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I fear the Lord, the God of heaven,
who made the sea and the dry land. -- Jonah 1:9
In the last article, we looked at who God is, He is the great I Am. He said in John 8:58, "Most assuredly I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." When Hagar fled from Sarai, the angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water. The angel told her to return to her mistress and submit to her. Then she (Hagar) called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees.
In the days of the wild west, here in America, many of the cowboys knew of Wyatt Earp. But many of them had to find out what he was as well. When they broke the law and had contempt for his authority, many of them spent some time behind bars. Others didn't have to worry about anything because they were dead. Wyatt meant what he said and said what he meant. Although he was fast with a gun, he was also physically tough; he was a very smart person as well.
The Pharaoh of Egypt found out the hard way who the God of the Hebrews was, and also what He was like. When Pharaoh would not leave the children of Israel go, God sent plagues upon them. After Pharaoh would not heed God's warnings, God took the life of the firstborn in each Egyptian household.
In the book of Jonah 1:8-9, we find an interesting account. The ship was being tossed about by the wind and high waves, so much that the crew feared for their lives. When Jonah explained who he was, then the men realized they were really in trouble. Jonah said, "I am a Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land."
"Then the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him, why have you done this?" When Jonah said that he was a Hebrew, and spoke of the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land, the men knew who and what they were struggling against. They had already heard of the God of the Hebrews who miraculously brought His people out of Egypt. By God's direction, the Israelites had annihilated some of the nations on their way to the promised land.
This is the sovereign God that we serve and worship today. He has revealed himself to men through His Word, and by coming to earth as the very Son of God. When He returns, He will execute justice when He judges the living and the dead. He will make all things new in the "restoration of all things" as spoken of in Acts 3:21.
This God we serve is beyond our understanding; even when we think we know Him, the infinite vastness of His being remains unknown to us. John Wesley once made this statement. "Bring me a worm that can comprehend a man, and I will show you a man who can comprehend the Triune God."
So here is my closing question. Do we have a "good ole boys club" where we gather to make each other feel good on Sunday morning? Or do we gather to focus on the Great I Am who created us as well as the universe? Maybe we should strive to be pleasing to Him: maybe He should be the focal point of our worship.
Contact the author at thoughtsonword@gmail.com if you have any comments or questions.
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Lyndon Stimeling, of Richfield, has been writing about faith and family for many years. He has self-published four books, Common Thoughts on The Word in 2016, Eye of a Needle in 2017, Common Thoughts on The Word II in 2019 and A Bridge Between in 2023. He has also had articles published in The Coming Home Journal and local newspapers and has written a children's book.