GOD IS GOD AND I AM NOT
TEXT: ROMANS 11:33-36; PSALM 103:13-22
INTRODUCTION: In our Scripture verses this morning we see God comparing man with Himself. He has all wisdom, knowledge, and all power, while man, man is nothing but dust. Steven Curtis Chapman put it this way in one of his songs, “God Is God And I Am Not.”
Although that may seem obvious to us when we hear it stated, I believe we need to be reminded of this fact because I think sometimes we forget. Why do I say this? Because man has lowered God to nothing but a glorified man and has elevated himself to a supreme being worthy of honor and glory.
Voltaire put it this way; “God created man in His image, and man returned the favor.”
Many through the ages and many in our day have claimed to be God, or a god. The Caesar’ and other rulers through the ages have claimed divinity. Religious leaders have claimed to be God on earth. Many have claimed to be Jesus Christ.
Many people today, even those who call themselves Christians have forgotten who God really is. Their God is not the God that the Bible tells us He is.
Man is incomparable to God Almighty and always will be, we need to remember this. This morning I want to look at who God is and what He can do, compared to who man is and what he cannot do.
I. ONLY GOD KNOWS THE BEGINNING FROM THE END
Chorus from song: "God is God and I am not. I can only see a part of the picture He’s painting. God is God and I am man. So I’ll never understand it all. For only God is God."
There are many who claim to have the ability to predict the future. I’m sure you have all heard about Miss. Cleo on the physic hot line. She is supposed to be able to tell you what is going on in your life and what is going to happen. That is if you have the money to find out.
She and the company she works for have been under investigation. I know that this will come as a shock to you but the investigators found out that people really didn’t receive a free reading like they advertised. They claimed that your call was made with a toll free number but didn’t disclose that the service is accessed through 900 numbers.
They would keep people on the phone by putting them on hold, talking to them longer than the supposed free time, and if the operators let people off too soon, they were fired quickly.
Florida authorities have a separate lawsuit challenging “Miss Cleo,” (Youree Dell Harris), to prove that she really is a renowned shaman from Jamaica. A shaman is a medicine man, high priest, witch doctor, priest – magician.
I believe that part of the word shaman fits her and that is “sham” which means a fraud; deception, false, pretended. She is nothing but a con-artist.
Then we have horoscopes. I looked up the horoscope section in the “Chicago Sun Times.” There are two horoscope writers. One is named Joyce Jillson, the other Sydney Omarr.
Here is a sample of what Sydney Omarr writes to those of us who are supposedly under the sign of Gemini.
“Ideas could result in profitable enterprises.” (WOW! Isn’t that an example of incredible physic powers?) “Flirtation more serious than expected.” (I guess you could take this a couple of ways. I take it to mean that if I flirted with another woman and only expected to get the cold silent treatment from my wife, I would end up six feet under, which probably is true.)
Then Joyce Jillson writes: “Loving relationships are highlighted, especially those with close friends. Family members need encouragement and attention.”
Then if you are so amazed at the accuracy of these “physics” you are given the opportunity to call for a personal reading. At the bottom of the horoscope page this is written. Joyce Jillson personal horoscope: 99 cents a minute. J. J. live astrologer: $3.99 per minute. The same for Omarr.
These things are so general that they could be applied very easily to almost any situation. Yet people fall for horoscopes, physic hotlines, card readers, crystal ball readers all the time. And they are taken for a lot of money in these shams because that’s the bottom line for these people, money.
Now that is not to say that Satan cannot use people to tell them their past and even maybe some of their future, notice I said some. Satan may have limited general insights but he surely doesn’t know all.
His physics are better at telling your past than predicting your future because Satan has his demons watching us all the time. They know what you have been through even what you’ve done that no one else knows about. They’ve seen it so they can pass that knowledge on to the physics.
We see an example in the Bible: Acts 16:16
And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:
Again, even though this damsel was possessed with a spirit of divination, money was still involved. So we see that some are possessed, and some are just charlatans. What does the Bible say about these people?
Deut. 18:9-12
When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. [10] There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, [11] Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. [12] For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
Only God can predict the future because only God has been there. He tells us that even if some soothsayers are right some of the time, He only is right all of the time.
1 John 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
Isaiah 46:9-10
Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, [10] Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
Then we read an interesting story in the Book of I Kings 22:5-28.
Micaiah said that if what I said doesn’t happen, then the Lord hath not spoken by me.
Prophecy is one of the proofs that we have that God wrote the Bible. No other “holy book” contains prophecy. Song; “He is first and last before all that has been, beyond all that will pass.”
God is God and man is not. Only He knows the beginning from the end.
II. ONLY GOD HAS ALL WISDOM
Another line in S. C. C. song goes “Oh, how great are the riches of His wisdom and knowledge.”
The Bible says that even the foolishness of God in mans eyes is wiser than man: 1 Cor. 1:25
Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
We are told to seek the wisdom of God time and time again so we can have some wisdom: Psalm 90:12
So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
James 1:5
If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
So we can obtain a certain amount of wisdom from God, but too think that we are as wise as God would be utter foolishness.
Konrad Adenauer wrote: “The good Lord set definite limits on man’s wisdom, but set no limits on his stupidity – and that’s just not fair!”
The beginning of wisdom is to fear the Lord: Psalm 111:10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.
When a person comes to realize that they are a sinner on their way to hell, fear should definitely be a reality. How can you not fear God when He has the power to condemn you to an eternal lake of fire. You would be stupid to reject His Son for salvation and wise to accept Him.
Song: “And the pain falls like a curtain, on the things I once called certain. And I have to say the words I fear the most, I just don’t know.” We are not wise enough to know why we go through some of our trials on this earth.
“God is God and I am man. So I’ll never understand it all. For only God is God.”
III. ONLY GOD IS PERFECT
Folks, I’ve got news for you, I’m not perfect. I will make mistakes because I am a flawed human being. I will stand up here preaching and mispronounce words. I really will. Words that I know how to say will get twisted in my mouth before they escape.
Once a man who approached D. L. Moody (who they say butchered the English language) and told him, “Moody, during your sermon you mispronounced a certain word at the beginning and another at the end.” Moody asked, “Well, what did I say in between?” “I don’t know said the man.”
“Well, it’s a good thing I mispronounced those words or you wouldn’t have heard anything.”
I’ll tell you this, Moody may have butchered the English language, but he lead thousands if not millions to a saving faith in Christ. Not because he was perfect, but because he was surrendered to his Lord. He was humble, not proud.
I’ve got news for you, most people do not like to be corrected for every little thing that they do or say wrong. People who are always correcting others come off as pious and proud. They give the impression that they are smarter, therefore above you. I’m sure Moody felt that way with the man who corrected him.
If you are like that you will end up being a very lonely person because people will not want to be around you.
No one is perfect. I’m not, (point out people and say their names) you’re not, and your children are not. I wish parents would get a hold of this. Your children are not perfect so quit making excuses for them when they are wrong.
Also, your children are not perfect so quit expecting them to be. They will fail at different times in different ways. It’s not that you shouldn’t encourage them to do their best, but don’t belittle them if they do their best and it isn’t an A.
Sammy Sosa doesn’t hit a home run every at bat and sometimes he strikes out. Why? Because he’s not perfect. But he tries his best every at bat. Your child can try his or her best and still strike out, because they’re not perfect.
If God only used perfect people He wouldn’t be able to use any of us. He uses us in spite of our imperfections. And many times he uses us because of our imperfections. (Jonnie Erickson Toda) She has reached many more people because of her imperfection, than she ever would have without it.
(Read Cracked Pot)
Psalm 18:30
As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the Lord is tried: he is a buckler to all those that trust in him.
Matthew 5:48
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
God is God and I am not. Only He is perfect.
IV. ONLY GOD LOVES EVERYONE
As much as we might like to think differently, we just don’t love everyone. There are people who, if we are honest, we just can’t stand. They rub us the wrong way, they treat us badly, they did something very wrong to us, for some reason, they don’t like us, so we don’t like them let alone love them.
Try and think of someone right now that you really don’t love. Can you think of someone or am I the only honest one here?
I’m not saying that this is right. The Bible tells us that we are to love even our enemies. Matthew 5:43-44
Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. [44] But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
So yes, God wants us to love everyone, but I don’t think that there is a person alive who can honestly say they do.
Can you honestly say that you love Osama bin Laden? Can you say that you love those Islamic militants who murdered the “Wall Street Journalist” Daniel Pearl by slitting his throat for no good reason what so ever?
Can you say honestly that you love the Richard Specks, Ted Bundy’s, John Wayne Gacy’s, Jeffery Dahlmer’s,?
Can you say honestly that you love the drug pushers who ruin lives by hooking people to a life of misery. Who turn young boys and girls to a life of prostitution so they can support their habits?
I think it would take a very pious person to say, “Yes, I love them all just as Jesus does.” Right! Until their mate is murdered, until their child is selling herself, until their child is molested then murdered.
The fact of the matter is no one loves people the way God loves people. He loves the bin Ladens, the murderous Islamic militants, the Ted Bundys, and the drug dealers.
Let me ask you. Would you die for Osama bin Laden, Jeffery Dahlmer, or the drug dealer? Or better yet, would you send your child to die in their place?
Imagine this for a moment, Osama bin Laden has been captured. He has been tried and sentenced to death by firing squad. Would you call President Bush and say, “Mr. President, I would like my child to take Osama’s place in front of the firing squad, because I love Osama. I don’t think you would do that. I know I wouldn’t, but God did. He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die for the Osama’s, the Hitlers, the Stalins.
Because He loves them with a love unfathomable. A love we will not fully understand this side of heaven.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
God is God and I am not. God can and does love unlike any human.
V. ONLY GOD IS SINLESS
And may I say, He sent His Son to die for the Pastor Cocks’, the Sandy St. Johns, the (pick people in the crowd.) You say, “I’m not as bad as those people, no you’re not in human eyes, but in God’s eyes we are. If you are guilty of committing just one sin such as lying, then you are guilty of all.
James 2:10
For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
Rev. 21:8
But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
You see, we are all sinners who deserve to die and go to hell, just like those evil people that I have mentioned, because we are all sinners. Romans 3:10, 23; 6:23.
God sent His sinless Son to die in our place. 1 Peter 2:21-24
For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: [22] Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: [23] Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: [24] Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
Because we are sinners, God had to send His sinless Son to die for us. (Read Father who let son die to save his friend).
Song: “So I stand here on the stage afraid to move, afraid to fall, oh, but fall I must. On this truth that my life has been formed from the dust.”
Psalm 103:12-14
As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. [13] Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. [14] For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.
Do you know the Lord? Have you received Jesus Christ?
CONCLUSION: God is God and I am not. I can only see a part of the picture He’s painting. God is God and I am man. So I’ll never understand it all. For only God is God.
I. ONLY GOD KNOWS THE BEGINNING FROM THE END
II. ONLY GOD HAS ALL WISDOM
III. ONLY GOD IS PERFECT
IV. ONLY GOD LOVES EVERYONE
V. ONLY GOD IS SINLESS
