Who "I AM" - God Almighty
Notes
Transcript
What have we learned...
What have we learned...
God is EVERYTHING!!! There is NOTHING GOOD, PURE, HOLY THAT GOD ISN’T.
Everything that we have talked about for the last 8 weeks describes God in His foundational terms.
It gives me an opportunity to see how God forms and molds the universe. It also allows me to see how He has put me in a position to participate with him in righting the universe.
You don’t have to be a theological giant to see that the world is going places where we don’t want to go.
My worldview, the way that I look through my glasses, through my lens at the world is that NO ONE is happy about the way the world is… NO ONE!
You see the way that I understand it is this. Every since God threw Adam and Eve outside of Eden, He has been working to return us to Eden.
That is God’s master plan… To return us from the place which we all had our start, The Garden of Eden.
What is it about the Garden of Eden that is so appealing… For me, Everything!
The Hebrew word for Eden is “Luxuries.” I will be returned to the Garden of Luxuries.
Let’s put it in some terms we can understand
12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned—
In our return to the Garden of Eden you can take “sin” out of every occurence of every memory, out of every person who has returned to the Garden of “Luxuries.” Every single one!
Because no one there [in Eden] sinned, death will no longer come.
Death will no longer be a part of life… We will be eternal.
We will no longer be burdened by sin… Who is the “we?”
Baptist’s — of course, white people, Hispanics, Native Americans,Estonians, Russians, Chinese, Australians.
Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Christian Reformed, even Presbyterians. Those are the one’s that you expect.
Who are the the unexpected ones..? Those who “we” would’ve never thought could ever go to Heaven and then return to The Garden
Historical Figures (Pol Pot, Mao, Khrushchev)
Criminals
Your neighbors
Your sworn enemies
Ex-husbands and wives (just a kidding, a little humor is good for the soul.)
The measure is NOT who we are or what we are… The measure is how much we entered into, participated in redemption. Our own and the world’s redemption.
You are “safe” from hell by your faith in Christ alone…[period.]
But we will all be judged by God and saved from a trip straight to hell by our faith in Christ.
We will also judged and rewarded for what we did to bring God’s Kingdom to the world who doesn’t yet know or acknowledge Him. [Acts 19.20]
I will point you to Acts 19.20
20 In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.
It is our responsibility to push each other...
24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
Even in the midst of our pagan world we are being measured. Not for salvation but by our good deeds. That they may to be pointed towards our God and we point others to God.
12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
Who is it that we are trying to please??
Why are we to “spur” each other on
Why are we doing good deeds?
How will they know that we are “glorifying God?”
WHY???
It is our responsibility to show God that we have accepted His redemption through the Blood of Jesus.
It is His demand that we share that redemption story with our families, our communities, our state, our nation and the world.
Almighty Father, God Almighty!
Almighty Father, God Almighty!
The Almighty Father is the supreme being and Creator of the universe. He is known in the Old Testament as Yahweh.
Spoken of in Trinity in the New Testament as Father, the Son Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit.
This is a BIG DEAL… This is the Wizard of the Wizard of Oz, Batman, The Green Hornet, All of the current and future Super Hero’s with unimaginable power being dwarfed by
God Almighty...
Main Point: Our God inspite of everything the world has thrown at him. God Almighty could have demanded the world… [obey the law] instead he demanded the LOVE of himself, His Son Jesus, and one another.
Remember we have to willingly participate with God to act as His agent in dealing with His people and the people that have not yet recognized Jesus as Lord and Savior.
Cuff me alongside the head, but I believe that it is our responsibility to share our riches as they were shared with us.
I want to look at a couple of passages from Scripture, One from The Old testament and then relate them to us. The First one is Deuteronomy 5
Oh… it won’t be on the screen, it’s time we grow up and not be fed milk, its time for us to eat meat. If you need a Bible for yourself. Reach out to me and I’ll get you one.
In the Old Testament… God directed, Do this and this and keep this and do this exactly and he’ll do this and this
He said beginning in Deut 5.6 He restates for them the First 5 of the Commandments. This is our relationship with God. Then beginning in Verse 16, It’s how they are to relate to each other. This whole passage forms for the Jews relating to God and to each other in this “new world” free from oppression for the first time in 400 years, 10 generations of people.
Beginning in 5.29
29 Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always, so that it might go well with them and their children forever!
God is the Almighty!!! He is the one and only. Only God Almighty could ask and receive the obedience and honor that He is demanding!
32 So be careful to do what the Lord your God has commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or to the left.
33 Walk in all the way that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess.
God is the Almighty…Do exactly what He says… EXACTLY!!!
In Chapter 6. 1-4
1 These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess,
2 so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life.
3 Hear, O Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your fathers, promised you.
4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
This can be no other than God Almighty speaking directly to them
Then in midst of all of these rules and obedience and commands, God Almighty makes a statement. A summary statement.
5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.
God Almighty the maker and creator of everything that is seen and unseen is asking for LOVE. He knows we have a choice to give love or not. He is asking for LOVE!
Are we collectively ready to give it to him???
How do we love the Almighty God...
Let’s turn to 1John4. beginning in Verse 7-21
There is an answer to one of our questions about our God Almighty.
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
We can know the Almighty God, Father by loving him...
Your ask… what gets us to Heaven. What is the final sieve that God Almighty will send us through before either accepting us or rejecting
17 In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him.
His love is made complete in us, and we can have confidence on the Day of Judgement IF we love the world the way he has. In many respects our eternal destiny is based on how we LOVE.
God Almighty desires from us… LOVE.
Love of God, Love of the people of this world.
We seem to want some Fire Insurance… We used to pass it out on the street corners and in the college commons. Here are the four spiritual laws… Let’s talk a walk down the Romans Road towards salvation.
18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
God Almighty first came to us for us
19 We love because he first loved us.
Let’s go back to our main point
God Almighty could have demanded the world… [obey the law] instead he demanded the LOVE of himself, His Son Jesus, and one another.
As we close today I am going to read 1John 5.
READ IT...
God the Almighty demanded love… Can’t we at least give him that?