Knowing the God you worship

Knowing the God you worship

Introduction:

1). Knowing about God, the object of our worship, is not the same as knowing God Himself.

2). Facts and figures are lifeless. So are books and articles and pictures.

* They may be accurate, and they may provide an introduction to the person we worship, but they cannot replace a relationship with the person.

3). A relationship never becomes the intimate exchange it should be until there is heart to heart communion.

4). Many Christians know a lot about God. They have read books, even read the Bible, and have attended church for years.

* I am for all those things.

* Gathering accurate information about God is often where we start in our relationship with Him.

* If our relationship with God never moves to the place of spiritual worship, we will become bitter and joyless and life will lose its purpose –

* Our true purpose in life is to glorify God. This is why we were created. “This is the secret of life.”

5). Do you know about God, or do you have a relationship with him?

6). How do we get to the place where we can truly worship God the way He wants to be worshiped?

* A younger preacher asked our former Pastor Phil Jones, “How can I get my church to love God? His answer was “Preach on the Attributes of God and they will fall in love with Him.”

John 4:23-24 (KJV)

23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

7). Until you move from knowing about God, to knowing God so well that it causes you to love him, we cannot worship God with our whole heart.

*This is what God expects out of those who worship him…

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (KJV)

4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: 5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. 6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: 7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. 8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. 9 And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

Matthew 22:36-38 (KJV)

36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment.

* We can only worship someone we love. We must learn to love God.

* We can only love someone we know. We learn to love God by knowing what He is like.

8). This is why we study the “Attributes” of God.

* An attribute is a characteristic, a personal trait, that is consistently present in a person, or in this case “A personal God”

* From the Bible, God revelation of Himself to mankind, God reveals his personal attributes to us that we might love and worship Him:

* God is a Jealous God * God is a Holy God

* God is a Faithful God

* God is an Eternal God * God is a Changeless God

* God is a Powerful God

* God is a Good God

* God is an All-Knowing God

* God is a Sovereign God

* God is an ever-present God

* God is a loving God

God is a Jealous God

Text: Exodus 34:14 (KJV) 14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:

Romans 1:21-25 (KJV)

22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. 24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: 25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator…

I. God revealed to mankind in the Garden that He is a jealous God.

Genesis 2:15-17 (KJV)

15 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

A. God made man in his image- He didn’t make Him a God, like Satan suggested to Eve, but he made him a spiritual being like God is.

B. Being made in the image of God, they were given a “free will” to reason and make decisions. No other part of creation had this.

C. God tested the character of Adam and Eve by placing the tree of Knowledge right in their face, then told them not to touch it.

D. The sin that Adam and Eve committed was that they made themselves their own gods when they put “their will” above God’s.

E. It is important to note that the method Adam and Eve used to become their own gods was “knowledge.”

* Listen to the words of Satan-

Genesis 3:4-7 (KJV) 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

* They wanted to be gods! 6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise,

* Satan led them astray by telling them “knowledge” would make them gods!

she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. 7 And the eyes of them both were opened…

F. By this we understand what Paul is saying in Romans 1:

Romans 1:18-25 (KJV)

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

* Adam and Eve knew the truth of God, and still chose to sin.

19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

* Adam and Eve had witnessed the Creation first hand. 21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God,

*Adam and Eve failed to glorify God, which was what they were created to do. They perverted God’s plan to do their own will)

neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, * By attempting to become wiser than God by “knowledge”, Adam and Eve became fools.

*Men are still attempting to make themselves wiser than God through the pursuit of so-called knowledge. Evolution, The Big Bang, abortion, homosexuality, Gnosticism, (The New Age Movement)

* Man is attempting to sit on judgment on the truth of the Word of God changing the Scriptures and re-writing them to create a God more suitable to the way they want to believe. * Every time man has tried to set up his own code of law outside the law of God, it has ended up with tyranny and terrible atrocities committed by those responsible for governing that nation) Stalin, Hitler, Communism, Euthanasia, abortion, Eugenics and planned parenthood. 23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. 24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: 25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. * Mankind is still trying to be his own god, and God will not put up with it! Judgment is coming!

II. God illustrated that He is a jealous God at the Tower of Babble. * Nimrod, the grandson of Ham, the son of Noah, became a mighty warrior/hunter and great builder. Nimrod built the ancient city of “Babylon” The people of the earth came to Nimrod for protection in his walled cities and soon began to worship Nimrod as a deity, (god) * Many trace the beginnings of “Free Masonry” all the way back through history, through Egypt, and ultimately to the worship of the great “Builder/Mason” Nimrod.

* One of the noted beliefs of “Free Masonry” is that “there are many religions, which are ultimately many paths to finding God.

* Secular history tells us that Nimrod wore a crown that consisted of a gold ring with tow horns fastened to the ring.

* This is how gradually artists of the ancient past came up with the image of Satan with horns and a red suit and forked tail. * Nimrod is a type of the Anti-Christ that will come in the last days. The people of the world will also come to him for protection and take the mark of the Beast so they can buy and sell in the “One World Economy” that he sets up in the last days.

* I personally believe that we are witnessing the forming of this one world economy, the “Babylon” of the book of Revelation, right before our very eyes in the news.

* Nimrod, and those who followed him in his rebellion against God, built a mighty city and a tower to reach to God. * God did not put up with Mankind’s attempt to make himself a god at the tower of Babel.

Genesis 11:1-9 (KJV)

1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. 2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. 3 And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. 4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.

* This was in direct rebellion to the revealed will of God. God had told them to scatter and multiply across the face of the earth.

5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. 6 And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. 7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. 8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. 9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.

* God came down and stopped Nimrod and his generation of idolaters in order to set up the events of mankind’s history for the redemption of mankind. III. God illustrates to us today that he is a jealous God in salvation. A. Jesus said he is the only truth, to the exclusion of all other religions.

John 14:5-6 (KJV)

5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. B. Peter said that there is no salvation in any other name than Jesus.

Acts 4:10-12 (KJV)

10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. 11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. 12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. C. There is no salvation in any other name including yours!

Ephesians 2:8-9 (KJV)

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

D. Just like in the Garden of Eden God has put a test of your character in your face! * Like Adam and Eve, You must exercise the “free will” that God created you with - a test of your character. * Either obey God’s revealed will for you, and accept the Gospel, Believe on the Name of Jesus, and be saved, * Or choose your own way, the knowledge of mankind, (the false wisdom of this world. 1 Corinthians 1:20-29 (KJV)

20 Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. 22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: 23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; 24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. 26 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:

29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.

* God is a jealous God as illustrated in Salvation. * Which will it be? * Will you like Adam and Eve choose the “knowledge” offered by Satan, and make yourself your own god?

* If you choose to put your will above the will of God like Satan did, you will share his same fate. Matthew 25:41 (KJV) 41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

l* Or, will you obey the revealed the will of God, and obey the Gospel by repenting of your sin and believing on Jesus?

* Which will it be today?