KNOWing GOD is The WAY to Eternal LIFE

"A high view of GOD leads to high and holy worship. A high view of GOD leads to transcendent living. A low view of GOD leads to trivial worship. A low view of GOD leads to common, mundane living. So, what you believe about Who GOD IS is really the rudder of the ship. It's the engine of the car and it's the steering wheel. Your whole life, whether you realize it or not, is being driven and directed by Who you believe GOD IS.

"The doctrine of GOD is the most important doctrine in the Bible, because your doctrine of GOD becomes the paradigm or the lens or the template through which you see everything else. What you believe about GOD affects your worldview and how you view history and how you view the culture and how you view society. It affects how you view politics. It affects how you view marriage. It affects everything. Your knowledge of GOD either blurs or brings sharply into focus how you see what you see. It is the knowledge of GOD that affects how you see trials, how you see persecution, how you see tribulation. It is all governed by the knowledge of GOD" (Steven Lawson -- "The Attributes of GOD" seminar).

The One TRUE Living TRIune GOD -- 'HE Who is THE Blessed and Only SOVEREIGN, The KING of those who reign as kings and The LORD of those who rule as lords, Who alone possesses IMmortality and dwells in UNapproachable LIGHT, whom no one has seen or can see. To HIM be Honor and Eternal DOMINION! Amen.' (1 Timothy 6:15-16)

"The Sovereignty of GOD is the towering, foundational TRUTH of ALL CHRISTian Theology -- that GOD IS -- and The GOD Who IS, is The GOD Who reigns over the entirety of HIS created order. HE has supreme authority in His right to exercise His Sovereignty -- His absolute, active, continual reign over the Heavens and the Earth and Hell itself. It is HIS undisputed right to govern ALL He has created" (Steven Lawson -- "The Sovereignty of GOD").

"GOD is preeminent in Power and Authority. GOD’s Sovereignty is a natural consequence of His Omniscience, Omnipotence, and Omnipresence. The fact that GOD is SOVEREIGN essentially means that HE has the Power, Wisdom, and Authority to do ANYthing He chooses within His Creation. GOD rules the Universe" (Got Questions).

'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"' (Revelation 4:8).

"The one attribute of GOD that is raised to the superlative degree is the Holiness of GOD -- that HE is Holy-er than any of His works/creatures, HE is the Holy-est of ALL beings; that HE is elevated to the very highest level of Holiness. GOD Himself is perfectly HOLY... The angels are not crying out LOVE, LOVE, LOVE... nor TRUTH, TRUTH, TRUTH... nor WRATH, WRATH, WRATH -- but they are crying out day and night, HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is The LORD GOD Almighty! EVERYthing about GOD IS HOLY" (Steven Lawson -- "The Holiness of GOD").

The LOVE of GOD is AGAPE-Love -- the highest expression of REAL Love. "It is a LOVE that is rooted deep within The ONE Who loves, that sacrificially gives to seek the highest GOOD in the one who is loved... who is unlovely... who is abhorrent to GOD because of their sin and their disobedience. GOD's LOVE is redeeming LOVE -- a Love SO great that He has given His ONLY Begotten SON to die for us upon Calvary's CROSS" (Steven Lawson -- "The Love of GOD").

'And may you have the Power to understand, as all GOD’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His LOVE is. May you experience the LOVE of CHRIST, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with ALL the fullness of Life and Power that comes from GOD.' (Ephesians 3:18-19)

The breadth and length and height and depth of the Love of GOD IN CHRIST "was proven when GOD sent His SON to die on the Cross for sinners. When CHRISTians look at GOD's LOVE, they see their FATHER Who cares for them, Who redeemed them through His SON, and made them HOLY by His SACRIFICE. ALL Believers should experience the Depth and Breadth of GOD’s LOVE for them IN CHRIST JESUS. This great TRUTH is an anchor for all in times of suffering and depression, and it is this TRUTH in which all CHRISTians can put their Hope and Trust" (Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones -- https://www.mljtrust.org/sermons-online/ephesians-3-18-19/breadth-length-depth-height/).

'And this is The WAY to have Eternal LIFE—to KNOW You, The ONLY TRUE GOD, and JESUS CHRIST, The ONE You sent to earth' (John 17:3).

("Attributes of GOD" sermons by various preachers -- Steven Lawson, John MacArthur, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, R.C. Sproul, Ligon Duncan, W. Robert Godfrey, Sinclair Ferguson)

FAITH Glorifying GOD - Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Abraham staggered NOT at the promise of GOD through UNbelief; but was MADE STRONG in/by FAITH, giving GLORY TO GOD; and being FULLY persuaded that, what He had promised, He was ABLE also to perform. (Romans 4:20-21)

(The following are notes from Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones' sermon, FAITH Glorifying GOD.)

Abraham LOOKED TO GOD. And he looked AT GOD. He kept his eyes ON GOD... GIVING HIM GLORY. Abraham considered GOD. He considered WHO GOD IS. He considered WHAT GOD IS. Abraham glorified GOD just by REALIZING WHO and WHAT GOD IS. He contemplated ALL the GLORIOUS ATTRIBUTES of GOD.

We glorify GOD by realizing the TRUTH about Him and worshiping Him because of that and committing ourselves to Him in the light of that TRUTH.

Abraham considered the ETERNITY of GOD... that GOD IS JEHOVAH -- the Eternal "I AM THAT I AM." He contemplated, meditated, dwelt on the ETERNALITY of GOD.

 

He also meditated on the MAJESTY of GOD. And the GLORY of GOD (the ultimate attribute of GOD -- the ineffable GLORY of GOD, beyond our comprehension, dwelling in UNAPPROACHABLE light).

Abraham thought about GOD's OMNIPRESENCE -- GOD is EVERYwhere. There is NO place in the WHOLE cosmos where GOD isn't. (see Psalm 139)

The OMNISCIENCE of GOD. GOD KNOWS EVERYthing. There is NOthing that GOD doesn't know. He KNOWS the End and from the Beginning. ALL things are always present before His sight and His scan. He KNOWS ALL and NOthing can happen ANYwhere but that GOD has known it BEFOREhand. His OMNISCIENCE, His foreknowledge is COMPLETE knowledge, without ANY gap or without ANY blemish or any defect whatsoever... OMNISCIENCE -- EVERYthing is KNOWN to Him.

The OMNIPOTENCE of GOD. There is NO LIMIT to the POWER of GOD -- ABSOLUTELY NONE whatsoever! "Is ANYthing too hard for the LORD?" Is there ANYthing GOD cannot do? NOthing! There is NOthing that GOD cannot do. There is NOthing that can withstand Him. HIS POWER IS ABSOLUTE. It is ETERNAL... it is ALMIGHTY. HE IS OMNIPOTENT!

GOD's RIGHTEOUSNESS... His JUSTICE... His TRUTH... His HOLINESS... His UNchangeability... His EVERlasting and eternal CONSTANCY.

Abraham looked at GOD... he looked at these attributes of the Being and the character of GOD, and went on looking at them -- that's HOW he gave GLORY to GOD. Abraham deduced that because of WHO and WHAT GOD IS -- that GOD never makes a PROMISE lightly or loosely... or thoughtlessly. GOD KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT HE IS DOING. Abraham knew that GOD does NOT change His mind. GOD is the Father of Lights, where there is NO variableness or shadow of turning. GOD is EVERlastingly the SAME. What GOD has promised, He will SURELY perform. GOD CANNOT LIE (see Titus 1:2) because of WHO and WHAT HE IS -- ETERNAL Righteousness, UPrightness, TRUTHfulness.

GOD's ABILITY -- Abraham was "FULLY persuaded that, what He had promised, He was ABLE also to perform." With GOD, NOthing is impossible!

Abraham concluded that because ALL these things were TRUE about GOD -- NOTHING ELSE MATTERS AT ALL! What mattered to Abraham was that GOD has spoken -- He made a PROMISE. And there's nothing more INSULTING to GOD than NOT to BELIEVE Him. The TERRIBLE thing about UNbelief is that it's an INSULT to GOD!

 

FAITH IS that which ALWAYS GLORIFIES GOD. FAITH is to believe GOD simply and solely because HE IS GOD. FAITH is ultimately that which gives GLORY to GOD by seeing the TRUTH about Him and TRUSTing it utterly and and ABSOLUTELY at ALL costs. 

FAITH IS the SUBSTANCE of things HOPED for -- the EVIDENCE of things NOT seen. "HAVE FAITH IN GOD" -- translated by Hudson Taylor is "HOLDING ON to the FAITHFULNESS of GOD." The reference is TO GOD.

FAITH does NOT look AT itself. FAITH NEVER looks TO itself. FAITH is never interested in itself nor talks about itself. It doesn't look at the person who's exercising it. FAITH LOOKS AT GOD -- holding on to the FAITHfulness OF GOD. The big thing about FAITH is NOT what i'm doing, but GOD's FAITHFULNESS -- giving GLORY to GOD. FAITH is interested in GOD only; and it talks about GOD, and it praises GOD; and it extolls the VIRTUES of GOD.

The measure of the STRENGTH of a man's FAITH is ultimately the measure of his KNOWLEDGE about GOD. FAITH ALWAYS GLORIFIES GOD! Abraham knew GOD so well that he was the friend of GOD -- and when a man is the friend of GOD, he's a man of GREAT FAITH! Strong FAITH is not weak and he does not stagger -- but it's not the man, but the KNOWLEDGE of GOD, the attributes of GOD. And he's looking at GOD and thinking about GOD -- not the problem or the difficulty, BUT GOD... and he's RESTing there. 

To be STRONG in FAITH -- it's about becoming a certain kind of person. You can't have STRONG FAITH without HOLINESS and without OBEDIENCE. 

HOW to have STRONG FAITH -- 

1) KNOWLEDGE of the Bible. Read your Bible -- beginning to end. Concentrate on the revelation that GOD has given of Himself and of His character. Notice what you get in prophecy, watch His promises, see them being fulfilled. Be GROUNDED in all this. Read the history in the Bible; read the examples (see Hebrews 11 -- they KNEW GOD and gave GLORY to GOD). Meditate on all that. 

2) Strong FAITH is a KNOWLEDGE of GOD PERSONALLY. Praying. Spending time in His Presence. Waiting upon Him. 

3) APPLY it all in PRACTICE to the particular cases as they arise in your own life and experience.

Abraham "staggered not, but gave GLORY to GOD." That's the SECRET of FAITH -- to GLORIFY GOD.