there is no peace on earth I said. For hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on Earth, good will to men.” The original poem was written right in the middle of the American Civil War. In 1861, Mr. Longfellow had lost his wife of 18 years in a house fire. In early 1863, his son ran off from home without his father’s blessing to join the fight. His son would become a lieutenant in the Union army, but soon after, in November 1863, the son would be severely wounded in the Battle of Mine Run. The son would have a long recovery, and his time in battle would be over. Christmas Day 1863, Mr. Longfellow penned his poem. The extended poem has more stanzas than are included in our hymnal and many of the verses are laden with pessimism at the state of America in the midst of the Civil War, recounting the destruction and frivolity of the fighting.

Today, we aren’t facing the same exact circumstances as Mr. Longfellow. Our country is not at literal war with itself, although there is certainly division and ideological battle afoot. And if each of us took the time to recount everything going on in our lives, I’m certain we would all have various issues, health or family related, that would tempt us to despondency.

Which is why I love the last stanza of, “I heard the bells on Christmas Day.” In the beginning he pulls no punches lamenting the state of affairs around him, but after reflecting on the dark circumstances of his life and the war, Mr. Longfellow wrote, “Then peeled the bells more loud and deep. God is not dead, nor doth He sleep. The Wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with peace on Earth, good will to men.”

Church, I go through all of this today, recognizing that we often go through seasons of depression and despondency, that may even be you today. I want you to know that there is hope in your circumstance, a hope for you to be reminded of this Christmas season. But this isn’t a hope that comes from hearing the Who’s singing after they have their decorations stolen, or self-reflection at the visitation of Christmas past, present, and future, or even from helping a snowman get the north pole before he melts. Those may be heartwarming stories we read and watch this time of the year, but searching for hope from the actions of others, deep personal reflection, or our own good deeds will only lead to momentary relief before fading away back to hopelessness. True hope is found in something bigger. True hope is found in our Mighty God!

We NEED this reminder.

It’s so easy to slip in to despair or grow hopeless in this life. To look around and see no peace on Earth. To feel the weights of all the battles around you. To feel unable to accomplish the large tasks in front of you. Many of these feelings grow out of a doubt in the goodness of God and a disbelief in the greatness of God. We may not articulate it that way, but it is the underlying presupposition to our feelings. Some have said that “Cynics live with a sense of defeated weariness. They doubt if God will do anything great or good.”

If that is you today, then this Christmas season could not come at better time. In the incarnation we are reminded of the great sacrifice and power of God. In the prophecy of Isaiah fulfilled in Christ we are reminded of the provision of God to accomplish that which He said He would do and that provision is very good. And In a few moments when we get to Psalm 145, our cynicism will be attacked, our despair confronted. We will lift our eyes to our Mighty God and learn to renew or deepen our hope.

I can sometimes be too much of an optimist, but the optimism we should leave here with today is not naive based on feeble fairy tales, but authentic optimistic hope based on the God who reigns from beginning to end.

With that in mind, turn quickly to Isaiah 9:6 and Psalm 145. As you’re turning there allow me to read John 1:45 for us.

John 1:45 ESV

45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

I was mentioning a moment ago that the God’s provision is very good and that He accomplishes everything He said He was going to do. As I was reading through various gospel narratives this week, I was struck by this verse here in John 1. Philip had just met Jesus. All that is recorded in the book of John is that Jesus goes to Galilee, walks up to Philip and says, “Follow Me.” We can infer that Philip was Jewish and had at least a decent understanding of the Scripture. We know this because after his short interaction with God incarnate, he is so fired up that he goes to recruit his friend Nathaniel and describes Jesus as, “Him of whom Moses in the Law, and also the Prophets wrote.” He instantly recognized that Jesus is the one whom God had promised! He had hope in God’s Word and saw the fulfillment of hope in Jesus Christ! And that’s the gospel. If you don’t hear anything else this morning, hear this: Jesus is the pinnacle of God’s plan for redemption and the giver of AND fulfillment of HOPE!

One of the fulfillments of Scripture that Philip likely had in mind was our anchor verse for the series that we have been walking through for this Christmas season. Read with me again Isaiah 9:6

Isaiah 9:6 ESV

6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

As a reminder, just prior to Isaiah talking about this child that would be born, he had warned Israel that oppression was coming from the North, descending on Israel. Things were not going to be good. It could easily lead to hopelessness. Then comes the words we just read. They were a reminder to the Israelites that God is not Dead nor Doth He sleep. Though the oppression may come, it would be but temporary for this child was coming. The government shall be upon His shoulders. This is the Messiah! The one to sustain the faithful in Israels hope, and the One whom Philip was waiting for that day in Galilee. And whether you recognize it or not, the One whom we are all looking for! The Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. The Bringer of Peace on Earth, Goodwill to men!

Last week, we focussed on the Wonderful Counselor title of the Messiah. This morning we will be honing our attention on “Mighty God.” The intent is to see how Christ embodies this title, bolster our hope in our Mighty God, and see how we can join in with the saints from all times, praising our Triune God, Father, Son, and Spirit, through the Psalms.

So let’s hone in on what is meant by “Mighty God.” The Hebrew here is “El” “Gibbor”. “El” referring to God. “Gibbor” referring to “Vigorous Champion, mighty hero.” I think it is important to note here that we have the benefit of the full testament of Scripture to think about this. The original recipients of Isaiah’s Words would not have had a mental category for God-Incarnate. They would have initially interpreted this as A “warrior empowered by God.” Someone like a Samson, or even some instances in the life of King Saul.

As we reflect on the grandeur of God’s plan of redemption exemplified in the Christmas Story, we must take a moment to simply dwell upon the significance that this babe born in a manger is God in the flesh! John Owen said something to the effect of, “It is neither conceivable nor possible, for the same person to be both ‘The Mighty God’ and ‘a child born’, except by the union of the divine and human natures in the same person. For the theology nerds in the room, this is the hypostatic union, the original St. Nick fought to defend this homoousios, now don’t get too caught up in the fancy terms, but the big deal is that the babe born in a manger is God in the Flesh! Fully God, Fully Man, and Fully capable to provide salvation for you and I! Our full hope!

Jesus Christ is the Mighty God. Jesus confidently asserts this Himself when He tells the doubting Pharisees, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” As in the Great I AM that I AM who spoke to Moses through the Burning bush. Jesus is the Victor, the Conqueror, He who is Mighty! Invincible. At Christmas time we think of Christ as the humble babe in a manger, that child is the MIGHTY GOD!

There are a lot of practical implications to understanding that Jesus is THE Mighty God. One is that we begin to understand that He is in control of our lives. The I AM is guarding our way and guiding our walk. We do not have to fear because He does not give us a spirit of Fear and He is in control. One pastor noted, “He is the One who set the stars in the heavens, set the bounds to to oceans, and breathed life into mankind, His creation. Surely we can trust One such as He.”

So with this foundation, turn in your bibles now to Psalm 145. This is another Psalm of David, described as a psalm of Praise. We will use these words to worship the Our Mighty God, reminding us of the hope found in Him Alone, joining in with the saints who have sung this song through the centuries. Let’s look now at the first section, verses 1-3.

Psalm 145:1–3 ESV

1 I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. 2 Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. 3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.

Praise His Might

This psalm has been called “An Alphabet of Praise.” Like Psalm 119, this psalm is an acrostic for the Hebrew alphabet, each verse beginning with the next letter of the alphabet. It’s amazing how helpful acrostics can be in teaching our children both our language and the concepts woven in. In a couple weeks our children and youth will be presenting a form of a Christmas Acrostic. But we shouldn’t write off the simplicity of something like an acrostic as something that is too childish for our attention. Every believer in Christ would do well to use even simple tools to commit God’s Word and the gospel to memory. So even though we may not have recognized the simplicity in the construction because we’re not reading in Hebrew, let’s see the profound truth and exceptional Hope of Our Mighty God given in a simple, divine acrostic hymn of Praise.

We come right out the gate with praise. David writes, “I will extol you”. That word “extol” isn’t a word we use regularly in our conversations. But it simply means, “enthusiastically praise.” King David recognizes the greater authority and mightier power of the Mighty God. He may be the most powerful man in all of the area, but he knows to give credit to the ultimate authority. This is a great reminder that no matter how high you climb on the socio-economic ladder, there is still a higher power that is deserving of your praise and humble submission. Praise the Mighty God!

And notice the frequency of the praise, “I will bless your name forever and ever, EVERY DAY I will bless you, praise your name FOREVER and EVER.” This is a reminder for consistency in praise of God. I know that this is a busy time of the year and your to-do list may be filled with a variety of different tasks and challenges, but the number one act we ought to do day in and day out is praise the Mighty God!

As I mentioned in the introduction, I understand how easy it can be to slip into despondency. Looking around the world seeing the darkness, feeling overwhelmed in the tasks that are set before, it can be a lot. If that is you this morning, teetering on the edge of depression, then I want you to circle two words said twice in verses 1 and 2. Those words are “I Will.”

This psalm is hymn, a song to be sung together as a congregation. As we read through this psalm, joining in the ancient chorus of saints who have sung this psalm throughout the years, we are committing along with King David to praise. Praise involves an act of the will. We are volitionally focussing on praising the Lord instead of substitute idols. Even on your darkest days, you can praise the Lord. You can look through His Word and see His providence when the world looked its darkest. You can see His unfolding plan of redemption. You can cling to the promises He has for those who believe in Him. You can see how He has made you wired to praise, and then in response Praise The Mighty God.

You can do this because of the truth of verse 3. The Lord is great, greatly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable. We might through the word “great” around for a variety of products and preferences in our day to day life, but nothing comes close to the greatness of God. It is unsearchable. That means we will never exhaust the depths of God’s greatness. Praising Him will never get old because there’s always more to praise.

For the remainder of our time, we attempt to scratch the surface on just three aspects of unsearchable greatness. Look now to verses 4-9.

Psalm 145:4–9 ESV

4 One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts. 5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate. 6 They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds, and I will declare your greatness. 7 They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness and shall sing aloud of your righteousness. 8 The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. 9 The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.

Mighty Goodness

In these six verses we are given two depth of God’s Mighty Goodness.

In verses 4-7 we see the generational impact of God’s Mighty acts. Each generation tells of God’s mighty acts which provides a legacy of testimony passing through the ages. We now look back on this legacy with great joy and praise! Think of the song that is our anchor song this Christmas Season, “Hope of the Ages.” “Isaiah’s great light, Abraham’s offspring, blessing of Jacob, Judah’s might, David’s true son, desire of nations, promised salvation, God with us.” The mightiest of Acts, was God putting on flesh to provide salvation for you and me! We have been granted to ability to look fondly back on the testimony that passed through the ages, AND, get this, PERPETUATE this testimony into the future!

When David wrote these words in Psalm 145, the indwelling Holy Spirit knew to depth of this testimony, but David himself would only have a partial understanding of the many millions that would declare God’s praise through the coming generations. We see in Revelation 7 that an innumerable congregation, a people from every tribe and tongue, will sing praise together to the Savior.

We ought to praise the Mighty goodness of God to perpetuate this testimony and bring it to us today. I have mentioned before but it is incredible to me that the gospel has spread from Calvary to Clay’s Ferry. Then we ought to praise the mighty goodness of God to invite us into this testimony and perpetuate it to the next generation, being ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. If you need a reason to praise the Mighty God, praise Him for His continual work through the ages that He has brought YOU into! Join with David and “Pour forth the fame of God’s abundant goodness and sing aloud of Christ’s righteousness!” verse 7.

The other depth of God’s Mighty Goodness is explained in verses 8 and 9. We see the Mighty God is Good in His grace and mercy. Being slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, being GOOD, and having mercy.

How do we know this to be true, and not just a platitude? Because if we have a true understanding of the seriousness of our sin, then we begin to see the great mercy it is that God would come in the flesh to save us. As Paul wrote to Titus, “we too were once foolish, disobedient, enslaved by various passions and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, detesting one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and his for mankind appeared, HE SAVED US—not by works of righteousness that we have done, but ACCORDING TO HIS MERCY—through the washing and regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. He poured out His Spirit on us abundantly THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR SAVIOR so that, having been justified by His grace, we may become heirs with THE HOPE of eternal life.”

God has given us so much mercy. Each breath that we take is a mercy of God. The pinnacle of His mercy is our eternal salvation, but each moment of life is a gift of God. If you have breath, He ain’t done with you yet. Recognize His Mighty Goodness and rejoice!

Let’s look at another depth of His unsearchable greatness.

Psalm 145:10–13 (ESV)

10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your saints shall bless you! 11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom and tell of your power, 12 to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. 13a Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

Mighty Kingdom

We’ll pause halfway through verse 13.

First in verse 10, we ought to note that the works of God that we see, the gifts of mercy in our breath and salvation, illicit praise. The saints, those who see the goodness of God, bless Him for His mercy.

From there, our attention is drawn beyond our personal blessings and we are given a picture of the Mighty God’s Mighty Kingdom. I have said this throughout but it bears repeating, when we see the goodness of God we are joining in the chorus of saints through all the ages. It needs to be noted that the Kingdom of God is bigger than JUST your personal relationship with God. Don’t hear me incorrectly here, you must have an individual understanding and submission to the Lord, but the salvation of the Lord is so much bigger than any one of us. The Lord calls us together. We were made for one another. This church is a place for people to covenant together, serve together, and “speak of the glory of God’s kingdom, telling of His power,” together.

One of the ways we slip into despondency and lose our hope is when we become inwardly focussed. When our personal problems consume us. But by the grace of God, we can overcome this slide by focussing our attention on the greater Kingdom. We can see that the Kingdom of God is still advancing. We can see how we can speak into and guide our brothers and sisters in their struggles. We can lean on one another and keep fighting in the onward marching Kingdom of God.

Christ’s Kingdom is everlasting, His dominion endures throughout all generations. When we focus on that we see that even when our own kingdom seems to be crumbling, should we have heavenly citizenship by grace through faith in Christ, that it is not all lost. We join in Christ’s victory! His kingdom never fails!

Let’s look now at the final depth of the Mighty God’s unsearchable greatness presented in our text. Read with me

Psalm 145:13–21 (ESV)

13b The Lord is faithful in all his words and kind in all his works. 14 The Lord upholds all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down. 15 The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season. 16 You open your hand; you satisfy the desire of every living thing. 17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his works. 18 The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. 19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them. 20 The Lord preserves all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy. 21 My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord, and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.

Mighty King

We see the The greatness of the Mighty God incarnate as the Mighty King presented in these verses.

Verses 13 and 17 highlight the character of God which fuels His actions with grace. In the King’s graciousness He preserves His creatures, His people. Let’s quickly see 4 ways in which the Mighty God Incarnate sustains those who look to Him.

Starting in verse 14, the Lord helps the weak. One pastor said, “Christ refuses none for weakness…but accepts none for greatness.” Christ the King said, “Come to me all you who are weak and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” We come to Him weak and wavering and He is our rest. If you are finding yourself downtrodden, take you concerns to Christ, rest in His plan of salvation, see and feel His goodness towards you as you walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Your weakness isn’t a limitation but an opportunity to experience the Savior’s grace!

In verses 15 and 16 we see the sustaining provision of the Lord. Jesus, God incarnate would say, “Do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. … Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.” The reality is that our Mighty God provides for our needs. This doesn’t mean that we will always have every desire that comes to our hearts. Not every desire is good for us. Our hearts are deceitful and often we want things that we do not. But this does mean that our God and King is generous, He provides for us abundantly. Which flows into the next point.

In verses 18 and 19 we see that the Mighty God answers our prayer. When we pray as Mighty God Incarnate teaches us, praying, “Lord, thy will be done, thy kingdom come.” We can be assured that all of our prayers are answered positively. Take your burdens to God and leave them to Him. Call on Him in truth! If you are in danger, hunger, sickness, panic, fear, or despondency, call out to the Lord knowing that He hears your prayers. Pray fervently and humbly, trusting this Mighty King and His unsearchable greatness to provide what you need, not what you think you need, but what is for your eternal good and His glory! Pray sincerely, pray dependently, pray humbly. He hears your prayers.

And finally, in verse 20, we see that the Mighty God protects His people. Our Mighty God Incarnate would say, “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.” Jesus will protect, guard, preserve and sustain all who believe in Him. This doesn’t mean that life will be east. It doesn’t mean that the temptation for despondency won’t come. But that we have eternal security in the arms of our Savior.

Those who do not submit to the Mighty God do not have such assurance. The wicked He will destroy. All who fail to submit to the King in repentance and faith will perish.

So with all this said, church, look to King Jesus. He is the light in the darkness promised in the garden, pointed to in the kings, promised in the prophets, born in the manger, validated in righteousness, killed on the cross, risen from the grave, and sitting at the right hand of the Father. He is our rock, and our hope, worthy of our consistent and continual praise and devotion.

That is the conclusion of our psalm this morning. In light of the Mighty God, “My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord, and let all flesh bless His Holy Name forever and ever.”

No matter what you are going through this morning, this is your reminder, “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep.” He is the mighty God displayed majestically through Christ. Look to Him today.

Look to Him today. This church exists by grace, for glory, in love. We have been reminded of God’s grace fervently today. We give Him glory by looking and resting in Him. We do this in love by spurring on one another in further service and commitment to our Mighty God. Do you need encouragement today? Make that known. Do you know that Christ is King? Are you coming to understand that for the first time today? Make that known. One thing you will certainly find in this place is a love to help you wherever you, a love that exists because He first loved us. Respond today, look to Christ and join in deeper fellowship with the fellow saints of His Kingdom. Come forward in this hymn of response.

Let’s Pray.