** The following sermon might be a useful tool for teachers who would like to look further at the topic of general and special revelation as they prepare to teach lessons 1-3 of the Gospel Project. I am particularly fond of using the pagan prayer to illustrate the importance of God revealing himself to us. **
The Glorious Revelation of God
Speaker: Travis Peterson
Text: Psalm 19
Psalm 19 (ESV)
1 The Heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
4 Their measuring line goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure,
making wise the simple;
8 the precepts of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure,
enlightening the eyes;
9 the fear of the Lord is clean,
enduring forever;
the rules of the Lord are true,
and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey
and drippings of the honeycomb.
11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
12 Who can discern his errors?
Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
and innocent of great transgression.
14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Pray
“How can you get to know the unknowable God?” That was a question that a man named Phil Nelson once used as a springboard for a discussion of Christianity on our college campus nearly twenty years ago. The question caught the attention of several students, because they really had never thought of just how it is that human beings, in all our finitude, might come to have real knowledge of the all powerful yet unknowable God. How can we, who are so limited in our understanding and vision ever begin to have knowledge of one who so transcends anything we can even imagine. How can we come to know, in the words of the old hymn, the “immortal, invisible, God only wise?”
There is one, and only one way, that any person on earth ever comes to know God. It is not that they discover him. It is not that they go and find him. It is not that they prove him in a scientific experiment or through philosophical reasoning. No, the only way that any person ever gains knowledge of the God who created us is through revelation. The God who made us has chosen, graciously, to reveal himself to us.
Have you ever stopped to imagine just how terrible it would be to try to live before a God who did not choose, for whatever reason, to reveal himself to you? Can you imagine how terrible it would be to know that, at any moment, you might sin in the eyes of that God, but not know what it is that you did or how to remedy it? Can you imagine trying to please an invisible and unknowable God by trial and error?
I want you to listen to an ancient pagan prayer found in the library of Ashurbanipal, 668-633 B.C. In this prayer, the one seeking the god, any god, believes that he has done something wrong and is suffering for it. Sadly, however, the person lacks some important data to help him out:
May the god who is not known be quieted toward me;
May the goddess who is not known be quieted toward me.
May the god whom I know or do not know be quieted toward me;
May the goddess whom I know or do not know be quieted toward me.
May the heart of my god be quieted toward me;
May the heart of my goddess be quieted toward me.
May my god and goddess be quieted toward me.
May the god [who has become angry with me] be quieted toward me;
May the goddess [who has become angry with me] be quieted toward me.
In ignorance I have eaten that forbidden of my god;
In ignorance I have set foot on that prohibited by my goddess.
O Lord, my transgressions are many;
great are my sins.
O my god, (my) transgressions are many;
great are (my) sins.
O my goddess, (my) transgressions are many;
great are (my) sins.
O god whom I know or do not know, (my) transgressions are many;
great are (my) sins;
O goddess whom I know or do not know, (my) transgressions are many;
great are (my) sins.
The transgression which I have committed, indeed I do not know;
The sin which I have done, indeed I do not know.
The forbidden thing which I have eaten, indeed I do not know;
The prohibited (place) on which I have set foot, indeed I do not know.
. . .
How long, O my goddess, whom I know or do not know,
ere thy hostile heart will be quieted?
Man is dumb; he knows nothing;
Mankind, everyone that exists,–what does he know?
Whether he is committing sin or doing good, he does not even know.
O my lord, do not cast thy servant down;
He is plunged into the waters of a swamp; take him by the hand.
The sin which I have done, turn into goodness;
The transgression which I have committed, let the wind carry away;
My many misdeeds strip off like a garment.
O my god, (my) transgressions are seven times seven;
remove my transgressions;
O my goddess, (my) transgressions are seven times seven;
remove my transgressions;
O god whom I know or do not know,
(my) transgressions are seven times seven;
remove my transgressions;
O goddess whom I know or do not know,
(my) transgressions are seven times seven;
remove my transgressions.
Remove my transgressions (and) I will sing thy praise.
The above prayer, is sad, and for several reasons. This person is suffering. He knows, or at least he thinks he knows, that he has done something to incur the wrath of some god or some goddess whom he may or may not actually know. He does not know if he went somewhere he shouldn’t have, said something he shouldn’t have, or eaten something he shouldn’t have. He also does not know what it is that he must do to be made right. He does not know where to look for grace, or if that grace is even available to him. The sadness and tragedy of this prayer is that it is a prayer to an unknown deity, and it is utterly without hope.
Thanks be to God, we have not been left in the state of the supplicant in that gloomy little prayer. We have received the kind revelation of God to tell us that he is, what he is like, what pleases him, and how our sin may be forgiven. And Psalm 19 is one of the best places to look in all of the scripture to see just how glorious is the revelation of God.
On your outline, there are three points. Follow along, and we will look at this psalm to see two kinds of divine revelation and the proper human response to God’s revelation. As you follow along, ask God to help you to sense just how wonderful it is that he has graciously chosen to reveal himself to you, and that he has not left you to figure him out for yourself.
Point 1: Let the sky above reveal to you a glimpse of God’s glory.
Psalm 19:1
The Heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Scientists tell us that light travels 5.87 trillion miles per year: One light year. The Milky Way is about 100 thousand light years across, and there are about a million other galaxies like ours that we can see. In our galaxy there are about 100 million stars. And, according to a 2004 theory I found reported on Space.com, the universe is 156 billion light years across. That is more than 91 billion trillion miles across. Or, for you who want it more exact, multiply 91416000000 times 1 trillion or add 18 0s to 91416, and that is how many miles across some scientists believe the universe to be.
Now, to accept those numbers actually requires that you trust the scientists’ theories about the age and expansion of the universe, and I have no need to enter that debate. But the fact remains that, regardless of how accurate that theory is, the universe is inconceivably massive. The numbers that are used boggle our minds, and we simply lack the capacity to understand how huge are the heavens.
In his study entitled “The Blazing Center,” John Piper points out that many atheists will say that this massive amount of space, when compared to teeny tiny little earth, is an awful lot of wasted space for God to have created. “Why,” they ask, “would you think that God would have wasted so much space?” And Piper points out that the answer is in verse 1 of this Psalm: the heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above his handiwork.
The reason the heavens exist is in order to declare for you, me, and all peoples through all generations in all of history and in all locations the glory of Almighty God. The sun, moon, stars, clouds, comets, meteors, asteroids, and all the vastness of space is all intended to boggle the human mind in order that we would recognize that the universe has been created by an ultimately glorious God.
C.H. Spurgeon writes on this topic, “It is not merely glory that the heavens declare, but the ‘glory of God,’ for they deliver to us such unanswerable arguments for a conscious, intelligent, planning, controlling, and presiding Creator, that no unprejudiced person can remain unconvinced by them.” Spurgeon goes on to say, “He who looks up to the firmament and then writes himself down an atheist, brands himself at the same moment as an idiot or a liar.” In all this, the old English preacher agrees with the scriptures that the heavens declare for all to see and understand that we are created by one, sovereign, powerful, intentional, personal Creator, God himself.
Spurgeon is not the only one to recognize that the universe itself declares to all peoples that God is. Paul, speaking by divine inspiration, tells us that not only does the universe and nature tell us that God exists, it calls us to account before him.
Romans 1:18-20
18For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
No person of any generation in any nation in any period in history has an excuse to live as an atheist. God has given all humanity ample evidence in the creation to demand that they believe that he is. We call this general revelation, because it is the revelation of God made available to all people.
Psalm 19:2-4b
2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
4 Their measuring line goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
Though general revelation tells the story to all the world of God’s existence, it tells with no words. Though every day and every night pours forth speech and knowledge, there is no speech, no actual words being used. However, there is no language in the world where the words of this testimony without words is silent. The line, the measure, the words of God’s testimony in the heavens covers all the earth, telling all peoples everywhere that they are created by a God whose power is unmatched, whose artistry is unparalleled, whose glory is unfathomable.
Psalm 19:4c-6
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
In them, the heavens, David declares that God has made a tent for the sun. He stops trying to take in the grandeur of all of the heavens, and focuses on one simple attribute in the skies that shows us the glory of God. David thinks about the sun. Every morning, we see the sun come forth, bright, strong, and cheerful. He compares the rising sun to a new husband emerging from his chamber or an athlete running his race with joy. Anyone who has ever seen the confident glow on the face of a newly married man who strides out of his home ready to conquer the world for his new bride understands the imagery that David here uses to describe the sun. Anyone who has ever watched a marathon runner set a strong, steady, relentless pace and triumph over the grueling race can imagine with David the strong and steady trek that the sun makes to traverse the sky each day. David notes that the sun crosses all the world from one side to the other, and no place on earth is out of its heat.
Let the sky above reveal to you a glimpse of God’s glory. That is the point I called you to in this section of the psalm, and I hope that you can now see why. We Christians ought to be the most enthusiastic star gazers, sunset watchers, and cloud shape observers in all the world. But, sadly, our fast paced, busier than ever, 21st century, Internet savvy lives focus us more on our computer screens and our televisions than on the heavens that declare for all the world to see the glory of our God.
So, let’s make a commitment, today, to see the glory of God in general revelation. Let’s plan to take the time we need to look at the sky, the stars, the trees, the mountains, the streams, the birds, the oceans, or whatever you can look at to recognize the glory of God. Turn off your TV, hang up your cell phone, shut down your computer, and go outside! Do not fail to see the glory of God in his creation.
And, let’s do more than look. Let’s think too. Study the sun, moon, and stars, not for astrology, pagan superstition, but for the simple way in which they, without words, point us to the glory of God. Think about the fact that God did not have to create them. He could have made this planet a closed system, a little ball with nothing beyond its atmosphere; but he chose not to do that. God chose to create a universe so vast and so intricate that even the greatest human mind can not grasp its limits.
And, if you are here this morning as someone who does not yet know God, let the skies and the stars and all the glory of God in the heavens call you to account. You have no excuse for not believing in God. He created the universe, and in doing so, he displayed for all people all the proof their hearts should ever need to believe that there is a God who is over all the universe.
It is a tremendously sad thing that so many of us miss the glory of God revealed to us in general revelation. However, we also need to recognize that general revelation is not the more important kind of revelation. While you might know that there is a Creator because of what you see in the universe, you will not get to know him simply by looking at the stars. He has not spelled out the gospel in the clouds for you, and so you need something more. Like the man who prayed to the god or goddess whom he knew or did not know, you and I, if left only with general revelation, would not really know the God who created us.
David understood that fact, and that is why he turns his attention from general revelation here in point 1 to something even more helpful. We find that more helpful revelation in . . .
Point 2: Let the Bible reveal to you the God whose glory you can only glimpse in nature.
Psalm 19:7-9
7 The law of the Lord is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure,
making wise the simple;
8 the precepts of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure,
enlightening the eyes;
9 the fear of the Lord is clean,
enduring forever;
the rules of the Lord are true,
and righteous altogether.
These 3 verses of scripture contain for us six lines of parallel Hebrew poetry that speak to us of the revelation that we need in order to truly know God. While the heavens declare God’s glory, something different, something special, is needed for us to truly know him. That special revelation of God, revelation that not all people have, is what David writes about here. That revelation is the word of God, what we now call the Bible.
My intention is to cover this section quickly, and then to look at it in greater depth in next week’s message. But let me point out to you what it is that God wants you and me to know about his word in these verses.
First, you must see that the first thing said here, the “law of the LORD,” is an important Hebrew phrase. The word for law is the Hebrew word Torah, and it refers to the books that God inspired Moses to write down. Torah really means teaching or instruction, not necessarily law in the sense of being all rules all the time. The fact that this law is of the LORD tells us that God, the covenant making and covenant keeping God of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, the Nation of Israel, and David, is the God whose law it is that we are talking about. Today, we have our own word to refer to the written down, inspired, revelation of God; we call it the Bible. Anything here said about the Torah or the other words used could be said about the Bible.
Over these six lines, there are six words used for the written revelation of God, six descriptions of that revelation, and six functions of that revelation. With each line, it is also made absolutely clear that the written words we are referencing are the words of God. David calls the written revelation of God’s word the law, testimony, precepts, commandment, fear and rules of the LORD. The Bible is the specifically given teaching, instruction, and rules for life that God gives to us.
David says that the word of God is perfect, sure, right, pure, clean, and true. What does all that mean? Well, without breaking it all down, the word of God as it was written down by men under his inspiration is perfect, without any flaw or error. It is complete. It is sure, without any hint of doubt or uncertainty. It is always right, always pure and unblemished, always true in every respect. God did not inspire a faulty, incomplete, insufficient, or untrustworthy word.
David also says that the word of God has six different impacts on our lives when we look into it and obey it. He says it will revive the soul, make wise the simple, rejoice the heart, enlighten the eyes, endure forever, and be righteous altogether. We want all of these things to happen. We want our souls revived. We want our simple minds to be made wise. We want our hearts to rejoice. We want our eyes to be enlightened. We want all this to last forever, not just for a little while. And we want it all to be righteous, not ugly, sinful, and dishonoring to God.
When we put it all together, we learn that God has not merely revealed to us that he exists, but he has actually revealed himself to us. He did so in his written word, which we now have in the Bible. It is the revelation of the LORD. It is absolutely perfect, complete, and sufficient in every way. It impacts our lives, bringing us into communication with and relationship to our Creator.
Sure, the heavens declare for us the glory of God, but they do not do all the things just said about the word of God. They let us know God is there, but they do not lead us to him and enable us to know him. And, let us also remember that nothing else does this either. The philosophies, sciences, and arts of the world may hint to us that God is, but they will never lead us to know him nor will they help us to follow him. His word is what does that, and it does so perfectly.
And look to see how the child of God should feel about this perfect word of God.
Psalm 19:10-11
10 More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey
and drippings of the honeycomb.
11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
In verse 10, David says that God’s word is more precious than the most precious treasure and sweeter than the sweetest pleasure. God’s words are worth more than gold, than much gold, than much fine gold. No price on earth could ever be set to match the value to us of the perfect revelation of God and his principles. Nothing could ever compare to the infinite value of God showing us how we can know him, relate to him, and be forgiven by him.
Also, the words of God are sweet, sweeter than honey—even that from the honeycomb. Think of the richest chocolate, the freshest strawberries, the creamiest ice cream, or the best food you can imagine. The words of God in his holy Bible are sweeter and better by far. In the mouth of a child of God, his words are glorious to savor. The pages of that sacred book contain for you the sweet communication to you from the God who created you, loves you, and saved you.
Verse 11 simply tells us that the words of God also warn us, keeping us from the dangers of sin before our holy God. In keeping God’s word, following it and loving it, there is great reward. We look to God in order to see where we might be heading in a wrong direction, and we allow it to guide us away from danger and into right, wonderful, joyful living that leads to ultimate and eternal reward.
Simply put, though general revelation, the heavens declaring the glory of God, is a grand and gracious thing for God to have given us, nothing compares with the precious gift of his perfect word. You might know that God exists from what we can discover in nature, science, philosophy, psychology, or some other thing, but you will never know God or please God without his holy, inspired, perfectly written word. That is right, you could never know God and you will never please God without doing so in direct relationship to his word, the Bible. So come to love God’s word, and give your heart to knowing him through it.
And, when you come to know God’s word, you will find yourself called to respond to the Lord who has revealed himself in the heavens and in the book. We see this response in. . .
Point 3: Let the revelation of God lead you to a life of obedience empowered by God.
Psalm 19:12-14
12 Who can discern his errors?
Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
and innocent of great transgression.
14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Who can discern his errors? David asks who truly knows their own heart. Who truly knows all that is right or wrong in his or her own soul? The clearly understood answer is that no one knows their own heart, and no one can discern their errors or their right living apart from God’s holy word. Without the scriptures, you and I would be like the man who prayed the prayer to every god, never knowing when we had said, eaten, or walked on something that might earn for us the wrath of the unknown deity.
David’s realization that he does not even know, on his own, his own errors along with his understanding that the word of God is God’s perfect revelation of himself and his statutes leads David to pray what we read in these final verses. He first asks God to declare him innocent, forgive him for his hidden sin. David knows, when looking into the perfect word of God, that he has failed to live up to God’s commands in a thousand ways, some of which he knows and some of which he does not. So, he asks God to grant him grace, to count him as not guilty of those hidden flaws in his heart that not even David himself can discern. And, he has confidence, because of what God has revealed in his word, that God has made a way for him to be forgiven of all his sin.
David then asks God to protect him, to hold him back from presumptuous sin. He wants God to guard him from arrogantly crossing the line and committing great transgressions before God. He asks God to keep those kinds of sins from having dominion over him, because he knows that once you begin to sin boldly before God, such sins can conquer your life and enslave you to their destructive power. But, if God keeps him back through the guarding and protecting power of his holy word, David will be innocent of presumptuous, arrogant, bold, insolent sins. That is correct, God is telling us in this word that, while we may regularly need to be forgiven of things we did not see in our life until he reveals them to us, we can, as his children who obey his word, be free from boldly crossing the line and breaking his commandments. Christians, you are no longer slaves to sin.
And David closes with the beautiful prayer of verse 14. He asks that his words and his thoughts, the things he says and the things just deep within his mind, would be pleasing to God. He is asking that God would help him to please God in every aspect of life. And, let me simply point out that this desire can only be rightly prayed after someone truly grasps the glory of God’s revelation in his word—a word which Hebrews 4:12 tells us reveals the thoughts and intentions of men’s hearts.
For you and me the call here is simple. God’s word reveals to us his ways and his commands. It shows us that our hearts are very tricky, deceptive, and full of hidden faults. We need to ask God to forgive us of those, but also to show us, as we study his word, where those flaws are in order that we might repent of them. We also can ask God to aid us in staying away from presumptuous sins, those things which we know are clearly dishonoring to God. And, we have the confidence that by his power and through his holy word, we have the ability to resist such temptation. Then, as we have examined ourselves in the light of his word, we cry out with David, begging God to help our words and our thoughts be pleasing to him in every way.
Praise God that he has revealed his glory in the heavens. Never let such a gorgeous picture of the power of God pass you by. Never lose the wonder of what you can see of God’s glory in general revelation. But praise God even more for his written word, his special revelation. Even more wondrous than the sky and all of outer space, the Bible reveals to us who God is and what he commands of us. The Bible helps us to come to know God, to be forgiven by God, and to see our own hearts for the deceitful little things they are. And, it is through God’s graciously given word that we can seek forgiveness for hidden flaws, step back from intentional sin, and seek that all we think, say, and do be pleasing to the God who created us.
Love the God whose glory is glimpsed in the sky. Love the God whose ways are written in his word. Thank him for both forms of revealing himself to you. Follow him according to his word. Treasure his word. And seek to please him in all that you do.
Pastor Travis Peterson 