SERMON SUMMARY

We all have a tendency to create a God made in our image. Do we stop to consider who God is as revealed in scripture? This is of vital importance as we walk through life because without hearing from the Spirit of God through the Word of God in the midst of the people of God in regards to WHO God is, we can find ourselves projecting all of our own personal thoughts, wants and attitudes towards Him. We need to acknowledge that we have a tendency to attempt to make God into our own image. We should come to scripture with an open heart, open mind, declaring God, show me who you are, who you say you are, and who I am because of who you are. God who created all things, he spoke and life was created, he spoke, and all that is came to be. Death can not hold him. He brings kings to their knees and raises nations. He knows every bird of the sky, every hair on your head. He was, he is and he will always be. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. Upon him, all things depend. Beholding God, trusting God, and abiding in him all help us to see clearly the Power of God. “What is man that you are mindful of him?” This God is the one that draws close to us and whom we call Abba, Father. Today, we look at God’s power in creation and God’s power from his perspective. We listen in as God responds to Job; the creator to creation, strong to the weak, limitless to the limited. We will put ourselves in Job’s shoes and listen to God as he reveals his power to us. 

SCRIPTURE: Job 38

SERMON SCREENSHOTS & KEY POINTS

“The constant study of the attributes of God is one of the most fruitful disciplines a Christian can have. Why? One of our greatest temptations is to make the Triune God into our own image.” Erik Reed 

“If your god never disagrees with you, you may be worshiping an idealized version of yourself.” Tim Keller

“God created man in His own image, and man has returned the favor.” Voltaire 

Erik Reed highlights a compelling reason for us to stop and talk about who God is and how we think about God. As we have repeatedly said throughout the series. There are so many distorted ideas about God and there is no shortage of people who desire a god that likes everything they like and is okay with everything they are ok with.

When we think of power and especially the Power of God, we might think of the words: strength, force, and mighty, and those words would be accurate in describing our God. The Psalmist constantly talks about the strength and might of God. But we must also consider that when talking about his power, we aren’t simply talking about strength from a physical power capacity. Think with me, he spoke the universe into existence. Many of you are familiar with Genesis 1…

Here’s a quick recap: Genesis 1:3, Genesis 1:6-7, Genesis 1:9, Genesis 1:24, Genesis 1:26-30 

When we consider God’s power, we see it in creation but we also see it from his perspective in Job 38. Where God highlights his power throughout all the universe. This is God’s response to Job and he does it with a litany of questions. They seem to just build upon each other in such a heavy way: Where were you, have you, do you, can you? God keeps going in the following chapters of Job but these questions are really rhetorical, with each one driving home the point that our God is an omnipotent, powerful God who is unparalleled and unmatched. They are meant to help Job see who God is and who he is in light of who God is. Hey Job, HERE IS YOUR GOD. Remember how small and frail you are, how much you don’t know, and how little you can actually do.

Jesus also puts this on full display when he rises from the dead. In the book "Do You Believe," the author says: “Jesus was in the tomb long enough to be certifiably dead. Rising again after death meant the synapses in his brain suddenly began to fire; electric charges fired through his nervous system; the muscles in his heart started to pump; fresh blood coursed through his veins; his muscles suddenly become soft and flexible; his organs turned on and functioned in symmetry with one another; his eyes became moist and able to focus; he suddenly could breathe, smell, taste, feel. His balance and orientation returned. His ability to relate and communicate instantly turned on. This is a limited summary of everything that had to happen all at once for Jesus to be able to get up, fold his grave clothes and walk alive out of that tomb. Here is what it means to be almighty. No effort was required for Christ to rise again.”

So what is our response to the Power of God? How should we, as the creation, respond to the Creator? Here are a few key things to remember. 

• Behold Him - Behold means to notice, to look upon, gaze upon, or commit your attention to. Biblical authors modeled how to behold the glory, the beauty, and the power of our God. We end up asking who am I, when we behold him. We echo the Psalmist’s cries in Psalm 8 ”When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers-the moon and the stars you set in place. What are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?” 
• Trust Him - When we behold him we see that he loves us and cherishes us. we see who we are and that we can trust him. We can run to him with our anxiety, stress, doubts, hurts, and pain. He is our refuge and resting place. His resurrection power has changed everything and because of that power, we can trust him exactly as we are. He is most worthy of our trust.
• Abide in Him - John 15, Jesus reminds us that “I am the vine, you are the branches. The one who remains (abides) in me and I in him produces much fruit.” because of his power, we can abide in him as he abides in us. We are seen as Christ is seen and loved because of Christ. It is in Christ that we know who we are and who God is. Abide beloved in the one who came and died for you. Abide in the one who had the power to conquer the grave.

So then, what does it look like when a community of Christ followers Behold-Trust-Abide? It looks like a community of grace, passionately pursuing life and mission with Jesus. It looks like a group of people who long for those in their spheres of influence to know the peace and joy and rest that is found in beholding, trusting, and abiding in the One that holds it all together, for he alone created it and sustains it for his glory and his purposes.

*We are a church located in Greenville, South Carolina. Our vision is to see God transform us into a community of grace passionately pursuing life and mission with Jesus.