How would you feel if all of a sudden you were face to face with the President of the United States?? How would you feel if you found yourself in the presence of the person that is number one on the most wanted list?? How would you feel if you were talking with Billy Graham?? Many would feel awed in the presence of these people.? Some would feel fear, apprehension, and inadequacy, among other things.? We consider these to be great people in one way or another.? We would be struck with fear if we were face to face with the number one murderer in the country.? Some of you would feel so small in the presence of such people as Kenneth Copeland, Oral Roberts, or Creflo Dollar.? Why?? You would feel that way because you consider them awesome and ?larger than life? in many cases.
Introduction
How would you feel if all of a sudden you were face to face with the President of the United States?? How would you feel if you found yourself in the presence of the person that is number one on the most wanted list?? How would you feel if you were talking with Billy Graham?? Many would feel awed in the presence of these people.? Some would feel fear, apprehension, and inadequacy, among other things.? We consider these to be great people in one way or another.? We would be struck with fear if we were face to face with the number one murderer in the country.? Some of you would feel so small in the presence of such people as Kenneth Copeland, Oral Roberts, or Creflo Dollar.? Why?? You would feel that way because you consider them awesome and ?larger than life? in many cases.
However, don?t you know that God is greater than all of these people put together?? Don?t you know that no one or nothing is more awesome than God?? It amazes me when I hear people talk about a particular and popular TV evangelist.? They talk about these people as though they were gods or as big as God himself.? They talk about these people as though they are special in their own right.? Sure we may give some of these people great respect because of the impact that they have had on our lives.? However, most times these people are given great praises, respect, and honor at the expense of God.
Rarely does the mere thought of being in the presence of almighty God excite people when they are outside of the church.? People typically get excited about God when something goes very well or very wrong.? The extremes of life usually prompt us to remember God, which is why God should be a part of our normal everyday life.
We give praises to men over and above God.? God deserves a whole lot more than what we give him.? Well we are going to discuss the awesome God in this lesson.? Yes God is awesome and he deserves so much more than what we give Him.
God Is
Let?s first get an idea of who God really is so that we can get a glimpse of his awesome nature.
God is omniscient
Psalm 147:5 (NKJV) Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite.
The word omniscient means to have total knowledge; knowing everything.
There is nothing that any person can claim to know or understand that God hadn?t already known.? God created the heavens and the earth so he knows all of the physical laws, psychological laws, and any other type of law dealing with everything (creation).? The natural and physical laws are in place because of an omniscient God.? God knows everything.
God Owns all
Psalm 24:1 (NKJV) The earth is the Lord?S, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.
Psalm 50:12 (NKJV) ?If I were hungry, I would not tell you; For the world is Mine, and all its fullness.
Everything belongs to God.? He owns all of the natural resources, the things that are created from those resources, you, and me.? There is nothing that we can absolutely say, ?this belongs to me.?? Our possession of anything stops at the realm of stewardship.
Therefore, we can have confidence in God for all of our provisions.? There is nothing that could prohibit God from giving you something besides his own will.
God is Omnipresent
Psalm 139:7 through Psalm 139:12 (NKJV) Where can I go from Your Spirit?? Or where can I flee from Your presence?? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.? If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me.? If I say, ?Surely the darkness shall fall on me,? Even the night shall be light about me; Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You.
Jeremiah 23:24 (NKJV) Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?? says the Lord; ?Do I not fill heaven and earth?? says the Lord.
The word omnipresent means to be present in all places at the same time.? It describes the fact that there is nothing that can happen that God doesn?t know about.? God truly has all knowledge including knowledge of all events on the earth.
God Created All That Exists
Genesis 1:1 (NKJV) In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Psalm 102:25 (NKJV) Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands.
God created everything that exists.? Sure you might say that you created a particular program, sculpture, or design.? However, all of those are done with the wisdom that God has given you, the abilities that God has given you, and the resources that already belong to Him.? In addition, God sustains your life including the things just mentioned.
God has therefore created you and I.? He knows you better than you do.? He knows the thoughts of man (people).? There is a very interesting consequence of the fact that God created everything.? God knows the purpose of everything that exists!? He knows the proper operation of everything that exists.? Therefore, we can truly approach God when we are having problems with anything because God created it and knows everything about it.
All life comes from God
God created all things and therefore all things that are living contain the life of God.? The life that I am speaking of here is the animation of a being.? All animate creatures have this life or force.? This is to be distinguished from the eternal life of God.
All life comes from God.? This is encouraging to know because it reminds us where the source of our existence resides whether we realize it or not.? Therefore, I can approach God about things pertaining to my life and expect him to reply.
All power comes from God
Revelation 1:8 (NKJV) ?I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,? says the Lord, ?who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.?
Revelation 19:6 (NKJV) And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, ?Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!
Genesis 17:1 (NKJV) When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, ?I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless.
Psalm 25:10 (NKJV) All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth, To such as keep His covenant and His testimonies.
Matthew 28:18 (NKJV) And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ?All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
God has complete power and authority over all things.? He has the ability to do anything that he wants to do and he has the right to do whatever he wishes.? Just to think that all of that power is on your side.? We will get to that shortly.
Now think about this carefully.? The greatest authority that you have is God.? You might ask about your boss, church office, or responsibilities.? Well, ultimately your authority is God so His will should supercede anything else.? Many Christians have died for their commitment to God?s authority over their lives.? They refused to do what they considered to be a direct violation of God?s will or Way.? Would we?
God loves us
John 3:16 (NKJV) For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. God sacrificed his son Jesus Christ for us
God loves you!? The omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, and the creator of all things love you.? Now you might consider it a privilege if someone with great authority on this earth considers you a friend.? However, the creator of all things considers you His child.? He loves you.? If only we would simply understand that we don?t have to jump through hoops to win God?s love.? He already does.? While we were still sinners he sent Christ to die for us.
God will always be with you even when things go awry.? He will sustain you and keep you.? This doesn?t mean that life will be rosy.? It merely means that God will take care of you. Think of the earth, then the solar system, then the galaxy, and last the universe and beyond.? God is greater than all of those things and he loves you.
God is indeed awesome!? He has all power and authority and yet he loves us who have rebelled against him.
- His love is awesome
- His patience is awesome
- His kindness is awesome
- His power is awesome
- His authority is awesome
- God is awesome
The awesome God loves you.? The awesome God loves me.? What more could we possibly want?? Imagine an eternity with the creator of the universe.? There is such great assurance in the fact that the almighty God loves us and cares for us.
God is Worthy
God has created all things and is above all things.? Furthermore, God loves us and provided for us even before we gave Him the ?time of day.?? While we were still sinners Christ died for us.? God initiated the process for us to be able to be reconciled to Him.? We didn?t earn salvation.? God freely provided it for us.
More Respect
God should have much more respect from us than we give Him.? We would rather praise Him for the possibility of prosperity or the new car that we desire to have then to merely praise God for what He has already done for us, namely provide life and eternal life.? There are so many people treating God as if He is a genie instead of the creator of all that exists.? There are so many people that treat God as though His purpose is to prosper them.
Truly God deserves much more than what He is given.? He deserves our devotion, love, worship, praise, and respect.? He doesn?t get what He deserves because too many Christians are pursuing earthly treasures instead of heavenly treasures.? He doesn?t get what He desires because the non-Christians are not getting the true perspective of God with all of the inconsequential things that go on in the Christian community.
Do you respect God?? Do you appreciate God?? What is He to you?? He is indeed your heavenly Father who cares a great deal for you but He will not control you.? He created you with a free will and He has given you amble reasons to choose Him.
I find that many people give their favorite TV evangelist more respect then they give God.? People get so hyped up about their favorite preacher but rarely do you see them excited about the mere presence of God.? Truly God deserves much more respect.
More love From Us
Whom do you really love?? Do you love prosperity or earthly things or do you truly love the LORD?? Your actions have already answered this question.? What do you typically pray about and what do you typically confess?? Many Christians have fallen for the trap of a ?grocery store God.?? They pray for things all of the time and they are constantly confessing more stuff.? What about more time with God or a better relationship with the almighty?? No, because those things are not important to them.? They love the wealth and riches that this world has to offer.? They love money more than God.
It is so strange that the almighty God, the creator of all that exists is overlooked for the things that he created.? We would rather cuddle with the created things instead of the creator.? What a shame.? Love leads to trust and trust leads to obedience, which produces more trust.? God has demonstrated His love for us so we should return that love in the form of devotion and obedience.
More Loyalty
What are you truly devoted to?? Is your loyalty centered or focused on your church or pastor?? Is your loyalty truly to God?? Would you defy your church or religious organization for the sake of remaining true to God?? Would you tell your pastor that you will not ?do it? because you feel it is contrary to what God wants?? Many would not dare defy the pastor for the sake of what is right or godly.? Why?? Their loyalty is to religion and not God.
The Awesome God
Yes God is awesome.? The word awesome means A mixed emotion of reverence, respect, dread, and wonder inspired by authority, genius, great beauty, sublimity, or might.
Do you stand in awe at the thought of God or is he the man upstairs or your great provider.? Do you think about the might and wonder of God?? He created all that exists and the only thing we give him credit for is the fact that he gave someone a new Mercedes Benz or an expensive diamond watch.? What a travesty!? God has a bad wrap because we do not portray Him truthfully.? The world?s idea of God is the miracle man or the prankster in the sky.? No.? He is awesome.? He is mighty.? God is sovereign.
Now the awesome God cares for you even when you didn?t even care about Him.? Now that is awesome in itself.? God loves you and died for you via Jesus Christ.? He wants you to be with Him and all we want is the stuff that He can give us.? God is awesome but not in the sense that many believe.? He is awesome because He is above all.
In the martial arts there are two states of power.? There is power at rest and there is power in motion.? God is both of these.? He is pure power and might and at the same time love and compassion.? What do we give him credit for?? We give him credit for paying the gas bill, giving someone a new car, or providing money for tuition.? Is that all God is worth?? Is that all we can give Him credit for?
God is awesome and he deserves so much more then what we give him.? He deserves our complete devotion, praise, worship, and loyalty.? The Bible declares that God is a jealous God, which means that He demands loyalty. ?He will not share your loyalty with anyone or anything.? This is why you cannot serve two masters.? You either love God or you don?t.
Truth.? God will give us good gifts.? However, that is not his purpose or responsibility to us.? As a matter of fact he ultimate have no responsibility to us.? He made us and he can indeed destroy us, which is what humans really deserve.? However, because of His awesome love and compassion, He chose to give us a way to be reconciled to Him.? Imagine that.? God is truly awesome.? He created the heavens, the earth, the plants, the trees, the birds, the dogs, cats, humans, and everything that you see and don?t see (energy for example).? Yet, all this power loves us.? All of this might cares for us.? What do we give Him in return besides a ?thank you for the new car.?? How stupid can we be?? How senseless have we become?
We complain about the bad things that happen on the earth.? We wonder why bad things happen to good people.? THERE AREN?T ANY GOOD PEOPLE ON THIS EARTH.? We all deserve death because of sin.? However, we can escape that death only because of the awesome love of God.? We have escaped that death because of the redemptive act of Jesus Christ.? We have no right to complain about anything on this earth.? The Bible says,
Romans 6:23 (NKJV) For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We were all sinners and yet some still are since they do not believe in the LORD Jesus Christ.? However, God still demonstrated His love for us by giving his only begotten son, Jesus Christ.? Jesus died so that we might have life.? God didn?t have to do it but He did.? How awesome is that?? We deserve death (total separation from God) and yet God gave us life only because of His awesome love.
Therefore, pursue God.? Jesus said,
Matthew 6:33 (NKJV) But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
Do you seek the awesome God or do you seek what he can give you, namely riches and glory, new cars and new houses?? God is awesome and deserves our devotion so be dedicated to Him.? Pursue Him and love the LORD almighty God.? Amen
OUR AWESOME GOD
God is awesome and deserves our all
? 2001 William R. Cunningham
March 25, 2001
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