He Is God

"He Is God" – Psalm 118:27 “The Lord is God, and He has given us light; bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.” It is a powerful declaration of faith: He is God. Before came Moses, the tribes and all that goes into raising a nation; but then God Himself comes to earth, in the womb of a simple young woman, and it all ends in a death of pure blood that cleanses us from head to foot, so that when heaven looks at us it sees the blood of Christ upon us. The study walks through Psalm 118:27 and the meaning of the altar and of the light God gives — direction, truth, hope and salvation; Psalm 46:10 and the call to be still and stop fighting in our own strength; Psalm 27:1, where the Lord is light, salvation and the strength of life; Psalm 100:3 on acknowledging His authority and belonging to Him; and John 10:27-28, where the sheep hear His voice and no one snatches them out of His hand.

I. God comes to earth.

A. God raises up a people and sets it entirely apart for Himself.

1. There Jesus came, gave His life and lived for years.

2. That land is the center of the globe and will be the land of the millennium, after the rapture.

B. God came in the womb of Mary, a simple young woman, with no elite standing.

1. She could not understand it all; the angels protected and informed her.

2. Immanuel, God with us: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, three in one.

C. When you repented of your sins you were converted by receiving God in you.

1. Being three, they do their work in complete unity.

II. The Lord is God, and He has given us light.

A. Our light comes from God: whoever is washed in the Son's blood is not in darkness.

1. That we not be in deceit, that we not be cruel, that we be righteous.

2. It is not coming to church and then doing outrageous things outside.

B. I serve no man: I serve the Lord God.

1. He knows the intentions and how your mind works.

2. Only oneself and God know each person's mind.

III. The horns of the altar.

A. No one could go up to or touch the altar: only the priest and the high priest.

1. The sacrifice was made in the innermost place of the temple, a holy place.

B. God's coming to earth would end in a death of much blood.

1. Pure, clean, perfect blood, that cleanses us from head to foot.

2. When heaven looks at us, God sees His blood, not us.

3. That is why every prayer is in the name of the Lord.

IV. Knowing God as He is.

A. Each one thinks as he pleases, but we must come to the same mind: the mind of Christ.

1. We make a kingdom of our own thinking and have the highest opinion of ourselves.

B. The covenant: Christ tells the Father He gives His life, and the high price is His blood.

1. Nothing replaces that blood: neither good works nor a style of living.

2. It is with God that we must set things right.

C. Our aim is to know all that is God's and all the Bible teaches.

1. Christ washes me with His blood; the Holy Spirit guides me and reveals to me.

2. In the end there will be a new heaven, and our God will dwell on the throne.

V. The light God gives.

A. The light stands for direction, truth, hope and salvation.

1. When we cannot see the road, the One who can light it is God.

2. The Father receives prayers in the name of Jesus.

B. We think we know and give opinions about everyone; the One who knows is God.

1. The angels listen in your house and in your children's room.

2. If the stars have names, how much more do we, who have soul, body and spirit.

C. His nature does not change with our circumstances.

1. Each one must deal with his own circumstances.

VI. Be still, and know that I am God (Psalm 46:10).

A. We live restless, and we must put on the brakes.

1. Being still is not doing nothing: it is ceasing to fight in our own strength.

2. It is calming the heart and trusting that God is in control; what we never stop is praying.

B. “Know that I am God”: God is calling us to acknowledge Him.

1. Get out of the way and go straight to the One who made heaven and earth.

2. No circumstance kills: we work our own minds and stop seeing God.

C. “I will be exalted”: circumstances change and men change; God remains.

1. When you can no longer control the situation, do not let the situation control you.

VII. The Lord is my light and my salvation (Psalm 27:1).

A. “My light”: when I do not know where to walk, God guides me.

1. His light overcomes darkness, confusion and uncertainty.

B. “My salvation”: David knew his safety did not rest on his own strength.

1. He had to war so much because it was he who won the land and gave it as an inheritance.

2. All who rose up wanted to kill David.

C. “The strength of my life”: it does not mean we will have no problems.

1. It means fear does not have to rule us.

2. Fear comes uninvited, drowns the soul and troubles the mind.

VIII. Know that the Lord Himself is God (Psalm 100:3).

A. It is not merely knowing that God exists: it is acknowledging His authority.

1. He fights the battle, cares for you, watches over you and sends angels to protect you.

2. We are not victims on this earth, though we live as if we were.

B. “It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves.”

1. Our life has its origin and purpose in God: we are not a product of chance.

C. “We are His people and the sheep of His pasture”: belonging, care and direction.

1. God knows, guides and sustains those who are His.

2. What confuses you today is easy tomorrow; and if it persists, pray and fast.

IX. My sheep hear My voice (John 10:27-28).

A. The believer knows Christ's voice through His word and through the Holy Spirit.

B. “I know them”: Jesus knows our heart, our struggles and every step we take.

1. Others claim to know you in order to judge, criticize or gossip.

C. “And they follow Me”: true faith produces obedience; not of the mouth, but of the heart.

D. “I give eternal life to them… no one will snatch them out of My hand.”

1. Salvation is a gift that comes from Christ, who gave His life.

2. Our safety is in His mighty hand: only you can allow yourself to be taken.

3. The pastor controls no one: he can only pray that the Father care for the sheep.