THE INCOMPARABLE CHRIST
By Pastor Jim May
There is a song that we sing that goes like this:
Lord you are more precious than silver
Lord you are more costly than gold
Lord you are more beautiful than diamonds
And nothing I desire compares to you.
Those are some wonderful words, and when they are spoken from the heart of a man or woman that truly loves the Lord, they are transformed into words of worship and praise to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In our attempt to compare Jesus we try to use the most precious, beautiful and costly things in creation to describe how great Christ is and how much we love him.
But no matter how hard we try, there is nothing in this world that can compare to the greatness, the mercy and the love of God that we can sense in our hearts. As Christians, we do all that we can do to give glory to our Savior, but our finite minds cannot begin to fathom just how great Jesus really is. No matter what words we sing that are so beautiful; no matter what poems we write that glorify Him; no matter what we try to compare Jesus to, it is never good enough.
How can we compare the love of God to anything in this earth?
How can we compare the mercy of God and the grace of God to anything in creation?
How can anything that has been created possibly compare to the Creator?
There are no words that can truly describe the wondrous God that we serve. Somehow, all attempts fall short of what we really want to say to Him.
In the Book of Isaiah the Prophet, God begins to speak to His own people in Israel and explain to them that there is nothing that can compare to God.
Isaiah 40:18, "To whom then will ye liken God? Or what likeness will ye compare unto him?"
Isaiah 40:22, "It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:"
Isaiah 40:25-26, "To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth."
Christian, what is there in this world that can compare to Jesus? And what can we use to compare the beauty of our Heavenly Home?
There are so many dear lost souls in this world who are convinced that what they can see with their eyes, feel with their hands, taste with their mouth and hear with their natural ears is all there is to life. Their eyes are blinded to the beauty of the eternal things of God and the beauty of the Holy Spirit in their lives.
Their hands can build beautiful buildings and create wonderful landscapes and create wonderful works of art, but their hands are limited to only what they can touch in this corrupt and sinful world. They aren’t able to reach over into the spiritual realm by faith and grasp hold of the beauty of salvation and the gospel. They aren’t able to handle the truth and to feel its power in their lives.
They can taste of the good things of this life, the wonderful foods, and the good life that can be had for a price, but not one of them are able to “taste and see that the Lord is Good” with their natural instincts, so they cannot begin to understand that the best that this world has to offer is less than nothing compared to what God offers to His people in the spiritual realm.
They can hear the grand music that stirs the soul and warms the heart; music that man, whom God has blessed with such great talents, has written even in his fallen, degenerate and sinful condition. They can hear the voices of their loved ones as they speak and let those voices of love bring joy to their lives.
But even these things of such great beauty and grace cannot compare to the beauty and grace of hearing the voice of God as he speaks to your heart and feeling the perfect love of Jesus Christ.
They can learn the wisdom of men, and there are some great things that man can teach, but the wisest of men and greatest of man’s wisdom and knowledge is nothing but foolishness in the eyes of God according to 1 Corinthians 3:19.
What can compare to God? What can compare to His love? What can compare to his grace? What can compare to His love? What can compare to God’s power?
No matter what our level of education and our ability to express our feelings and to articulate our thoughts, we are so very incapable of truly describing the glory and majesty of Almighty God.
Our God is an incomparable God! Nothing can compare to him!
Once we have handled the Word of God, we have tasted of the goodness of God; we have heard the voice of the Lord speak to us; and we have beheld His beauty and grace; and we have gained the wisdom that He has to offer; and we have seen his majesty and power; then we will know that certainly there is nothing that can compare to Him.
Some of you may be like I am. I love to travel and see the beauty of this world in the mountains, the seashore and the cities that men have created. There are some wonderful sights to behold. When I look at the majesty of the mountains of this world, whether they are the Alps of Europe or the Great Smoky Mountains or the Rockies out west, I can’t help but be moved by their beauty. When I look at nature with the wonderful parks, rivers and lakes that are meant for man to enjoy, I marvel at the beauty that God has created for all of us. I look at the Grand Canyon, Carlsbad Caverns, and all of the great wonders of the world.
And yet, I must remember that all of these wonderful things, in their beauty and majesty, cannot compare with the glory of that New Jerusalem and the New Heavens and New Earth that Jesus will have waiting for me over on the other side.
Let us never forget that all of these things – all of the campgrounds, the rivers, the lakes, the mountains that rise above the clouds, and the valleys that lies below in all their beauty, and the skies above, with the beautiful stars and the clouds that grace the sky – all of it, every bit of it, will soon be dissolved forever as the old is cast aside and burned away like chaff to allow the rise of the new things that Jesus has for us all.
Oh my friend, if your eyes are focused only on the things of this present world, and you are not looking with eyes of faith upon those things that are eternal, you will miss the best that God has to offer. Let us not be so focused on enjoying the wonders of this present world that we miss the far greater wonders of the world to come.
The song says that we think of Jesus as more precious than silver and costly than gold. My, what an understatement! How can I compare the value of a piece of silver, or the cost of a bar of gold, to the value of my salvation and my Savior? There is no comparison there!
All of the silver in the world is nothing compared to the presence of the Holy Ghost in my life! And there isn’t enough gold in the world to buy even one drop of the precious blood that was shed for me!
The love of God is free, and I’m glad it is, for there is no price that could be paid to buy that love. The grace and mercies of God are free, and it’s a good thing, for no amount of sacrifice and no amount of money could purchase them.
Let me confess that this life that I live for the Lord Jesus Christ is not always easy. It is not always fun. I am not always living on top of the mountain. There are times when I can feel the weight of the world and the heaviness of sin, and there are times when I fell like I’m walking through the valley of the shadow of death, but there is no life that can compare for the peace that I feel even in the worst of those times.
In times of sickness, I’m glad to know that there are some good doctors out their who can help us to get well, but I’m so glad that when those doctors can’t do any more and they have reached their limitations, I still know the Great Physician, and I can call on Him anytime without an appointment, without a co-pay, and I won’t have to sit in a waiting room for hours to reach him.
In Exodus 15:26, God told spoke to Israel and said, “… I am the LORD that healeth thee." He is the Lord that healeth me, and He is only a prayer away all the time. I can call on Jesus anytime. I don’t have to call an ambulance to get me to where he is. I don’t have to jump into a car and fly through the night in an emergency. Jesus is with us all the time and he is ever waiting for our cry to him. He is a merciful Lord and able to heal all our sickness and cure all our diseases. He is an incomparable Lord. I don’t have an earthly doctor, who studied in some medical school for years, that lives with me all the time – but I have someone better than that. I have the very God who created this body in the first place, living with me all the time and He’s there when I need him. All I have to do is reach out by faith and receive what He has for me.
In times of financial difficulties, I can call on Jesus. I can call the bank but they may not want to loan you the money, and if they do there will be a lot of interest to pay for the “favor” of loaning it to you. And, the more you need their help, the less likely they are to give it. But my Father in Heaven owns the cattle on a thousand hills. He knows how to meet my need and he has never failed me. Best of all, what he gives is a gift that carries no interest, no carrying charges and never has to be given back. And it doesn’t matter what I need, I know that my God is sufficient to meet that need.
I may never be rich in this world’s goods. I may never live the lifestyles of the rich and famous, but I do know that His Word promises us in Psalms 37:25-26, "… I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed."
In times of sorrow, in times of distress, in times of despair, and in times of discouragement, I know that I can call on Jesus anytime and I know that he will hear me and answer my prayer. He stays closer than a brother. When everything else fails me, and everyone else leaves me, and no one can help anymore, Jesus will still be there! He is my incomparable Savior and my ever present help in time of need! According to Hebrews 4:16, I can go, “… boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."
The sad part of this message is that there are so many people in this world who don’t know my Incomparable Lord! They have never heard the name of Jesus spoken to them in such a way that they can sense his love reaching out to them.
And there are many who claim to know him, but do they really know him? They haven’t really experienced his great love. They haven’t really felt his peace in their hearts. They haven’t had the joy of receiving the baptism in the Holy Ghost. They don’t know the true salvation that I know. They know about the Lord, but they don’t have a personal, one-on-one, heart to heart relationship with Him! They are still trying to compare him with the world. When you really love the Lord and you truly know Him in the power of His might and have really experienced the presence of the Holy Ghost in your life, there is nothing else that can take their place anymore. There is nothing in this world that can compare.
Perhaps there is someone here right now who hasn’t felt the presence of the Lord in your life. Somewhere, down deep inside, there is an emptiness that only Jesus can fill. That empty place is your heart, and your soul and it is there for a purpose. It is there as a dwelling place, down deep inside, for the presence of the Lord to live in you.
Maybe you haven’t known the peace of God that is beyond understanding. Maybe you haven’t felt the love of God as He wraps his arms around you and draws you close to his side.
Maybe you haven’t experienced the wonderful joy that knowing Jesus as your Savior can bring.
There is nothing that I can use to describe to you what all of these things feel like. You have to experience them for yourself. There’s nothing that can compare to the things that God has for you. But you’ll never know what they are until you surrender your heart to Christ and let Him be the Lord of your life.
If there is someone like that in this service, I ask you today to come to my Incomparable Christ and give your heart to him. I won’t promise you a life of ease or constant victory, but I will promise you that Jesus will always be there when you need him and that He will meet your every need. Most of all, I promise you, upon God’s Word, that you will enjoy the wonders of Heaven and miss that awful place called hell. God will give you eternal life right now if your want it.
Perhaps all of us have come to Christ and we have a begun a walk with him, and yet there is still something missing. There is still an emptiness on the inside.
How long has it been since we heard the voice of the Lord speak to us?
How long has it been since I really felt that wonderful peace in my heart?
How long has it been since you felt the sweet presence of the Holy Ghost?
How long have we allowed Satan to blind us and lead us away from God?
Today you can come back to Jesus too. God still loves you. He won’t give up on you easily. He is long-suffering toward us and His greatest desire is to see us come back to Him.
Do you know my Incomparable Christ today? Is He living in you and is He the Lord of your life? Why not come to Christ today and then walk with him in the greatest life that a man can have – a life that is wholly surrendered to God’s will.
