The One True God

Knowing God The One True God - Isaiah 44:6-20 October 12, 2025 In early 2024 I read a book by J.I. Packer called Knowing God. In this book, he states that he wanted to "examine in detail what the Bible shows us of the nature and character of ... God." He stated that one of his convictions of writing this book was to respond to the ignorance that people have about God, and how that effects the church today. I really enjoyed this book. So much that I suggested doing a short sermon series on the topic of Knowing God. So, for the next four weeks that is exactly what we will be doing. This morning, we begin with the topic of The One True God. However, we'll be approaching this from a different angle. As I began looking at the passage that we'll be looking at shortly, I couldn't help but think about Exodus 20, where we find the Ten Commandments. Speaking to the Jews, God reminds them that He was the One who delivered them out of slavery, and thus as a response He gave them the Ten Commandments, followed by other specific laws for the nation. Our topic today is - one could say - a continuation of the first two commandments, which reads this way from Exodus 20:3-6: 3 "YOU SHALL HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME. 4 "YOU SHALL NOT MAKE FOR YOURSELF A CARVED IMAGE, OR ANY LIKENESS OF ANYTHING THAT IS IN HEAVEN ABOVE, OR THAT IS IN THE EARTH BENEATH, OR THAT IS IN THE WATER UNDER THE EARTH. 5 YOU SHALL NOT BOW DOWN TO THEM OR SERVE THEM, FOR I THE LORD YOUR GOD AM A JEALOUS GOD, VISITING THE INIQUITY OF THE FATHERS ON THE CHILDREN TO THE THIRD AND THE FOURTH GENERATION OF THOSE WHO HATE ME, 6 BUT SHOWING STEADFAST LOVE TO THOUSANDS OF THOSE WHO LOVE ME AND KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS. That's right, this morning, we'll be looking at the topic of idolatry as we explore the topic of The One True God. In the literal since, an idol is a representation or symbol of an object of worship; a false god. We will also see that there is a present day application of the seemingly ancient practice of idolatry. With that in mind, if you have your bibles, go ahead and find Isaiah 44, that's where we will be this morning. Isaiah is the first of the major prophets, following the poetic books in the Old Testament. I want to begin first by setting up our main passage this morning with our main idea, which is: When I look anywhere outside of the Lord, I am guilty of idolatry. My purpose of this main idea is to apply idolatry broadly, so that we understand the core of the issue. Verses 9-20 of Isaiah 44 is a warning against idolatry, just like we saw in Exodus 20. First, let's set it up by first reading Isaiah 44:6-8, which gives us THREE REASONS TO WORSHIP GOD ALONE: 6 THUS SAYS THE LORD, THE KING OF ISRAEL AND HIS REDEEMER, THE LORD OF HOSTS: "I AM THE FIRST AND I AM THE LAST; BESIDES ME THERE IS NO GOD. 7 WHO IS LIKE ME? LET HIM PROCLAIM IT. LET HIM DECLARE AND SET IT BEFORE ME, SINCE I APPOINTED AN ANCIENT PEOPLE. LET THEM DECLARE WHAT IS TO COME, AND WHAT WILL HAPPEN. 8 FEAR NOT, NOR BE AFRAID; HAVE I NOT TOLD YOU FROM OF OLD AND DECLARED IT? AND YOU ARE MY WITNESSES! IS THERE A GOD BESIDES ME? THERE IS NO ROCK; I KNOW NOT ANY." First reason is ... * There is no other God. (v.6) o We saw this already in the Exodus passage. o Obviously, the prophets warned about idolatry a lot. o We know that idolatry was a problem in the early church, as we see from the example that Paul used in Romans 1:25, where Paul states that they began to worship the creation, rather than the Creator. o Even the Apostle John closes his first epistle with a warning against idolatry o Let's be honest, if a "letter" was written to the church today, without a doubt, the same warning will be given. o The next reason is that ... * The One True God is eternal. (vv.6-7) o In the next part of our Isaiah passage, we will see that there is a beginning and there is an end to these idols, but our God is eternal. * He is not bound by time, like you and I are. In fact, He invented time! o Because of this, nothing else - no one else - is comparable. o Next, * If I know the One True God, I have no reason to fear. (v.8) o This is a huge statement. o And, it may not seem to fit, at least at first. o But at the end of the day, this is what it's all about. o We make idols when we don't trust the Lord. o Just think about the example of the Golden Calf in Exodus 32. * They didn't believe that Moses was coming back down the mountain, so they made an idol to worship. o In Christ, we know the Father, according to John 14:9, and because of this, we can trust Him in and through all things. You see, the simple and straight forward reason for the warning that follows is that there is only One True God. Isaiah now shares THREE REASONS TO AVOID IDOLATRY. Which we'll look at one at a time, beginning with, Isaiah 44:9-11 which says: 9 ALL WHO FASHION IDOLS ARE NOTHING, AND THE THINGS THEY DELIGHT IN DO NOT PROFIT. THEIR WITNESSES NEITHER SEE NOR KNOW, THAT THEY MAY BE PUT TO SHAME. 10 WHO FASHIONS A GOD OR CASTS AN IDOL THAT IS PROFITABLE FOR NOTHING? 11 BEHOLD, ALL HIS COMPANIONS SHALL BE PUT TO SHAME, AND THE CRAFTSMEN ARE ONLY HUMAN. LET THEM ALL ASSEMBLE, LET THEM STAND FORTH. THEY SHALL BE TERRIFIED; THEY SHALL BE PUT TO SHAME TOGETHER. Here, it is revealed that: * Idolatry is unprofitable. (vv.9-11) o We all know how important time is in our culture. o I've seen some of your calendars, and I'm constantly updating and checking my own. o Time is not just a modern problem, even Paul addressed this in his letter to the Ephesians. Here's what he said in chapter 5, verses 15-16: 15 LOOK CAREFULLY THEN HOW YOU WALK, NOT AS UNWISE BUT AS WISE, 16 MAKING THE BEST USE OF THE TIME, BECAUSE THE DAYS ARE EVIL. o Really, both Paul and Isaiah here are warning about where and what we are focusing our time and attention on. o Put another way, idolatry - in all its forms - is pointless and worthless. o If that's not a good enough reason, let's see another reason to avoid idolatry from verses 12-17: Isaiah 44:12-17 says this ... 12 THE IRONSMITH TAKES A CUTTING TOOL AND WORKS IT OVER THE COALS. HE FASHIONS IT WITH HAMMERS AND WORKS IT WITH HIS STRONG ARM. HE BECOMES HUNGRY, AND HIS STRENGTH FAILS; HE DRINKS NO WATER AND IS FAINT. 13 THE CARPENTER STRETCHES A LINE; HE MARKS IT OUT WITH A PENCIL. HE SHAPES IT WITH PLANES AND MARKS IT WITH A COMPASS. HE SHAPES IT INTO THE FIGURE OF A MAN, WITH THE BEAUTY OF A MAN, TO DWELL IN A HOUSE. 14 HE CUTS DOWN CEDARS, OR HE CHOOSES A CYPRESS TREE OR AN OAK AND LETS IT GROW STRONG AMONG THE TREES OF THE FOREST. HE PLANTS A CEDAR AND THE RAIN NOURISHES IT. 15 THEN IT BECOMES FUEL FOR A MAN. HE TAKES A PART OF IT AND WARMS HIMSELF; HE KINDLES A FIRE AND BAKES BREAD. ALSO HE MAKES A GOD AND WORSHIPS IT; HE MAKES IT AN IDOL AND FALLS DOWN BEFORE IT. 16 HALF OF IT HE BURNS IN THE FIRE. OVER THE HALF HE EATS MEAT; HE ROASTS IT AND IS SATISFIED. ALSO HE WARMS HIMSELF AND SAYS, "AHA, I AM WARM, I HAVE SEEN THE FIRE!" 17 AND THE REST OF IT HE MAKES INTO A GOD, HIS IDOL, AND FALLS DOWN TO IT AND WORSHIPS IT. HE PRAYS TO IT AND SAYS, "DELIVER ME, FOR YOU ARE MY GOD!" Here we learn that: o I can't make a god out of something the true God already made. (vv.12-17) * It almost sounds silly to say that out loud in this setting, but that's effectively what Isaiah is saying here. * Notice too, that Isaiah uses the ancient literary style of sarcasm in this section. He does this to make a point, of which the ESV editors did a good job capturing with the heading of this section: The Folly of Idolatry * He gives us two examples of the folly of idolatry. * Notably, these are trades or professions of people. Human people. Really, that's at the center of his point. First example is ... * The ironsmith (v.12). As a person, the ironsmith ... o Becomes hungry, and he ... o ... becomes weak, and he ... o ... becomes thirsty. o In this example, as noted previously, he is simply wasting his time and energy on a worthless idol. o He spends a little more time with his second example ... * The carpenter (vv.13-17) o Notice the amount of work that goes into this. o I couldn't help but think about how this is done, even today. o It's not much different than the warning from Peter in 2 Peter about the false teachers profiting from their teaching. o Today, people get wealthy or gain influence from images, objects, books, music, or their teaching that give off the appearance of godliness. o Isaiah shares some of these details about the carpenter and his folly stating that ... * He uses some of the trees to make fire for food and warmth ... * ... then, he uses the rest of the parts to make and worship an idol. o Foolish, pointless and worthless. * Finally, Isaiah 44:18-20 reveals another reason to avoid idolatry: 18 THEY KNOW NOT, NOR DO THEY DISCERN, FOR HE HAS SHUT THEIR EYES, SO THAT THEY CANNOT SEE, AND THEIR HEARTS, SO THAT THEY CANNOT UNDERSTAND. 19 NO ONE CONSIDERS, NOR IS THERE KNOWLEDGE OR DISCERNMENT TO SAY, "HALF OF IT I BURNED IN THE FIRE; I ALSO BAKED BREAD ON ITS COALS; I ROASTED MEAT AND HAVE EATEN. AND SHALL I MAKE THE REST OF IT AN ABOMINATION? SHALL I FALL DOWN BEFORE A BLOCK OF WOOD?" 20 HE FEEDS ON ASHES; A DELUDED HEART HAS LED HIM ASTRAY, AND HE CANNOT DELIVER HIMSELF OR SAY, "IS THERE NOT A LIE IN MY RIGHT HAND?" Really, what Isaiah is saying here is that ... * Idolatry means that we don't really know God (vv.18-20) o This is really what I meant when I stated in our main idea earlier: When I look anywhere outside of the Lord, I am guilty of idolatry. o When we don't know God, we don't trust God. o When we don't know God, we begin to look for something more. o This is where false religions, false gods, and false practices come from. o They create gods and ideas that suit their needs and wants. o True Christianity is different. o The Bible reveals that in our natural state, we don't want to know God, but He sent His Son so that we could. Revealing to us that we need His Son to know Himself. That's really where we need to spend the rest of our time. Understanding how this all fits for us today. Because, as we've seen already, whatever we put before God, is idolatry. For some, that could be our jobs or hobbies. It could be something more physical, like our smartphones or Google. So, let's close our time today with some ... IMPLICATIONS FOR US First, let's ... * Work to align my heart and mind with God's. o This takes time, but it is well worth it. o And ... this is productive. o This requires constant communion with the Lord. * In prayer. * In the Bible. * In fellowship. o Just look at the end of verse 22 - the next section - where God says ... RETURN TO ME, FOR I HAVE REDEEMED YOU. o The more time we spend with Him, the better we know Him, and the more we will be aligned to Him. o Next, * Use my skills, talents, and abilities to serve and honor God. o Many times, the idol in your life is ... well, you. o Here's how the apostle John put it in 1 John 2:16: FOR ALL THAT IS IN THE WORLD-THE DESIRES OF THE FLESH AND THE DESIRES OF THE EYES AND PRIDE OF LIFE-IS NOT FROM THE FATHER BUT IS FROM THE WORLD. o What John is describing is the self-pleasing nature that we all have. o God has given us all skills, talents, and abilities, and many of us use them for our own personal gain. o Instead: * Use them for God's glory. * Use them to advance His Kingdom. * Use them to serve others. o A related implication is to ... * Practice the art of humility. o For us, humility is the first step in acknowledging that we need a Savior o Humility is the first step in understanding our need for God o Humility is the first step in letting go of control and watching God work. o Finally, I must ... * Learn to trust the Lord. o As stated earlier, we begin making idols when we stop trusting God. o Why can we trust God? o As this passage this morning illustrates, for one, it is because He is real and active. o Psalm 135 makes this very relevant point in verses 15-18: 15 THE IDOLS OF THE NATIONS ARE SILVER AND GOLD, THE WORK OF HUMAN HANDS. 16 THEY HAVE MOUTHS, BUT DO NOT SPEAK; THEY HAVE EYES, BUT DO NOT SEE; 17 THEY HAVE EARS, BUT DO NOT HEAR, NOR IS THERE ANY BREATH IN THEIR MOUTHS. 18 THOSE WHO MAKE THEM BECOME LIKE THEM, SO DO ALL WHO TRUST IN THEM. Do you trust the One True God? The One True God who speaks to us in His Word. The One True God who saw our need and sent His One and Only Son. And the One True God who hears our prayers and invites us to commune with Him. This morning, maybe God is calling you to Himself. Maybe He is calling you to put away the worthless idols. Maybe He is calling you to cling to Him. Maybe He is calling you to know Him. How will you respond? Let's pray. 2