“Our Great God”
Pastor David Moore
Old Testament reading: Psalm 51
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are justified in your sentence and blameless when you pass judgment. Indeed, I was born guilty, a sinner when my mother conceived me. You desire truth in the inward being; therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you. Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your deliverance. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. For you have no delight in sacrifice; if I were to give a burnt offering, you would not be pleased. The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
Do good to Zion in your good pleasure; rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, then you will delight in right sacrifices, in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on your altar.
New Testament reading: Matthew 11:18‐27
“For John came neither eating or drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and “sinners.”’ But wisdom is proved right by her actions.”
Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. “Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”
At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.
“All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
Theme today is understanding the fullness of Jesus’ claims and how we can rest in His promises.
Jesus never gives us a straight answer to “Who Are You?” ~D. Moore
Jesus doesn’t just make a claim, He doesn’t just tell us who He is. What He tells us is how to use that knowledge. He tells us how to use the greatness of His claims on ourselves. ~D. Moore
Verse 27 – Jesus makes a claim about Himself, “All things have been committed to Me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.”
The problem of the people of Bethsaida, Korazin, and Capernaum, they never took the next step. Lots of people are hearing only words but then not building their lives on what Jesus says. ~D. Moore
Matthew 7:24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.”
Jesus intended His words to have a transformative effect on people. ~D. Moore
God loves you just the way you are, but He refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to be just like Jesus. ~Max Lucado
Jesus is our Savior, more than a helper, healer, leader, etcetera, repentance is what separates us from all our actions.
In verse 27, there are two astounding claims, “No one knows the Father except the Son” and “No one knows the Son except the Father.”
1. Jesus knows everything and all things. Puts Him beyond the prophets.
2. You stand in the presence of God, you stand in the presence of a Being who is without beginning and without end.
Jesus is either right or wrong, it is not a narrow view. He and the Father are one or they are not. ~D. Moore
Jesus is the ultimate reality; without Him you’re lost. ~D. Moore
Jesus came to be the center of your life. ~D. Moore
The other things you have to do with this knowledge of Jesus is let it make you into a spiritual child. ~D. Moore
This means you realize Jesus has to do everything for you. ~D. Moore
Unless we are willing to be offended and threatened by the fact that God has come down into our lives, and that will require a new foundation in our lives, we won’t ever hear “Jesus loves me” in a way to transform our lives. ~D. Moore
Matthew 11:28 Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
This week: Pray that the God of the universe will make it clear in our lives that we are totally dependent on Him and are lost without Him. God bless, have a good week.