Who Is God, Part 9

A compass Bible Church Tustin family, it's Pastor Elliott here. And I know it's kind of a different morning for us. But I think it's a great opportunity for us to still gather around the word of God, even though we can't be together physically God in his kind of says a lot of technology that allows it to stay connected with one another. So I'm excited to continue or series on the attributes of God. But before we do that, maybe just a quick word on all that's gone on here. God has been so kind to protect us in our church were very thankful for all that. He has done for us, but I want to think through just the stuff with the coronavirus in all the all the information we've got going out. Thank you guys for being so patient with us another different locations and things happening, but maybe just three words that we can think of we want to just handle every situation wisely. So we want to handle this situation wisely self. All the things were talking to me were trying to get wisdom. But you know wisdom to you want to follow what the doctors and health officials are recommending to make sure if it's Execustay in your washing your hands constantly. We're doing everything that we can to be wise, but at the same time, I think it'd be good for us. Just think of the wisdom, but think of the witness that we can have during this time. I know that there can be these times of high risk for people can feel uncertain, but the great thing that we get to do as we get to trust in our God, and this is an opportunity when we trust in our God to have a great opportunity to share. Our face will be thinking that just wisdom and how I can be wise and left my neighbor. But how can I witness for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and then ultimately maybe worship to those three words. We want to think wisely. We want to have a good witness and we want to worship. I think times like this show is really our dependency upon God and just how fragile and frail. We are as human beings, but God in his kindness allows us to be able to depend upon him to want to pray for those people in those areas that are suffering want to pray for the health officials and all that they're doing but praise God during this time that he is certainly in control of all these different things. I'm so continue to check your emails continue to check in with your small group. Please feel free to call the church. So we can try to keep all these communications going on but we want you to know we love you and we're going to watch God do great things to do this as he does to all the things that he has brought us through in the past and will do in the future but we listening today about an attribute of God and to do that. I've been thinking about different ways that I could express and attribute what got me thinking plans for summer vacation different places. You could go one place I would like to see is the Hoover Dam to Hoover Dam to me is an incredible edifice. It's just gigantic. It's enormous. I think the weight itself of the Hoover Dam is over like six million tonnes. It's just so heavy. I think it height it's over 700 feet. I think length. It's over a 1200 ft. I think the width at the bottom is over 600 futurestep a massive structure and I was reading up on it because the Hoover Dam At the the highest pressure point new pounds per square inch the highest pressure point the pounds per square inch is over 45,000 pounds per square inch of pressure. Now, I have somebody smarter than me to give me an illustration of what that would be in that would be like taking the tour bus if you think of a tour bus and you packed it full of people and you packed it full of the the different suitcases and other things can happen if you take a tour bus and imagine the two of us being supported by something about the size of a stamp if you place that tour bus on that that in that little in chats about the amount of pressure that's going on at the Hoover Dam that it's at its biggest point to think about the power that that wall has to restrain all of that force on it is an incredible feat in my mind. That's what I want you to think about the power of restraint, what would it take to to harness all of that power? It would take something so strong you take something on nipotent and that's what I want you to think about that day when we talked about patience we talked about a number of different attributes to begin to think about the patience of God is thinking about God's ability to restrain something in that restraint takes so much power and it provides us with such an amazing grace that we see as he provides us that patients. I think it'd be good for us to reflect on it this morning. So terms mean your bibles if you got them to Psalm 145 again Psalm 145 me one with the patience of God and as we're doing this we talked about the patience of God when I think through all these different ways that God has revealed himself in the song as we look at these attributes. We are learning from God himself in his word specifically who he is. We have that amazing opportunity through Psalm 145 and we think about his patients this morning to go ahead read the song again and its entire set of hearts and Minds on worshipping God. Psalm 145 verse once is this a song of Praise of David I will extol you my God and King and bless your name Forever and Ever every day. I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever great is the Lord and greatly to be praised. His greatness is unsearchable one generation shall commend your Works to another until declare your Mighty acts on the Glorious Splendor of your majesty in on your wondrous works. I will meditate they shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds and I will declare your greatness. They shall pour forth of Fame of your abundant goodness, and she'll single out of your righteousness. The Lord is gracious and merciful slow to anger and abounding in steadfast. Love of the Lord is good to all in his mercies over all that. He has made all your Works will give thanks to the Lord in all your Saints will bless you. Please speak of the glory of your kingdom in tell if your power to make known to the children of man, you're mighty Deeds on the Glorious Splendor of your kingdom. Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom here in Dominion tour throughout all generations. The Lord is faithful in all his words and kind and all his works. The Lord upholds all who are falling and raises up all her about down the eyes of all look to you and you give them their food in due season you open up your hand you satisfy. The desire of every living thing. The Lord is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his work. The Lord is near to all who call upon him to all who call upon him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him you'll so here's their cry and save them the Lord preserve's all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy my mouth just speak the praise of the Lord and let All Flesh bless His holy name forever and ever. Last week when we were doing the scripture reading if you remember we we read from Psalm 19, which talked about the general Revelation that comes from creation and how we can see that there is a Creator out there. But the amazing thing about the scriptures what separates the scriptures from the general Revelation is the specificity we get at the god behind the scriptures himself. He's revealing himself to us. And in this text of scripture, we've learned a number of different things but one of them I want you to be amazed about this morning. It's the fact that God is patient. Did you begin to reflect on the patience of God? I hope it will do a number of different things. I hope it's going to cause you to Marvel. I was going to cause you to Marvel at the greatness of God because of the amount of restraint that's there. In fact was given the definition each time that we've come together about these different attributes and I like to do that for you with the attribute of patience. So if you got your pain and go ahead and write this down God's patience is his powerful Restraint of his righteous wrath. Are we the free again God's patience is his powerful Restraint of his righteous Wrath.

It's a good thing for us to think about cuz that's what makes his patients so incredible and so amazing we heard it in the phrase in verse 8. The Lord is gracious and merciful. Here's a phrase slow to anger. That's the Old Testament way of saying that God is patient. He's very slow to anger. And this is the thing that we've seen since Exodus 34 on when God reveals himself. He's showing himself to be a God who is patience and that means we Have a guy who is slow to anger with us. That's that's a good thing for us to think about because the fact is we read in the song There Is this righteous wrath you learned about that a few weeks ago. The Lord is righteous in all his ways and has a righteous judge. He has indignation every single day and why doesn't that God carry out that indignation on people will because he's slow to anger. So here's what I can do four point. Number one could write this down. Number one Marvel at the power of his patients number one Marvel at the power of his patients. I can free to sit back and to consider that you know, the Hoover Dam that we were talking about were marveling at the power of restraint that the Hoover Dam has the ability to withhold all of that pressure from the water. It holds it back and I think that for us we should Marvel of God's patience because what he's holding back is is this righteous rage that he feels this faithful fury that he possesses this worthy wrath that he he has against those who sin against him. Those are all things that we want to consider God is holding those docusource training those because he's patient and Powerful. Let's Marvel at the powerful patience of God. We saw that he slow to anger and Psalm 145, but you remember verse 28 says all the wicked he will destroy. So how do we have those two concepts held intention that God is slow to anger and he will destroy the Wicked at some point will the fact that he's patient able to restrain withhold restrict harness that for a time is something that we should Marvel at to do that. Let's go to the Book of Exodus won't you turn the Exodus? Exodus chapter 34 R32 Exodus chapter 32

Did you get the Marvel the powerful Restraint of God? Uterine Exodus 32 just want to set the context in your mind. God had liberated the people of Israel by pulling them out of the powerful hand of pharaoh the most powerful man on Earth if you were to look at the Earth you that is the most powerful man on the earth in the most powerful system in regime that that that exists and God liberates them takes them through that, you know, the 10 different plagues and shows his sovereignty over everything and he brings them to Mount Sinai in there he an exit Covenant with them. If you can let the Covenant Exodus 20 with those 10 words those what we called the Ten Commandments. Start out this way. I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt the first two Commandments that he's saying if you're going to be in this Covenant relationship with me and the people are sent to that all that you say we will do we want to be your kingdom of priests a royal priesthood. They they sent it to these things in the first two Commandments one. You shall have no other gods before me and number to you should not worship any graven images. So think about those two things as we begin to read the story Exodus 32 1 to 6. Does this when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain the people gather themselves up to Aaron and said up make us Gods who shall go before us as for this Moses the man you brought us up out of the land of Egypt. We do not know what has become of him. So Aaron said to them take off the gold rings that are in the ears of your wise in the sons and daughters and bring them to me. So all the people took off their gold rings that were in the ears and brought them to Aaron. So he receives a gold from their hands and fashioned it with a graving tool that made the golden calf and they said these are your Gods o Israel who is brought you up out of the land of Egypt when Aaron saw this he built an altar before it and Aaron made Proclamation and said tomorrow, she'll be a feast to the Lord and they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offering and the people sat down to eat and drink and Rose up to play. So this is what we have when we're talkin about the patience of God. We have God right here. Being angry with his people because of their actions what are their actions there waiting for Moses who at this point in time and probably been up on the mountain about 40 days and the fact that that had going on the people started to get restless and the people wanted something to worship. It's a good reminder for us to always remember that people are Longing To Worship something and they will fulfill that either by worshipping the one true God who is worthy of that worship or they will put it in other things idols. And so these people go well this Moses and you hear the distane with that this Moses, we don't know what happened to him. We want to worship something. So Erin give us something to Worship in the give all their jewelry and the begin to crafted into this this Graven image was very interesting about this is you know, this is the god that brought you out of the land of Egypt people are wondering is this the first two Commandments or is it only the second commandment that they're breaking will typically when you see the word Elohim that's a plural form that can be used of speaking of the one true God. But typically when you see that Elohim which is plural it'll be matched with more than more often than not it'll be matched with a singular verb, but what we have here is Elohim matched with plural verb. So the gods who brought you out of Egypt is probably a more fair translation. So I think it is safe to say that they're breaking the first two Commandments by worshipping multiple gods represented in this deity probably add that was crafted from their time and eat with what they would have considered what they were comfortable worshiping and so what happens in verse chapter 7 with all of this. The Lord said to Moses go down for your people who you brought up out of the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves. And if your parents understand what's going on, they're your people Moses knows he's not saying my people even though he's coming to do with him. It's like a mom and dad. You know, when you see something going on to kid, that's your kid. That's that's not my kid. That's your kid passing the buck right here. So they have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them and have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshipped it and sacrifice to it and said, these are your Gods o Israel who brought you out of the land of Egypt and the Lord said to Moses. I have seen this people and behold it is a stiff-necked people now therefore let me alone that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them in order that I may make a great nation out of you. I don't know that we comprehend what is being restrained by God when he doesn't unleashes wrath. Do you hear the phrase? Let me alone that my wrath may burn. That's righteous wrath. Remember we talked about that a few weeks ago. God is the judge and he's set the standard specifically with these people. He's laid out how I Want You To Worship me. We don't get to approach God the way we want. We follow him the way that he's asked us to and when we don't he is righteously wrathful with us. We see it clearly hear the text. I'm going to let this burn and it's going to consume the people. And the fact that God who is able to feel that righteous wrath at any point in time suspense that judgment for a moment is an incredible Act of patience. Knows how we see that in verse 11, but Moses implored the Lord and set the god whole or does your Rathburn hot against your people whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand wash these Gyptian say with evil intent. Did he bring them out to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the Earth turn from your burning anger and relent from This Disaster against your people and then it goes on to appeal to the promise made by God to Abraham Isaac and Jacob. Moses does the right thing by interceding I just picture how how incredible it is. The way that Moses is interceding for the people. Remember I read to you a few verses to go there were dystany Moses. This Moses. He's left us. We don't know where he is. He not Moses is doing imploring to the Lord to be to be patient uses turn from your anger for Lent from this and for a God who is righteously angry to be able to do that. It takes incredible power to restrain that. So how do we know that this God will do it turn to Exodus 34 6 and 7. After God the length of doing that to the people and starting over again with Moses. We've gone through this text before in other sermons, but Exodus 34 67, is this the Lord passed before and then proclaimed. I am the Lord the Lord Our God merciful and gracious slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. That's how God is able to restrain to relent from unleashing this righteous wrath upon the people because they have broken what they promised to do to him and do for him. But God in his patients who restrains he he harnesses that because he's a God who is slow to anger. Maybe one more example Turn The Numbers chapter 14 Numbers chapter 14 of secrecy it even more clearly here.

Numbers Chapter 14. This is after the report has come back from the spies. Number God sent the people into the land. They're going to overtake it. They're going to find a land flowing with milk and honey. And so there's some spice N Out 10 come back negative to positive. And this is what they say everything that God has said it's a land flowing with milk and honey. Here's the fruit. Here's the evidence. It's exactly as God has promised, but we're not going up because they're too big for us. Again, that is going to cause God who has been faithful to show them. I took you out of Egypt. I dismantled their gods I can do anything. They choose to rebelled against them. What happens numbers 14 verse 1 then all the congregation raised allowed cry in the people wept at night and all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses. And Aaron the whole congregation said would be the died in the land of Egypt or that we do died in the wilderness. Why is the Lord bringing us to this land to Fall by the sword are wise and our little ones to become prey would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt and they said let us choose a leader to go back to Egypt. Moses and Aaron selling their faces before the Assembly of the congregation of the people of Israel and said Joshua the son of nun and Caleb the son of Jeff Dunn who were among those who had spied out the land for their clothes and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel the land with which we passed through to spy out is exceedingly good if the Lord Delights in us, he will bring us into the lane and give it to us a land that flows with milk and honey. Only do not repel against the Lord and do not fear the people to land for they are bred for us. Their protection is removed from them. And the Lord is with us do not fear then all the congregation set to Stone them with stones, but the glory of the Lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel. Verse 11 and the Lord said to Moses. How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me in spite of all the signs. I've done among them. I will strike them with pestilence and disinherit them and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they do you hear the anger coming from God you hear the the faithful fury coming from the one who is worthy of our worship because these people again have despised the promises of God did the despised his name of the refusing to do what God asked them to do it. So the creator of all things was created mankind to live for his honor and Glory has the right to feel this way towards them. Pretty with holds it take a look at verse 13. But Moses said to the Lord in the Egyptians will hear of it for you brought those people out in your might from among them and they will tell that nations of this land. They have heard that you oh Lord are in the midst of this people for you. Oh Lord have our seen face-to-face in your Cloud stands over them and you go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of Fire by night. Now if you kill these people as one man, then the nation to have heard of your Fame will say it is because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land that he swore to give to them that he killed them in the wilderness for 17 and now please let the power of the Lord be great as you have promised. The Lord is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. Sheila connection between the power in the patient's right there let your power but the power of the Lord be great as it as you have promised. I'm a God who is slow to anger Moses again appealing to the great name of God, the fan that has gone out. He doesn't want it to be dismantled because of this action towards his people which God has the right to do he saying God, please just restrain that. Please harness that God so that you can show this patience and be able to allow your people to receive this forgiveness. I think these examples show us the power of God. Maybe you could just write this one down. Don't take the time to turn there. I think it's one of your homework questions to Nahum 1:3 Nahum 1:3. Says the Lord is slow to anger and great in power or take another translation says it this way. The Lord is great and patience and great and power and those are two concepts that go very well together because if God were to as he has the right to In a Moment release his wrath upon the people they could not stand in front of it. But God is harnessing withholding restricting that by his great power. That's something we should Marvel at. But I think it's true to say that that's not only something that we should Marvel that it's something that should spur us on to do something. It's something that should cause us. If we really know this God to be this patient with people although he does not show them that patient see by his power and grace and mercy is showing that patients. I think we should do something with that so much right down number two on your outline on should you Marvel at that great power that restrains God's righteous wrath the number two on your outline when she say this way, let's be motivated by the purpose of his patients must be motivated by the purpose of his patients. Good for us to think about this. Why is God showing this type of patients to people? Why would God do this God has a purpose for everything that he does. Why is he so willing to be slow to anger which is just a great picture for us to think slow to anger is a phrase in the Hebrew. We don't translate it patients because it's acting like a word picture if you think about it, you could literally translate it long of nose, but slow to anger means because we often think about patience as us sitting and waiting for something good because we're so used to good things happening to us. You know, I should it be before my boys from time to time. So sit down and I'll tell them okay, we're going to do something fun in a little bit. But Daddy has to do some work for Daddy's doing something else. So I need you to wait. So oftentimes my boys. I'll tell them to wait and I'll sit right next to me and then just remind me every few minutes. Hey, Dad, I'm waiting for you. And I paid a dime waiting for you there waiting for a blessing to come and they think that this is some great active of patients on their part but as we've been seen so far God's patience is not because he's waiting for something good to happen to him. His patience is shown in that he's being slow to anger when he has the right to unleash it upon people. So goddamn slow to anger means he's long of nose because somebody was angry they scrunch up their face and their their nose gets short because they're so frustrated and they're about to unleash am wrath upon a person but got his long of nose. You can think of like a stick of dynamite that has a long wick on it. And when you light the fuse, it's just going to take forever until it gets to that moment. There is power and there is Fury coming from that but there is just a long long patient fuse there to burn. That's what we have with God. He's so patient with us and we should Marvel at that but we should also realize the purpose of it got me thinking about something maybe you've heard of it before if you're in no student of American History are the Johnstown Flood we heard of the Johnstown Flood a half and I think in a 1889 Jonestown is in the central of Pennsylvania, and it's found on this section. Of the Comal River the Comal River. Jonestown is about 14 miles south of it and there is a reservoir there that was turned into like a country club by some of the rich Elites of the day with a Carnegie Steel. They built a reservoir and they built a Dam called that I believe the South Fork Dam to hold back the the river so that they can have this reservoir for their little like Town and Country Club the people now it was built in 1881 and they haven't really done much updating to that in 1889 and 1889 and may they had this huge rush of rain coming the most rented ever seen in the water levels began to rise on the damn. So if you begin to think about that picture it got to a point where the water was going to exceed the damn right there and the dam was going to begin to crumble and what would eventually happen is that the water would come rushing through the town. It got to such a point there were people began to see that the restraint that the dam was giving was going to give way so they sent Riders into the town and the writers went into the town and they begin to tell people hate about huge flood is going to come you guys have to get out of here. But because there had been threats of that happening before because people didn't really take it to Sears. They just simply took their belongings and move them to the second story of the house because they assumed it was going to just be a little bit of a flood coming through and that unfortunate mistake cost the lives of over 2,200 people. Because I didn't take the warning from the Wrath of the flood was going to come seriously death and destruction took place. God does restrain his righteous wrath in his patients, but that does not mean it's not coming and that means you and I if we Marvel at this God who would be so slow to anger so that there could be this possibility to go and warn people listen judgment is coming but there is a God he was gracious and merciful if we don't take advantage of that. We're missing. The reason why God is being patient in the first place. He's being patient because he wants us to go preach repentance. That's why you and I need to be motivated by this purpose. God shows this patient's so that people will repent to see the stream with me to Romans chapter 2

We're going to see a seam in a couple of passages here in the New Testament.

Did you see that the word that translates? Patience in the New Testament is used for the phrase slow to anger in the Old Testament a majority of times. That's what we're going to see in Romans chapter 2. Is long-suffering it sometimes translated to the word McCray through Mia Long passion long suffering. it's what we going to see the notice again the connection of Wrath in Romans 1:18, which is this for the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who buy their unrighteousness suppress the truth for what can be known about God is plain to them because he has shown it to them for his invisible attributes name is eternal power and to buy nature have been clearly perceived ever since the creation of the world in the things that have been made so they are without excuse So the wrath of Gods it's revealed. You can begin to see like things going on in the creation that the general variation revealed these things about God, but it doesn't tell us specifically who he is. That's why we need the special Revelation found in the Bible to reveal that the God's Wrath is coming and it begins to show in Romans chapter 1 will study this in a few weeks will begin the book of Romans. Just these different manifestations of the idolatry of people who are going against the God who created them and how that's building up for them wrath. But then in Romans 2 verse 1 probably going to talk about a specific group of people. This is this therefore you have no excuse. Oh man, every one of you who judges from passing judgment on another you condemn yourself because you the judge practice the very same thing. The part where he was talking about those people who might have a sense of moral superiority because you're not acting like those people in Romans chapter one, but if you're beginning to judge those people and yet you have similar actions different manifestations of that idolatry, you're doing hypocritical judgment and God is never tolerate any of that. Why because we know that the Judgment of God rightly or just lie or fairly falls upon those who practice such things do you suppose? Oh man you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourselves that you will escape the judgement of God. So if you're in the position of moral superiority because you think you're better than these people and yet you actually practice the same things that you are condemning that's hypocritical judgment will be met with a righteous judgement from God upon yourself. Bridgeport says this or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance. So now do you see how all of this is beginning to come together? We Marvel at a God, who when we sin against him. He has this this righteous rage that he's going to unleash upon people because he's a purely holy God who must be treated with the utmost worship and he's exclusively worthy of that worship. And when we don't he could in that moment simply wipe us out, but the fact that he was strains that the power that it takes because the show us there's a purpose for it and we clearly see here don't you know that the kindness forbearance and patience of God should lead you to repentance That's the reason why we're here. This is an outward motivation for us as we begin to think about the patience of God. He is slow to anger so we can go out and proclaim the greatness of this guy who is forgiving who is loving two although he's righteous and has the right to send you the hell will be patient and merciful with you but for a time take a look at verse 5, but because of your heart independent Hearts, you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of Wrath when God's righteous judgement will be revealed. There's a day coming and there's that righteous judgement. That's fair judgement that's going to come from God. And you if you think you're going to escape it it's not going to go well for you. It's these people did you see the words how he said it do you suppose those people that you escape the Judgment of God or do you presume she's at work resume verse for upon his kindness forbearance and patience. Is it something we never want to do we never want to be presumptuous about the patience of God. This is where presumptuous mean as used in another context think of Hebrews chapter 12 verse When Jesus despised the shame and he looked towards the cross with joy because he was going to do the father's will he despised the shame? That's the same word for presume here. Do you presume upon do you think lightly of do you condescendingly think towards the the patience of God that it's going to last forever. We should never think that way with guy. He doesn't owe this to us in a moment. It could come in until that moment happens. We should be going out like those riders in Johnstown to the people saying this This damn will not hold forever and we see the destruction coming and it's not going to happen with God because his patients, you know begins to break down. It happens with his patients is removed this omnipotent patient never rains, but the moment that he removes it that's where it's different than the Johnstown Flood that crumbled because it couldn't hold it anymore. God will do it at that the right time because he's a righteous judge. So we should be motivated by that if we receive God's patience until we were saved think about the years you lived before you knew christ-like. Just all of that patients there. This is why we can't be motivated to preach repentance. Think maybe another good text to look at might be. the next chapter over in Romans chapter 3 How does this all work together? How does this righteousness in this patient's in this love in this judgment that comes from God all fit together. We saw this a few weeks ago. We were looking at righteousness, but now look at it from the perspective of patients Romans 3:21 to 26 visits, but now the righteousness of God is the Manifest apart from the law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe there's no distinction for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified by his grace as a gift through the Redemption that is in Jesus Christ who God put forth as a propitiation by his blood to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness because in his Divine forbearance, he had passed over former sins. It was the show is righteousness at the present time that he might be both just and the justifier of the one was faith. In Jesus, this is where we see a great confluent a great coming together of all these different attributes of God. We studied love and righteousness and patience and mercy all of them Converge on the cross of Jesus Christ. That's why one of the most helpful things to do. If if you're having a hard time comprehending one of the attributes of God, you can probably just take a look at something that Jesus accomplished in the cross and be able to like distinctly see all that is what was going on and God's righteousness was revealed that mean as a righteous judge. He should have punished those people right away. How are you still remaining righteous God if you're just passing over former sins. Are you just sweeping it under the rug absolutely not know the Wrath is being restrained by my patient or my forbearance here. And for any Christian to have a relationship with me that Ralph doesn't get swept away. What does it say here? It has to be absorbed by the propitiation. Remember we talked about that last week from 1st John 4th. It has to be that person jumping on the grenade to absorb the Wrath of the grenade. So no one else is hurt that Rath has to be satisfied and either will be satisfied by Christ absorbing that wrath or that right that is being held back by God's patience will be Unleashed on a person. Those are the two options and so in God's Divine forbearance, he's allowing this time guys for us to go Proclaim repentance because that's what his patients should motivate us to do. One more text on this turn to 2nd Peter 3. Just to move quickly through the 2nd Peter 3. Think about how all this goes together.

2nd Peter 3 verses 1 to 7 or just a description of Peter saying listen, it's going to be scoffers coming saying Hey listen what God says, it's not coming true 2nd Peter 3:5 says this first forces this they will say where is the promise of his coming forever since the fathers fell asleep? All things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation. Precisely, they deliberately Overlook the fact that the heavens existed long ago and was formed out of water and through the Water by the word of God and by means of the world that then existed was Dell used with water and perished by that same where the heavens and the Earth that now exists are stored up for fire being kept until the day of judgement and destruction of the ungodly. So you're seeing a picture of what is being restrained. What is being harnessed what is being restricted by God in his great patience. Is this judgment that's coming up for the ungodly like a receipt but do not overlook this one fact beloved that with the Lord is one day as a thousand years and a thousand years is one day with the Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but his patient toward you not wishing that any should perish but that all should reach Repentance you see what God is doing judgments coming and people will foolishly look at the patience of God as the sort of inactivity and passivity and that's not what's going on. It is not that God is indifferent. It is not that he is inactive. It's not that he is apathetic towards what is going on is not going to do anything. He is actually very active right now and in his power restraining the rat that mankind has stored up for themselves. If you remember room in Chapter 2, all of that story enough of that rat is being held by his power and if you make the foolish mistake that these people talking about a moment what's going to happen the wrath of God is going to come we don't even know when it happens first 10, but the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night and the heavens will pass away with Aurora in the heavenly bodies were burned up in dissolve in the earth in the works and all that are done will be exposed sent all these things are to be dissolved what sort of people at weed to be in lies of Holiness and godliness waiting for the hastening coming today of God. Because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn but according to this promise. We are waiting for the new heavens and the new Earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore beloved since you are waiting for these things be diligent to be found in him without spot or blemish and at peace and count the patience of Our Lord at Salvation. That's what we are to do God's not willing that any should perish we should be going out of preaching the gospel and asking them to come repent of their sins turn to put their faith in Jesus Christ so he can absorb the wrath of God and they can have that loving relationship with the father that they've always been created to have and we have experienced that we should count that. So the patience of God as our Salvation we got to be motivated by that guy. Do you realize that you were saved because God is patient and he's withholding his wrath that you deserve so you could come to know him. Cuz we have Easter coming up. if family members who don't know Christ co-workers who don't we are people out there who are freaked out about the you know, the environment around them in the viruses that are going around people died because of the virus people die every day from other causes. Do you realize that they will stand before the judge and his righteous wrath will come upon them and it would have come upon you to unless he was patient. So you could repent and sense God has that that that motivation for the purpose of his patients clearly laid out for us. How much more should you and I be out there sharing our faith. What a great way to share our faith. We're not just trying to scare people into coming. We're trying to be have to be amazed that God would be so patient with them as they have sinned against him and that he does provide this love in Jesus Christ. It's what we want to begin to do. If not, we've learned that Rath is coming. Hell is coming to this fire is coming. I don't know if you guys have heard of the the library fire that took place in Los Angeles is back in 1986. I believe it was 1986 a massive fire at the LA Library. Such an incredible environment to think about a library. It's a good picture for us to think about what's going on to motivate us. A library is a place where you store a lot of books, right? You store books magazines articles documents music compositions all these different things but they're all flammable. Right and if something catches fire that place is going up very very quickly will fire happened in 1986 to the LA library and was a fire that was so bad that a number of different things happened. But some of the sad things about that fire are that the building itself was constantly getting citations for not being up to fire code. When it was originally built they began to say like we're not going to put sprinkler systems in because if if a fire alarm goes off in the sprinklers go off water damage will damage the books. So they first time didn't have fire sprinklers in there. But they finally we're talking about putting those sprinklers in that money in the budget. They kept putting it off, but they finally were going to put it in there were in talks to do around 1986 but didn't have those into they didn't have these up the fire retardant doors that people now have an all building today new buildings are required to have them. Some old buildings are being retrofitted for the news fire retardant door that would stop fires their number of other different citations at the building got warnings of like look you have frayed wires here. You have exposed lights here. You have blocked exits hear all of these different things cause that place to be looked at as a place that was in danger of a great fire. In fact one article that was written about it was like it's treated as a great Temple a great a great place to go study, but it's also a great fire hazard. Over and over getting things like that were being said so they weren't following the warnings in a 1986 fire happened and it got so bad that this is what took place. It's called a stoichiometric condition. That's the perfect condition for a firestone wheel metric Condition. It's perfect combustion where the where the amount of a ratio of oxygen to fuel to keep the fire going. Is that a perfect spot? It is so hard to achieve that that really the only happens in like a scientific Labs. Ron Hamill who is the fire chief at the time goes up on the scene and asked that Library begin to go up in Flames. He said there was no red yellow orangish color at all. It was like looking through I see glass because it has gotten to this perfect burning point. It was burning at that perfect point because of all the things that they have stored up in there when the fire went off. It was so bad. And this is what Ron Hamill said. He said when we when we got there we thought we were looking into the bowels of hell. This firefighter had never seen anything. So Furious as this fire right there. So what do you think that that firefighter who observed what happens when you're storing up in a place something that I can go up in this fire? If you were to go around afterwards to other libraries in to preach to them the idea of safety the idea of making sure everything is up to code the idea of protecting people. Do you think he's going to do so in a pathetic manner know he's witnessed the Wrath that comes when you store up for a spot and you don't follow the warnings. That's what we should be motivated by guys. Would you be motivated by the fact that this wrath is coming and it just wrath is coming and we know it to be true and we've seen glimpses of in the pages of scripture and we realize that people will fall into that. Why don't we go out and preach the gospel to them the gospel of repentance that will turn away that rat and allow them to receive Grace. I don't think that's the only thing that we should talk about when we talk about God's patience. Yes. We should Marvel at it as we watch it's powerful Restraint of his righteous wrath. Yes. It should motivate us to go preach the gospel. But number three we can talk about it. Maybe then Amber component. We should glorify God for the practice of patients. We should glorify God with the practice of patience and that's with one another. Good for us to think about patients in that way. We should glorify God by practicing patience. If there's a number of calls in the New Testament for the Christian you and I to be patient with one another. Now get we are not showing patience to people when God sees that we're patient with people then he shows his patients know he is showing his patients right now and because of his patients, we became Christians and after we become Christians, we look at the patient that he showed to us. And we now go to other people saying will what should I do? But other than be patient with them and we glorify God as we do that to one of the things I'm hoping in the series that as we get to those those eminent or those communicable attributes that we've been talking about their those transcended ones that we don't share with God and he doesn't ask us to share those with him because they are what make him you need to receive Glory but he he shares these attributes with us of goodness of Love of mercy and Grayson and patients. He communicates them to us so that we can resemble and reflect God In His Image to the world and give him glory by doing that. So you and I although we live in a society that would preach impatience should have all people be the most patient. Think about this with me turn the glacian S5. The show again that this is dependent upon us getting strength from God Galatians chapter 5. Just consider this. the idea of walking in the spirit verses fulfilling the desires of the flesh Galatians chapter 5 does this