KTLG - Chapter 13
Knowing the Living God • Sermon • Submitted
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God Is Omnipotent
God Is Omnipotent
Right out of the gate I want us to take apart this word as it comes from the latin word omnipotens.
This is derived from two latin words, the first is omnis = All
When it comes to the word all, often times mans representation of this word can be skewed and not fully encompassing.
God in Himself is truly All there is and all there can be.
When He is something, He envelopes the word. The word is named after Him.
When we deal with this word in this context we are forced to acknowledge that only God can truly be over all things.
This leads us to the second part of this word which is “potens” meaning powerful.
If God is All-Powerful, then He must truly be the supreme being that exists.
He exists before and beyond all beings.
But the thing that we are going to concentrate on today is how God is the All-Powerful.
1.Throughout all of Scripture names have been indicative on ones character.
For example:
My parents named me Jonathan Uriah Goldman Norton
Obviously the name Norton comes from my paternal lineage and that one is befitting to who I was born to.
This name has its own meriting qualities.
In England the name Norton referred to the family that lived “North of the Town”
So, as to describe as the family that I am the descendant of, we lived North of the town. Not I obviously but my ancestors.
My first given name is Jonathan, not Jon.
Jon was the nick-name I was given by I guess some lazy friends who got tired of calling me Jonathan.
Jonathan means “God’s Gracious Gift”
God’s gracious gift to my parents and this was an introspective look at the gratefulness that my parents had in my entrance into this world.
Uriah is my first middle name and “Uriah” means “The Flame of the Lord”
This name was the indicative of the desires my parents had for me.
They desired for me to burn with a zeal for Christ and to demonstrate God to those that I come in contact with.
This is a desire of my heart and I pray that God uses me in His wonderful work that He accomplishes.
My second middle name is Goldman, this is the family name of my paternal grandmother.
The Goldman family was from England as well and they were the tailors of the royal family. Specifically sewing garments that had gold elements on them such as formal monarchistic clothing that the Royal family while in a state uniform engagement.
So, through this quick breakdown of who I am, you know a little about me, and my family and where we came from.
Seems like today this is becoming harder for people to know where their family came from centuries ago.
I also passed the name Goldman on to my son Bennett.
Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him,
“I am God Almighty;
Walk before Me, and be blameless.
When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless,
Revelation 4:8
And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say,
“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,
who was and is and is to come!”
Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,
“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say,
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come.”
Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying,
“Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.
God is not simply mighty, He is the Almighty.
God is not simply mighty, He is the Almighty.
There is no god greater than the Almighty.
We cannot begin to comprehend the magnifence that exists in the word “Almighty”.
In our life we may experience something that pertains to might or mighty.
But, and a huge But we will never, ever in our lifetimes fully understand the meaning of Almighty.
When we meet the Almighty we will fall to the lowest position we can in reverance and realization that all of this, all of this studying and worshipping that we partake of now will pale in comparision to the revere and awe that we demonstrate complete submission to the God Almighty.
Who is the King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
The Lord mighty in battle.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle!
Who is the King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
The Lord mighty in battle.
1.Our God is strong and mighty, he is mighty in battle.
Incline Your ear to me, rescue me quickly;
Be to me a rock of strength,
A stronghold to save me.
Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
Incline your ear to me;
rescue me speedily!
Be a rock of refuge for me,
a strong fortress to save me!
He is our strong fortress
For You have been a refuge for me,
A tower of strength against the enemy.
He is our strong fortress
for you have been my refuge,
a strong tower against the enemy.
He is our strong tower
For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us;
And the government will rest on His shoulders;
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
Isa
He is our strong tower
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.
A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.
Isaiah
He is the mighty God
A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.
He is the mighty God
He is the mighty God
for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
“For the Mighty One has done great things for me;
And holy is His name.
2. What do the following Scriptures teach about the omnipotence of God? Is there anything beyond the power of God?
2. What do the following Scriptures teach about the omnipotence of God? Is there anything beyond the power of God?
‘Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.
Jeremiah 32:17
“Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?
Jeremiah 32:
a.There is nothing that is too hard for God.
b. There is nothing that stump God’s ability to perform a difficult task.
c. He is the Almighty.
d. There is no rogue atoms out there who are beyond the control of God.
e. Every single living organism in the universe is servant to God.
But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
Matthew 19:26
a. God’s Almighty hand is so strong that nothing is impossible.
b. There is nothing that extends beyond His reach, or His ability to motivate.
3. One of the most important implications of the omnipotence of God is that it assures us that He is able to carry out all that He has determined to do.
What do the following Scriptures teach us about this truth?
Then Job answered the Lord and said:
“I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
a.In other words, what God has set in motion. Which by the way, when did He set things in motion?
He set things in motion Eons ago.
When He is set to do something, nothing can stop it.
This isnt like some hollywood movie plot where you see people being able to change anothers actions.
God is in control, and He is not merely a force to be reckoned with.
He is the force (not to be confused with Star Wars:-) by which all things are accomplished.
His strength and His might have no equal.
Our God is in the heavens;
he does all that he pleases.
God doesnt have a spirit telling Him what to do.
He is omniscient as well. But, thats next weeks topic.
Imagine a world in which you could do any and everything that you desire?
Well for starters, if you are human, there would probably be some sin in there, right?
God does whatever He pleases, and fully righteous all the while.
For I know that the Lord is great,
and that our Lord is above all gods.
Whatever the Lord pleases, he does,
in heaven and on earth,
in the seas and all deeps.
God is not bound by location.
God is righteous, God is just and also, Whatever He pleases to do, He does.
It was in the temple.
It was in the Holy of Holies, the innermost part of the temple.
We should fear and revere God because no matter where we are, He is there and He is the holy of holies.
If a sin laden man entered into the Holy of Holies he was struck dead.
God doesnt use the same forgiveness method now that He did then but His justice is right.
God is righteous, God is just and also, Whatever He pleases to do, He does.
He does so everywhere He pleases.
Not just here in this building, not just in our homes.
Wherever He pleases to do, Whatever He pleases to do.
He. Is. Justified.
The Lord of hosts has sworn:
“As I have planned,
so shall it be,
and as I have purposed,
so shall it stand,
For the Lord of hosts has purposed,
and who will annul it?
His hand is stretched out,
and who will turn it back?
The beautiful thing to me is that through all of our struggles, through all of our inadequacies is that God has purposed.
We can rest in His plan.
There is no-one who can thwart God’s plan
He has a plan that He has set in motion and the wonderful thing about His plan is that we are not in control.
This may come as disconcerting to some but the reality is that His plan contains the end of the story, which is what we cannot see.
Nakitta and I had numerous miscarriages before we had Annabelle, and another between her and the twins.
We were married for 5 years before we had Annabelle and to some that may not seem like a long time but when you are working through it, it seems like an eternity.
There were times when we would sit on the couch, with nothing to do.
Often times, there was nothing that we could say to each other.
We would be holding hands and our sorrow would be overwhelming but that clasp of the hands that held us together was similar to that of a Strong Father holding his small child and granting them safety and sense of security.
It wasnt that I was strong during this time and able to hold Nakitta up. Because I was weaker than she was.
God is the Almighty and I can promise you that if He were not, our marriage would have foundered.
He has sustained us.
We are not rational in our understanding, but His mercy literally gives us the strength to put one foot in front of the other.
all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing,
and he does according to his will among the host of heaven
and among the inhabitants of the earth;
and none can stay his hand
or say to him, “What have you done?”
God demonstrates in Nebuchadnezzar’s life that He is able to humble the proud and to exalt the humble, which leads to Nebuchadnezzar to acknowledge His greatness.
The persecutor of God’s people and the destroyer of Jerusalem is put in his place. Although Nebuchadnezzar confesses God’s sovereignty, he does not confess a belief that the God of Israel is the only God.
Sproul, R. C. (Ed.). (2015). The Reformation Study Bible: English Standard Version (2015 Edition) (pp. 1472–1473). Orlando, FL: Reformation Trust.
God is the Almighty, we are the minions.
Ephesians 1:11
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,
If you want to truly see the Mighty Power of God then we must look directly into the providential working of the redemptive work.
I can assure you this that if it were not for the breaking of mans hearts that he would never seek repentance.
There is no good in any of us outside of that which God has placed into our hearts.
We are wretched vessels who desire the wicked ways of the flesh.
We ate of the fruit He told us not to.
We built a building to attempt to reach heaven.
We whipped Him, we enjoy sinning without the Holy Spirit.
God ordained a plan of Salvation.
He Justified us — which is fully complete.
When were we saved?
We were saved over two thousand years ago.
Before anyone gets frustrated at me let me explain.
What was need to procure and provide for our salvation that happened after the cross?
Justification was fully complete on the cross.
There is nothing more that is needed, there is nothing that we can bring God for reason for Him to find us worthy of His Salvific work.
It is Finished, was His cry. And it was.
He is working all things according to the counsel of His will.
I am forever grateful that He does the change of heart.
The heart is wicked above all else and there is only one who can change our hearts.
4. Paul Washer says here “In the Scriptures, the omnipotence of God is one of the attributes that most distinguishes from the lifeless idols that men are so prone to create. Lets read and then we will answer some questions.
Our God is in the heavens;
he does all that he pleases.
Their idols are silver and gold,
the work of human hands.
They have mouths, but do not speak;
eyes, but do not see.
They have ears, but do not hear;
noses, but do not smell.
They have hands, but do not feel;
feet, but do not walk;
and they do not make a sound in their throat.
Those who make them become like them;
so do all who trust in them.
O Israel, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
In verses 3-8, how is the omnipotent God of the Scriptures contrasted with the worthless idols of men?
Man has a body but does not have the ability to fulfill the ability to use even his own organs without the fulfillment of God’s grace.
Man = Needs God to do absolutely anything and...
God = Needs nothing, but righteous desires to be worshipped by His children.
We are here on earth fashioning and making new things to worship.
How vane can you be?
I mean seriously, how vane can we be?
It is easy for us to say that but how are we demonstrating our own vanity in relation to what we do, perhaps on a daily basis that keeps us focused on ourselves and how we are perceived by others.
In verses 9-11 how should believers respond to this truth?
Ill read it again for a review:
O Israel, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
We have that hand to hold.
We have a help, and He is our shield.
He is the only thing that we can reach for that truly will be our help.
Its hard for us, at least some of us to trust.
I know its hard for me to trust people.
Because of this, it is hard for us to learn to trust God and to lean on Him instead of our own work or efforts.
5. The omnipotence of God has great implications for the Christian who trusts in Him, His will, and His promises. According to the following Scriptures, what does the omnipotence of God mean for those of us who believe?
Joshua 23:14
“And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one word has failed of all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed.
God’s word is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
It has stood the test of time and it will continue to stand.
It never fails, It is Inerrant, and it is Infallible.
Who can define and tell me the difference in these two words?
Inerrant means that there is no errors in it.
Infallible means that It is incapable of producing error.
Essentially, to put it in laymans terms, it is bullet proof.
It lacks the ability to be incorrect.
Psalm 121:4-5
Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your shade on your right hand.
Who in here is familiar with the term TULIP?
What does the P represent?
What does the P represent?
P stands for “Perseverance of the Saints”
This is a simple doctrine that is there to remind us of the fact that God’s children will persevere, not by their shear will power, but because the Lord is our keeper.
He is continually guarding our gate, he is not slack in His faithful attending of our sanctification.
He is daily drawing us to Himself and Sanctifying us in a beautiful painting that only He can complete.
The children’s song “He’s got the whole world in His Hands” was a staple of my childhood and it has a lot of truth.
A sparrow cannot fall from the sky without God permitting it to.
I am so glad that the Lord is my keeper and I am not relying on mankind.
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
What a refreshing reminder this is.
There is no enemy that can separate us from the love and the mercy of God.
There is an everlasting love that is to be defined as “Agape Love”
Websters online is defined as “the love that involves faithfulness, commitment, and an act of the will. It is distinguished from the other types of love by its lofty moral nature and strong character.”
For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.
Philippians 1:6
If anything in Scripture can demonstrate the Sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit it is this verse.
He is not slack in completing this work in our hearts.
He will perfect it.
Paul was confident of it and we should be as well.
Such confidence we have through Christ toward God.
Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God,
Again, we do not get the glory, but the only good that comes out of us stems from the work of the Creator of the Universe.
We are not even adequate on our own but the fact that we can find adequacy is purely based on the blood of Christ.
Confidence is something that many of us may have due to our prior experience or sometimes based on what someone may have told us.
I work in the roofing industry and a couple of weeks ago I was shown a procedure by our commercial roof membrane supplier to demonstrate the strength of the roof membrane and on a sample of the membrane the rep cut a slit in the center and then handed me the membrane and told me to attempt to tear it in two.
I almost lost circulation in my fingers I was pulling at the membrane so hard attempting to pull it apart but I could not.
So a few days after this I go to make a sales pitch to a potential customer.
I take the membrane, I cut a slit in it, attempting to do it just like the rep did for me.
Then I embarrassed myself to a customer.
It tore right in two.
As I held the two pieces in my hands I looked and I looked. All the while I was completely and utterly shocked.
Why was I shocked?
I was shocked because where I had confidence before, I now had none.
Somehow miraculously I did in fact get the sale.
But, I also realized something that a piece of roofing can fail, but I know beyond a shadow of doubt that my God will never fail and He has me in the palm of His hands.
I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.
God has providential mercy.
He has sustaining grace.
He gives us the ability to stand strong, not because of anything we have done, but by the shear mercy of His steadfast love.
Even when things do not go our way, we have to realize that there is so much more involved that what we can fathom.
God’s answers may not always be the ones we desire at that time, but often He has a different plan and perhaps is grinding away at our flesh, to give us strength down the road that we might need.
Our response to God’s Omnipotence should be one based on faith and on obedience.
In we see Faith
Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb;
yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God,
and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform.
Abraham doubted that his hundred-year old body could have the ability to pro-create, but on down in verse 23 we see that:
Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him,
God was not depending on man’s flesh to accomplish His will, but rather imputed the ability to Abraham.
He “credited it to him”
Next we see Obedience in
Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him,
“I am God Almighty;
Walk before Me, and be blameless.
I dont know about you guys (well, actually I do) but how hard is it to be blameless?
When I was a child I often during a state of disobedience I would try to promote myself to my parents as being blameless.
Clearly, I was not.
Abraham’s ability to be blameless was not based on his natural bend.
But again, based on the character that was imputed to him.
By the one who had a plan in mind that would forever change the course of the Jewish Lineage.
We are called to be obedience, we are called to set aside our own Ego and fall into the arms of Christ.
There is no better place that we can be than in the arms of Christ.
We are called to be blameless, and that is truly impossible without Christ.