Who Is God? | Timeless Truth

A New Beginning presents a book about the greatest evangelist of the 20th century, Billy Graham, written by his friend, Pastor Greg Laurie. I bring insights that maybe other books have not really touched on.

I also weave in a lot of my personal experiences, one-on-one with Billy, things he said to me, and things I gleaned by watching him. So if you want to learn more about this man that changed the world, get your copy of Billy Graham, The Man I Knew. Yours for a gift of any amount at Harvest.org. This is the day when the lost are found. This is the day for a new beginning. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound. Again you hear when the angels are singing.

This is the day, the day when life begins. In Oklahoma, it's reportedly illegal to trip a horse. In Arizona, it's illegal for a donkey to sleep in a bathtub. In Connecticut, a pickle must be able to bounce.

Those laws are reportedly still on the books. Mankind came up with some doozies. So why do we let the culture dictate what's right and wrong? Today on A New Beginning, as Pastor Greg Laurie continues his series called Timeless, we'll continue our look at the attributes of our God. This is the day, the day when life begins. Who is God? What you believe matters.

What you think matters. So I want to take some time in this series that we're calling Timeless to offer sound theology without apology. Let's begin with the attributes of God. And let's go to Psalm 139 and read a few verses together. Psalm 139.

Now I'm going to be reading from the New Living Translation. The psalmist writes, Lord, you have examined my heart. You know everything about me. You know when I sit down, you know when I stand up. You know my thoughts even when I'm far away.

You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do. You know what I'm going to say even before I say it, Lord. You go before me and you follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand.

I love that, don't you? So here's point number one if you're taking notes. God is omniscient. God is omniscient, theological word. It means God knows everything. Verse one, Lord, you've examined my heart and know everything about me.

Think about this. God knows everything about you. He knows every thought you think. He knows every place you go. He knows every website you visit. He knows every hope you have inside. He knows your fears. He knows everything.

God knows all things. He's omniscient. And number two, he's omnipresent. Omnipresent.

It's just a word that means he's present everywhere. Look at Psalm 139, verse seven. I can never escape from your spirit. I can never get away from your presence. If I go to heaven, you're there. If I go down to the grave, you're there. Wherever you go, God will be there. But when we put our faith in Christ, we're reassured that Jesus will never leave us or forsake us.

That's great to know. God is omnipresent. God is omniscient. And God is omnipotent. Number three, omnipotent.

This means that he has unlimited power that can never be depleted, drained, or exhausted. And this is why it's so silly when we say, well, I've tried everything. I've exhausted all of my resources. All I can do now is go pray.

What? Oh, you mean pray to the all-knowing, all-powerful, ever-present creator of the universe? I think he can handle your problem. Number four, God is sovereign. We hear that word thrown around. God is sovereign. What does that even mean? It means that God is able to do what he pleases with whomever he chooses whenever he wishes.

Let me say that again. God is able to do what he pleases with whomever he chooses whenever he wishes. So God doesn't have to check in with you or me, make sure we're okay with this. God is sovereign. But that also reminds us that God has a plan. Nothing is ever haphazard or willy-nilly.

It's always part of the bigger plan for your life. Number five, God is truth. God is truth. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. This means that God and God alone is the final standard of truth.

God is the final court of arbitration. You are not. Nor are your feelings or your emotions.

Well, I don't know. I see it differently. What do you do when you come to a passage in the Bible you don't agree with? You change your opinion because Scripture is truth.

God is true. Well, I don't agree. Who cares? Really, who cares? I guess you care. I don't really care. But it's God who is that source of truth because we'll come up with all these wacky things like, well, my God, my God is loving but he's not wrathful.

Really? Your God is you. No, no, he's my God. You made up your own God.

You can do that if you want to, but that God will not be able to save you on the final day. The only God is the true God found in Scripture who describes himself clearly. There is no higher authority than God. So God is omniscient. He's omnipresent. He's omnipotent. He's sovereign.

He's true. Number six, God is holy. God is holy.

And we see this repeatedly in Scripture. Isaiah in chapter six says this, I saw the Lord sitting on his throne. He was high.

He was lifted up. His glory filled the temple and the angels cried, holy, holy, holy is the Lord God almighty. The holiness of God. Habakkuk 1 says your eyes are too pure to look on evil.

You cannot tolerate wrong. See, we need to understand the holiness of God. We talk a lot about the love of God.

I'm getting to that in just a moment. But I think there may have been a day in the church where the holiness of God was emphasized at the expense of the love of God. But I think in more recent times maybe the love of God has been emphasized at the expense of the holiness of God.

Does that make sense? We say God loves you. God loves everything about you.

God loves you no matter what you've done. Well, that's all true, but God wants to change you. There is the holiness of God too. We have to keep all these things in mind when we think about God and not make him some one-dimensional creation that we come up with.

Number seven, God is good. And I think this is really important to be reminded of because I think, okay, God's all knowing, fine. God's all powerful, good. God's present everywhere. God is sovereign. He can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants, with whoever he wants. All right, he's holy.

I got it. Ah, but God is good. God is good.

Don't miss that because if I miss that, it can be kind of a frightening view of the Lord. The word good could be understood to mean as God is the final standard of good. In other words, if you want to know what good is, you go to Scripture. God will tell you what is good. And God will tell you what is bad. And if God tells you something is bad, it's bad.

And if he tells you it's good, it's good. And if he tells you not to do something, he's telling it to you for your own good. Because the Bible says no good thing will he withhold from those that walk uprightly. Psalm 106 one says give thanks unto the Lord for he's good. David writes in Psalm 34 eight, oh taste and see that the Lord is good.

So God determines what is good. So he's truthful, he's holy, he's good, but yes, he is loving. In fact, the Bible even says God is love. God is love. Behold what manner of love the Father has given unto us that we should be called the children of God. Greater love is no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. For God so loved the world he gave his only begotten Son, whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. His love for us is unchanging, it's consistent, and it's inexhaustible. It's so wonderful.

So listen to this. Let's put the holiness of God and the love of God together and it'll give us a big picture view of our Father in heaven. In his holiness, he is unapproachable. In his love, he approaches us.

Let me say that again. In his holiness, he's unapproachable. How can I approach a holy God? A perfect, flawless God? I'm sinful.

I fall short. He's unapproachable, but in his love, he approaches us. He says, you come now to me.

I want a relationship with you. Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment. We really enjoy hearing when Pastor Greg's teaching and preaching touches lives. Pastor Greg Laurie, I start my day every day by listening to your podcast.

I love it. You make me laugh and I love your teachings. Even though I was baptized back in 2010 and I considered myself a believer, I wasn't very good at reading the Bible. And now I read it every day and it's changed my life. I purchased your New Beginners Bible. I've read and listened to the Audible, Jesus Revolution, Billy Graham, and I'm going to finish them all. But I so enjoy them and I've watched all your documentaries, too, and they're just so inspiring and I share them with others. So I just commend you, Pastor Greg Laurie. I'm so glad I found you and thank you again for all you do.

How have these studies in God's Word touched your life? If you have a story to share, why not call us and let us know? Call 1-866-871-1144.

That's 866-871-1144. Well, we're considering the righteous attributes of God the Father today by way of Pastor Greg's message from his new series called Timeless. Well, let's see how this applies to our life.

Let's wrap this message up. Because there can be no theology without doxology. How do we apply these truths in our lives about a God who is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, and sovereign, a God who is true, holy, good, and loving?

Here's point number one. God is truth, therefore we as his children must be truthful. God's true, so we must be truthful. We're told in Proverbs 12-22, lying lips are an abomination to the Lord.

It's important to tell the truth. But the Bible tells us speak the truth in love. Sometimes people use truth, and I'll put that in quotes, as a weapon to beat people down.

Like maybe someone is slipping up spiritually or falling short and we berate them with Bible verses and tell them how far short they fall of God. And that may be true in a sense, but speak the truth in love. See, I share the truth not to destroy you, but to restore you.

That's important because the Bible says if you see a brother or a sister overtaken in a fall, you who are spiritual should restore such a person in the spirit of meekness. So have some humility and speak the truth in love. And if you really do love someone, you've got to tell them the truth.

It's not always easy to do, is it? Proverbs 25-5 says, Open rebuke is better than secret love. Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

If I love someone, I will tell them what is true. Number two, God is holy, therefore I should be holy. 1 Peter 1-13 says, just as he's called you to be holy, be holy in all that you do. For it is written, Be holy because I am holy, since you call on a father who judges each man's work impartially.

Live your lives here as strangers in reverent fear. Now I think that we need to understand what this means. Because I think we misunderstand holiness. In fact, we even use it in a negative way. When someone is sort of condescending, or at least we think they are, we'll say, Don't be holier than thou.

Right? Actually, we should be holier than thou. I hope I'm holier than thou.

I hope you're holier than me. So what does it mean to be holy? Here's what it doesn't mean. To be holy does not mean that you are arrogant, or condescending, or constantly virtue signaling. You know, why don't you read the Bible as much as I read the Bible? Why aren't you as pious as I am?

Why don't you pray as much as I do? That's not holiness, that's arrogance. That's the opposite of holiness. Let me help you understand the word holy.

Let's respell it. Instead of spelling it H-O-L-Y, spell holy W-H-O-L-L-Y. As in holy committed to something. The Bible tells the story of Caleb and Joshua. They both went into the promised land along with 10 other spies.

There were 12 in total. As they returned back, they gave a good report to Moses. The two did at least, hey, let's go in.

It's awesome. God will give us the land. The other Ted said, don't go, man.

We'll die. So only Joshua and Caleb, because of their faith, made it in to this land flowing with milk and honey. But it took a long time to get there. So by the time Caleb was ready to go into the promised land, he was 85 years old. And I love this old dude because he stands up and he says, I'm as strong today as on the day the Lord called me.

He's 85, raises up his bony old, old man arm. And then he says, give me this mountain. And he went in and conquered all the inhabitants of the area he was given. And then he gave a secret. He says, for I have wholly followed the Lord my God. You want to know the secret to spiritual longevity? You want to know the secret to being strong at the beginning, the middle, and the end of your life? Kale.

No, I'm joking. Bacon. Bacon.

There was a woman named Pearl Cantrell that made it past 100. They said, Pearl, what's your secret to living such a long life? And she said, bacon. I eat it every day.

But the answer is not bacon and it's not kale. It's wholly following the Lord your God. Every day you get up in the morning, you recommit yourself to Him. You never rest on your laurels.

You never live in the past. You keep progressing and growing as a follower of Jesus Christ. God is holy and we should be holy. Certainly God is omnipresent, so I should never feel alone. Maybe I'm talking to somebody right now that's going through a scary time. A storm, a trial, a valley. We use all kinds of metaphors, but they all fit in some way, shape, or form.

But I want you to know whatever you're going through, God is with you in the midst of it. Remember Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego? What a great Old Testament story.

And it would take me a while to go back and retell it. But if you don't know it, read it in the book of Daniel. But basically, they were thrown into this massive, fiery furnace to die a certain death. And much of the shock of the king, he looks and sees not three men that he threw in, but four walking around like it's a Sunday stroll in the park. And then King Nebuchadnezzar says, I threw three in and yet I see a fourth and the fourth is like the Son of God.

And that's because Jesus was walking with his boys down there in the fire. And he's walking with you and yours as well. God is omnipotent so he can meet whatever your needs are. Do you have some big, giant need right now?

Oh, I don't know how I'm going to do this. You serve an all-powerful God with unlimited resources. Philippians 4.19 says, He will supply all of your needs according to His riches in glory. So call upon Him.

But God is sovereign. He's going to do what He wants, when He wants, whenever He wants. He'll do what He pleases with whomever He chooses, whenever He wishes.

You think, well, I don't know if I like that. Well, no, but He loves you, He's good, and He has a plan. So you're going through something that doesn't make sense. You remind yourself, oh, but God is sovereign.

And that doesn't mean God is disconnected. It means that God has a very clear plan for your life that is motivated by His goodness and His love for you. And His ultimate plan is to make you more like Jesus. So whatever you're going through, just be reminded of the fact that as my friend Randy Alcorn would say, it's Father-filtered.

Father-filtered. In other words, He will not allow it unless there's a purpose for it. He's either doing it or He's allowing it in your life for some bigger plan.

He has a plan, so don't panic. And let me just loop back to that one thought, just God is love. God loves you so much. He knows all about you. He knows your flaws. He knows your shortcomings. He knows how far short we all fall, but He loves us. And if you're ever tempted to doubt the love of God, take a long look at the cross and think about Jesus hanging there, beaten beyond human recognition, crown of thorns pressed in on His forehead, beard ripped from His face, dying and bleeding and suffering for you. And He did it for you. I know the Bible says for God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, and that is clearly true. But I love how Paul personalized it when he said, He loved me and He gave Himself for me.

Just remember that. He loves you. And He gave Himself, gave Himself. No one took the life of Jesus from Him. He laid it down of His own accord. He gave Himself for you.

Why? Because He had to die on the cross so you could have your sin forgiven, so you can approach this holy, awesome, all-knowing, all-powerful, ever-present God. He needed to bridge the gap for you so you could have a relationship with God and actually be able to call Him your Father in Heaven. But that all comes through Christ, who made a way for you through the cross.

And He's here with us now. And He's standing at the door of your life, and He is knocking, and He is saying, if you'll hear His voice and open the door, He will come in. If you've never asked Jesus Christ to come into your life, why don't you do that right here, right now? We're going to pray together in closing, and I'm going to pray a simple prayer that you could pray if you want Jesus to come into your life to be your Savior and your Lord, if you want a relationship with this wonderful God I've been talking to you about, if you want to know Him in a personal way, you just pray this prayer with me right now.

Let's all bow our heads and pray. If you want Jesus to come into your life, pray this now. Lord Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner, but I know that You're the Savior who died on the cross for my sin and rose again from the dead. I turn from my sin now, and I choose to follow You as Your child from this moment forward. I pray this now in Jesus' name.

Amen. An important prayer from Pastor Greg Laurie today here on A New Beginning leading many in making a change in their relationship with the Lord. And if you've just prayed that prayer and you've meant those words sincerely, then we want to congratulate you and welcome you into the family of God. And we'd like to send you something to help you begin your walk with the Lord. It's Pastor Greg's New Believers Bible, along with some additional resources, and we'll send them to you free of charge if you'll call us at 1-800-821-3300. We can take your call anytime.

Again, 1-800-821-3300. Or go online to harvest.org and click Know God. You know, Pastor Greg, we hear from people all the time who tell us how these daily studies have impacted their lives. So many have found the Lord and been encouraged through this teaching.

That's right. And we hope our listeners might pray about making an investment so these studies can continue. Yeah, it's really true, Dave. You know, and even a little bit helps. You know, people need to hear the Gospel so badly. They need to hear the teaching of the Word of God. It changes everything because it changes us. And I'm so passionate about it, and I'm called to do it, and I'm thankful for it.

But I can't do it alone. So I'm going to ask folks that are listening, if you think more people need to hear the Gospel, if you believe more people need to hear the teaching of the Word of God, then perfectly consider investing in Harvest Ministries and maybe even become a Harvest partner, which means you're someone who stands with us every month in your faithful giving, and that opens up a lot of new opportunities for us. So thanks for that. Yeah, that's right, and we really are thankful for your partnership. You can reach us any time day or night at 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300. Or write A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, California, 92514. Or just go online to harvest.org.

Hey, everybody. I want to encourage you to join us for something we call Harvest at Home. It happens every Sunday at harvest.org and on our brand-new app, Harvest Plus, which is available on your mobile TV devices. Download it now, and you can watch Harvest at Home with Christians from around the world as we worship together and study God's Word. So again, join us for Harvest at Home at harvest.org or on Harvest Plus. Well, next time, Pastor Greg moves ahead in his series called Timeless as we discover the full biblical answer to the question, Who is Jesus? Join us here on A New Beginning with pastor and Bible teacher, Greg Laurie.