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In fact, we do not even understand ourselves rightly without a proper perspective of God. As Tozer said in the opening pages of The Knowledge of the Holy: “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”[11] This is because if we get the God of Scripture wrong, we get everything else wrong too.
“practical atheism” where one acknowledges the existence of God in his or her mind but lives as though He either doesn’t exist, or that He doesn’t actually care how we live or how He is to be worshiped.
Too often, when people speak of God’s love, they demonstrate the warped understanding of love seen through the warped lenses of 21st century eyes. We take our version of “love” and attempt to conform God to it. This leads to forming God in our image
The gospel isn’t just about getting people to heaven. The chief aim of our salvation in Christ is about the glory of God in purifying for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good works (Titus 2:14).
God will meet with us on His terms and His timetable, not ours. He plays by His own holy rules. We see examples of this in the burning bush, the talking donkey, and the infant Christ in Bethlehem (Exodus 3, Numbers 22:28, Luke 2:1-24). These are not examples where people sought God and found Him, but biblical examples of how God chooses to reveal Himself in whatever manner pleases Him.
God commissions Isaiah to a ministry that seemingly will see no fruit of repentance (Isaiah 6:8-13).[55]
Isaiah was to preach and not see fruit. God is Lord Sabaoth (Isaiah 6:3, 5).
The gospel changes “woe is me” to “worthy are You” because the penalty for transgressing God’s Holy Law has been atoned for in Christ.
God is Sovereign, and man is responsible.[62]
Isaiah 55:6-7, “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.”
The Lord of hosts is not “the man upstairs.” He is not my pal or my sidekick. He is not my personal genie in a bottle. He is not my butler. He is God Almighty.
Grace doesn’t minimize our sin. It exposes it for what it really is and then covers it with the blood of Jesus.
Mistakes only require you to do better next time. Weaknesses only require you to be stronger next time. Messes only require you to clean it up next time. But sins require forgiveness. And there is nothing you or I can do to earn that forgiveness. Oh, but Christ has earned it for His people!
God’s holy hatred toward sin will never be compromised. But we have better news than that! God’s holy wrath wasn’t compromised, but it was propitiated on the cross—that is, completely satisfied in Christ’s sacrifice. We must call sin “sin” so that sinners will look to Jesus as their only suitable and all sufficient Savior.
As we proclaim the bigness and glories of the holiness of God the response of people should always be either “woe is me” or “worthy are You.”
Charles Spurgeon: “The Lord Jesus is a deep sea of joy: my soul shall dive in and shall be swallowed up in the delights of His company.”[152]
