So we're following in from Psalm 76 there, and I take the title from the sermon from
verse number one.
It says, in Judah, is God known?
The title of the sermon tonight is, do you know God?
Do you know God?
It says here, in Judah, God is known.
All right.
So there are certain people at this time of the writing of this Psalm that can say,
we know God, I know God.
Those that dwell in Judah could say, we know God.
I'm not sure what you took out of Psalm 76, it's not a very long Psalm itself.
But it teaches us a lot about who God is.
And what I have for you tonight is nine characteristics or nine attributes of God that are brought
up in this Psalm.
And my question to you is, do you know God?
When I mentioned some of these attributes, can you say to me, yes, Pastor, I know that
God, I know that God.
You know, when I go back, maybe when I was about 18 or 19 years old, I kind of
lose track a little bit now.
You know, I didn't really go to the best church.
I went to a decent church.
It was a Baptist church.
I learned some decent things, but it wasn't a King James preaching church, though I believe
one of the old pastors was.
And it's still so, many of the fundamental doctrines were in place and I knew certain
truths of the Bible, but it wasn't until I was like that age, about 18 or 19, where,
you know, I realized I don't really know much of God.
Like I love him.
He's my savior.
I know he's done that much.
Like I know Jesus has paid for my sins and I didn't even understand the differences with
different churches.
I just assumed besides the Catholic church, obviously, but I assume pretty much every
other church that fell under the Baptist or the Protestant umbrella had the same faith
that I had.
Like I thought that was just one gospel by grace and there is one gospel by grace
and faith by the way.
But I thought that was it.
And everyone agreed with that.
And then they were just clearly a works gospel and everyone just, you know, I thought the
distinctions were so clear.
It's faith alone and Christ alone or it's works.
I didn't realize later on in life that there were churches that gave lip service to faith
alone, but still trust in their works.
You know what I mean?
That there's plenty of churches like that, even throughout Australia, but I remember just
getting to a point in life where I'm like, God, I just don't know you enough.
Like I've got this Bible.
I've not really read through it.
Lord, I want to know who you are.
You know, I want to know what is right and wrong.
I want to know the truth of history.
I want to know the truth of you and the truth of future times and Lord, can you tell
me where I'm wrong?
Like I really want to know, I really want to know who you are and what you stand for.
And Lord, can you help me in that journey?
And soon afterwards, God would lead me to discover the King James Bible, right?
As the only perfect preserved word of God in English.
And I threw my old NIV in the bin, you know, and I went searching for the house.
There was this sort of little, little tiny bookshelf at the, at the bottom of the stairs of my old house.
And I went kind of looking for that.
I knew there were some Bibles there.
I knew there were some books and I hadn't looked through.
I wasn't expecting to find the King James Bible.
And there it was a King James Bible.
I was like, wow, we have a King James Bible in the house.
I pulled that out and I opened it up and it says that this Bible belongs to a name.
It had a name and, and I thought, oh wow, like who's this person?
And I went to my dad.
Dad, like this Bible belongs to someone that's not, you know, I don't know who this is.
We need to return this Bible to them.
Cause they had their phone number and their address.
And my, I think it was my dad and my mom said, oh, that's your auntie.
It's like, oh, my auntie, my auntie in the United States, you know, she had a King.
She was going to a King James independent Baptist church.
And you know, she gifted our family with a King James Bible, which is why I was there in the bookshelf.
And then later on, I discovered that my extended family in Chile, even though they did not speak English, they knew about the authenticity of the King James Bible.
And the, you know, the Spanish Bible that we're trying to preach and learn from, they believe that it was the closest to the King James in English.
And so it's kind of fell in that same line.
And, and I realized, wow, like my family knows all these great things about this Bible.
And, and that began, began my journey to open the King James and read his word and, and not be feeling like I'm being lied to or being corrupted.
And I could see the power and the might of the King James Bible.
And then the next journey was, well, Lord, I, I believe this is the true word of God that you've laid here for me.
I need to go to a church that teaches from this Bible.
And I didn't know where to go, you know, surely enough, you know, as God started to answer my prayers, put me to know him.
He led me to my first independent fundamental Baptist church.
Eventually it was a long journey, but eventually I got there, you know, that's where I got baptized.
My wife, Christina got baptized there.
We both got married in our first IFB church and the rest is history.
And I feel like, you know, in that journey, I truly have gotten to know my Lord God a lot more or a lot better than I used to.
You know, I knew what Jesus did for me.
I knew he died for me and it's a free gift.
I knew that, but wow, the God that I know today is so different to the God that I thought I knew back when I was a young man.
And so we start here in verse number one, let's read it again.
It says in Judah is God known.
The first thing we learn about God, it says here, his name is great in Israel.
The first point that I have for you, brethren, is that our God is a great God.
Our God is a great God.
And you're in Psalm, so come with me just quickly to Psalm 95.
Come with me to Psalm 95.
Keep your finger there, of course, in Psalm 76.
But in Psalm 95 and verse number three, you say, what does it mean for God to be a great God?
Well, Psalm 95 explains a little bit further in verse number three.
It says, for the Lord is a great God and a great King above all gods.
So what does it mean for God to be a great God?
Well, one sure definition is that he is the most powerful being that's ever existed, right?
He is above all, like any other god, anything else that goes by the word gods.
You know, he's the king of kings, he's the Lord of lords, whatever authority lies on this earth,
whatever authorities and principalities are out there in the spiritual realm,
our God is greater than all of those things.
And I'm very happy to know that, that my God is the greatest God, my God is my great God.
And there's no one better than him.
What a blessing to know that we have the Holy Spirit of God living within us.
The Bible says greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world.
Doesn't the Bible teach us that?
You know, so we are sometimes concerned about the devil and rightly so we should be vigilant,
we should be watchful, you know, we're going to be sober and be aware of the devil,
but know full well that the God that makes a dwelling place within you
is greater than even those powerful forces on this earth.
What a great God that we serve.
I also, if you can come with me to Hebrews 13, come with me to Hebrews 13.
And Christian, can you give me a cup of water, please?
Hebrews 13 and verse number 20, please.
Hebrews 13.
When I think about this word great in association with God,
my first thought often comes to this passage in Hebrews 13, verse number 20.
It says now the God of peace, Hebrews 13, 20.
Now the God of peace that brought again from the dead, our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd.
When I think about a great God, I often think about you being a great shepherd,
that great shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting covenant.
I think of my God as my great shepherd.
And what are we brethren?
But sheep, okay?
A sheep need the shepherd.
We need the shepherd.
We need his wisdom.
We need his guidance.
We need his protection.
Because there are many false prophets that have gone out into the world.
There are many wolves in sheep's clothing even.
And you know, we as sheep sometimes have a hard time identifying.
But we need to be able to rest in the leading of our great shepherd.
And what does our great shepherd accomplish in our life?
Verse number 21 says, make you perfect in every good work to do his will.
I once had a series called the perfect man.
And the word perfect doesn't mean that you're without sin because we're going to
sin to the day we die.
The word perfect means to be entire, to be whole, okay?
To be well-rounded, right?
That, you know, if we're strong as believers in one field, we ought to be
strong in all areas of our Christian walk.
That's what it means to be perfect or well-rounded.
And it's our great shepherd that makes us perfect in every good work to do his
will, working in you, that which is well pleasant in his sights.
So he works in us, this great God, this great shepherd, not only does it lead
us, but he works from us within us and leads us in that sense.
It says here, uh, that which is well pleasing in his sights through Jesus
Christ to whom be glory forever and ever.
Amen.
I love that.
Okay.
So whatever great work we accomplish for him, it's done through Jesus Christ.
And so at the end of the day, the one that gets the glory is Christ.
The one that gets the glory is God.
Doesn't matter what great achievement they're probably the greatest
achievement we've done as a church has been the Fiji soul winning trip.
And I, I mean, I had such a great time, you know, so many
salvations, so many brethren we got to meet and fellowship and, and just
to encourage one another and to just get out of the regular routine of
life and, you know, focus on souls.
And as much as a great time, he was, I believe he got, he gave our
great God all glory because without him, none of that was possible.
I think about the great God.
When you, when you know, do you know God, do you know him as your
great God, or do you think of God as this, maybe this small bean?
You know, some people have this idea that God there's like, like
more often than not, most people think there's like a, in the world,
there's like a yin yang kind of balance.
And so there's God and there's the devil and the kind of equal in power.
Oh, you know, maybe you've seen the cartoons where, you know, you've
got a, a, I don't know, a character we've got, we've an angel, you know,
on one side and some devil on the other side, and it's like, are
you going to listen to the good?
Are you gonna listen to the bad?
And quite often there's that idea that, you know, God is pretty much as the
devil is as strong as God, and you've got to make a decision as to
which one you're going to listen to.
No, but our great God is a God above all gods.
And do you know him as your great God?
I think, man, we got the right God.
How many religions are there?
How many false religions are there?
You know, Hinduism, we've there billions and billions, they don't
even know how many gods they've got.
And yet the Bible tells me, no, the God that I serve is greater than all of that.
And we have the right God is the great God, the God that you know.
You might say, yes, pastor.
I know my God is a great God.
I know he is the great God.
Well, let's continue reading in Psalm 76 in verse number two,
Psalm 76, verse number two.
In Salem also is his tabernacle and his dwelling place in Zion.
Now the tabernacle there was placed in Jerusalem.
That's why it says in Salem also is his tabernacle.
So Salem is short for Jerusalem.
Okay.
And Salem of course means peace.
So when you think about that in Salem or the word peace in peace also is a
tabernacle and his dwelling place in Zion, the next thing we learn about
God is that God, our God is a God that dwells in peace, our God is a
God that dwells in peace in Salem is his tabernacle, our God is a God of peace.
And of course, when we, one of the great titles that is given to Jesus Christ
was that he is the prince of peace, the prince of peace.
And I want to show you just a few passages here.
Come with me to, um, second Peter chapter one, come with me to second
Peter, I can turn you to almost any new Testament epistle here, but I just
want to read it to you from second Peter chapter one, verse number two.
Do you know God is a God of peace?
Because if right now in your heart, you're not at peace.
Then let me introduce you to the God of peace.
Okay.
He's a God that dwells in peace.
And if we already found out, like I already mentioned that the
Holy spirit dwells within us.
Did you know we are his tabernacle today in the new Testament, we are the
temp, our bodies are the temple of the living God today is your life at peace.
Are you mentally at peace because our God dwells in peace.
And look, is it possible for your life to be upside down and not knowing the
direction of life and yet still be at peace?
Absolutely.
It's possible.
I mean, that is the journey of most Christians because life doesn't
always go like you always expect.
Okay.
Life will always throw you, you know, uh, things out of left field
that you're just not expecting.
But what's wonderful is that we can always have a God that is dwelling at
peace and say, Lord, I want to be in your presence.
Let me be close to you, God, because I know where you dwell is peaceful.
And Lord, if I'm just close to you, even if my life is falling apart or it's
upside down, I know I too can be at peace.
Do you know God?
Do you know this God of peace?
Look at second Peter chapter one, verse number two, grace and peace be
multiplied with that grace and peace be what multiplied unto you through
the knowledge of God.
Do you know God?
Do you see if you know God, you're going to know him as a God of
grace and peace and not just a little bit of peace, but multiplied
peace, a peace that multiplies unto you through the knowledge of
God and of Jesus, our Lord.
If you say pastor, I am not really a peaceful person.
You know, I'm, I'm always worried.
I'm always anxious.
I'm always, you know, concerned and, and fearful and all these things.
Let me introduce you to a God of peace.
And all you need to do is be close to him, walk with him and
say, Lord, I want to know you cause I'm not at peace right now.
Well, if you get to know him, the Bible says you can have a multiple, a
multiplying factor of God's grace and peace in your life.
Can you come with me to Romans 14, Romans 14?
While you're turning to Romans 14, let me just read to you from Jude
verse two, which says mercy unto you and peace and love be multiplied.
Again, we're talking about a God of peace, a God that dwells in peace,
that peace is multiplied.
Who should be the most peaceful people on the earth?
A people whose peace is multiplied.
And where do we find that peace in the knowledge of our God?
Do you know God?
Do you know the God of peace?
You might say, well, I know he's a God of peace, but I'm not at peace.
We'll get to know this side of God.
Okay.
Cause like I said to you, even when I was 18 or 19, I knew certain elements
of God and you certain characteristics and you certain attributes.
But as I asked God, God, can you reveal yourself to me?
Show me who you are.
I want to know exactly what is right.
What is the truth?
Lord, show me what I'm wrong.
I mean, these are prayers you often make when you're very young and
you know, you need direction.
You know, you know, you're going into adulthood and you realize, man,
it's a big word out world out there, but my God's bigger.
All right.
And if I'm going to make myself something out of this big world, that I need to
know who my big or great God is.
He's a God of peace.
Romans 14 verse 17.
For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink.
And I'll stop there very quickly.
I've taught on this before.
When we talk often about the kingdom of God, we often think about the
millennial reign of Christ, which is not wrong, that is the kingdom of God on the earth.
Okay.
But one thing we learned in the Bible that the kingdom of God is progressive.
Even though Christ is not physically on this earth, ruling for a thousand years
right now, literally the kingdom of God is still here on this earth.
And as we lead people to Christ, we are leading them into that kingdom.
And the Bible says here, the kingdom of God is not meat and drink.
It's not a physical consummation like it would be in the millennium.
It says here, but it's righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.
Boy, that one of the attributes of the Holy Ghost, who is God, by the way,
like, you know, the one that indwells you is peace, righteousness, peace, and joy.
Boy, are you living in the kingdom of God this very moment?
Can you say, pastor, I am seeking his righteousness.
I have peace in my heart and I have joy even when things are a bit downcast
on times, I still rejoice in my Lord.
If you can say that, man, you've walked into the king of God.
Well done.
You don't have to wait for the millennium.
You're already experiencing these great rewards, these great treasures
that Christ has within you.
Do you know a God that dwells in peace?
And yet when you come back to Psalm 76, what's the opposite to peace?
War?
And this is the ones like, you know, hold on.
He's a God of peace.
He dwells in peace, but then we'd go back to Psalm 76 and verse number three.
It says there, so they're in Zion, they're in Salem.
There break he the arrows of the bow, the shield and the sword and the battle sealer.
Man, who goes to war on our behalf?
Who's the one that overcomes our enemies?
Of course, in the Old Testament, you know, the nation of Israel had so many,
so many powerful enemies, you know, I love the story of King David
or before he was king, David and Goliath, what a powerful enemy.
And yet with just a sling and a rock, you know, he's able to take down Goliath
and then David's able to go up to Goliath's sword.
He struggles to pick it up and chops off Goliath's head.
And David just gives glory to God.
He knows that it's God that gave him the victory.
Yeah, we don't wrestle against flesh and blood today.
We don't have this physical nation that we're trying to protect our, you know,
enemies from, but there's still spiritual enemies that we have to deal with.
There are the false preachers, there are false prophets,
there are spirits preaching false messages and lies of the devil.
You know, there are people, there are demons and the forces of darkness
that are keeping people blinded from the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ.
And what we learn here is that our God is a God of war.
Our God is a God of war.
He's able to take out the enemies.
And I've said this before, but I love the statement from my old pastor.
He would often say, we don't fight for victory, we fight from victory.
All right, our fight, our spiritual fight as soldiers of God
is already a battle that's been won in Christ Jesus.
And the way we can experience that victory is to remain in Christ's steps,
walking in his will, seeking his direction in life.
And if you do that, you'll win, you'll win the victory.
It's already won for you by our Lord God.
Can you come with me to Exodus 15?
Our God is a God of war.
And this is a God that I needed to learn about when I was 18 or 19.
I heard about the God of peace.
I heard that he draws in peace.
I heard that he brought peace between God and man through Christ Jesus.
Heard all those things.
The Prince of peace.
But I did not really hear about the God of war very much.
I'll be honest with you, in the churches that I went and grew up in.
And yet we're looking at the book of Exodus, the second book of the Bible.
We're very early on in the Bible here.
And in Exodus 15, Exodus 15, please, Exodus 15, Exodus 15 and verse number 3, Exodus 15 and verse number 3,
Exodus 15 and verse number 3, the Bible says, the Lord is a man of war.
The Lord is his name.
Like quite literally the second book that you open up as you're reading God's word,
you're introduced to a God of war, a man of war.
The Lord is his name.
Wow, that's a God that I've not really been familiar with when I was 18 or 19.
Right, I thought I knew God and he's a God of war.
It continues there, Pharaoh's chariots and his hosts have been cast into the sea.
His chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea.
This is God going to war against the most powerful army of that time.
And he drowns them all in the Red Sea.
Verse number 5, the depths have covered them.
They sank into the bottom as a stone.
Thy, look at this, thy right hand, O Lord, is become glorious in power.
Thy right hand, O Lord, have dashed in pieces the enemy.
Boy, I wish I heard that being preached behind the pulpit when I was a young man.
Man, God, you will dash the enemies.
Like I had to learn, God gets a point where he's had enough.
He's merciful.
He gave Pharaoh time and Pharaoh hardens his heart.
And so God says, all right, I'll harden your heart, Pharaoh.
And here we have God just wiping out Pharaoh, wiping out the army, I should say, of the Egyptians.
Smites them in pieces.
Like some churches will have a hard time saying that is the God that I serve.
Because, I mean, everyone's got to the last, it was the last breath, wasn't it?
But everyone's got to the last breath to receive God as Savior, Christ as Savior.
No, look, if God's done with you, you're done.
You're finished.
You know, God is a God of war.
He's a man of war.
And the reason I wanted to read this from Exodus is because I said it's early in the Bible.
Like, you know, how much early do we get to know this God of the rest of the book?
And then you hear about it sometimes.
Yeah, but God in the New Testament changed his ways.
He mellowed out, pastor, don't you know?
Just like we do, old men, you know, we start young and full of zeal and excited.
And, you know, we think we know what's best.
And we always think we know what's right.
But then we turn 30, and then we're 40, then we're 50, and we say, oh, hold on.
I was probably a bit extreme.
We start to mellow out a little bit, right?
We start to be more balanced.
We start to be more perfect.
Ideally, that's the goal, right?
But no, no, God doesn't mellow out because God's always been righteous from the very beginning.
This is why we get to the book of Revelation.
You can turn there if you want.
And like the last book of the Bible from the very start to the very end in Revelation 19.
Revelation 19, you can turn there if you want.
Revelation 19, verse 11.
Revelation 19.
And this is what, you know, most churches when we talk about the coming of Christ,
like, usually we're meant to be excited about the coming of Christ.
And I'm excited about his coming.
Like, this is the coming where he comes and establishes his physical kingdom on the earth.
And the Bible tells me in Revelation 19, verse 11.
And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse.
And he that sat upon him was called faithful and true.
And in righteousness, he doth judge and make peace.
No, no, make war.
The book of Revelation, we're right at the end of the Bible.
And we learn that Christ is coming to make war.
A God of war.
Do you know this God?
A God of war.
Man, I'd be worried to be an enemy of God.
I'd be very concerned to be someone that hates the Lord.
Someone that hates God's church.
Someone that hates maybe you or I because we're God's children.
How do you feel if someone hates your kids?
How do you feel toward that person?
How do you think God feels about people that hate you and hate new life about this church,
and hate you walking in the righteousness of Christ,
mock you, persecute you, attack you behind your back.
How do you think God will respond to that?
I'll leave it with him.
He's a God of war.
He can dash the enemy in pieces.
Do you know God?
Do you know God tonight?
Do you know that God is a God of war?
Can you come with me back to Psalm 76?
Psalm 76, verse number four.
The Bible says,
Thou art more glorious and excellent than the mountains of prey.
You know, our God is a God that is most glorious and excellent.
Our God is a God that is most glorious and excellent.
And here the comparison is more than, so than the mountains of prey.
We know what prey is.
You know, prey is an animal that's been killed for food, right?
We'd say that's prey.
And so we talk about a mountain of prey.
We're talking about, you know, this has been used obviously symbolic of the possessions
and the desires that someone may want on this earth.
For a lion, it's man, if you could have a mountain of prey,
that would be like the ideal scenario for like a vicious animal,
like a lion or something like that, right?
It's like, what can you accumulate in life?
You know, for us, maybe it's, you know,
or maybe not necessarily us, but you know, as far as our society goes,
it might be the mansion or it might be the Ferrari, the Lamborghini.
You know, it might be early retirement at 30 years old
and travel the world and all these things, right?
That people desire.
You know, I mean, our mountain can be different things,
the things that we most want.
And I want you to just consider what is it that you most desire?
You know, where is your heart at tonight?
You know, and the Bible is telling me, man,
I ought to be desiring my God above anything this earth can give.
Anything, anything this earth can give.
Man, I'd love to have my mortgages paid off.
I ought to desire God much more than that, much more.
Man, I'd like to have a car that doesn't break down as often,
doesn't need service and repairs as often,
but man, I have a God and I know this God
and he's much more glorious and excellent than that.
Is that the God you know, the God who is most glorious,
most excellent?
Boy, like you think about what could you desire the most on this earth?
Say I've got God, yes.
You know, he's more glorious and excellent than the mountains of prey.
That's how God most glorious was, excellent.
Just desire in his presence, desire in his love,
his compassion, his mercy, his strength,
his comfort when we need it most.
You know, God is there for us through thick and thin.
And boy, again, what a beautiful God that we have.
Like how beautiful, like I've got the best thing that anyone could desire.
Think about the richest men, the most powerful men on the earth.
Think about maybe like a Donald Trump or someone like that
with a man that we know probably going to be the next president of the United States.
You know, he'd be the man with, you know, as they say,
whose fingers are on the bottom of nuclear warfare,
wars, weapons, I should say.
You know, he's a very wealthy man.
I mean, he essentially has what any man could desire on this earth.
And you know, you and I, we've got something more glorious.
We have something more excellent than the richest, most powerful men on this earth.
Is that the God you know?
You rejoice in the riches of knowing God, having God in your life,
his guidance and his love in your life.
And I think, you know, you get to know that and you get to appreciate that
the more you have personal one-on-one time with God.
I can tell you about God.
I can preach this chapter to you and tell you who God is,
but really you need to know him.
You need to go in prayer.
You need to pick up that Bible.
You need to sing praises in your own quiet time, your own personal time.
And like me, if you haven't done this already, like when I was 18, 19,
just ask God, God, who are you?
Can I know you better?
Lord, can you reveal your great truths to me?
Can you show me where I'm wrong?
Can you direct my paths?
Like I'm ready and willing God, do whatever you have to do to show me who you are.
And I had to pray, I prayed that when I was very young and I meant it.
I meant it deep down in my heart because I didn't know what life would bring.
I didn't know what direction to take.
I didn't know really what I was meant to do as I'm becoming an adult, right?
How am I supposed to think?
I mean, I kind of knew the Bible had instructions, but I really,
you know, when you go into a church where you're just hearing about
just God's grace and God's love and that's beautiful things,
but that's all you know.
What about the God of war though, right?
What about the God that I ought to desire,
that is more glorious and excellent than anything on this earth?
Can you teach me about that God?
And then when I have, because I have that God, I'm saved by that God,
then I can actually rejoice in my salvation.
And my position as a child of God, even more so.
Man, I mean, I'm his child.
And he tells me that I can, I'm going to receive an inheritance one day.
I'm going to be a joint heir with Jesus Christ.
How glorious, how beautiful is the God that I serve.
The Bible says in Philippians 3, 8,
Yea, doubtless I count all things, but loss for the excellency,
look at this, of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord.
For whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them,
but dung that I may win Christ.
He says, I counted all loss.
Paul says, anything I had, my reputation, my education,
my position as a Jew of the Jews, a Pharisee,
all these things that men can glory of.
He says, I count it, but loss for the excellency
of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord.
Man, it doesn't matter what degree you've got on the wall.
And I'm not against education, you know that.
I think you should be educated to a certain extent.
There should be knowledge.
God's given us a brain, right?
God's given us the ability to think, to reason.
I'm all for education.
You know, I'm all for doing the best you can
with the body that God has given you
and the strengths that God has given you.
I'm all for that.
But you know what?
I just count that all, but dung in comparison
to the knowledge of God, of Christ, who he is to me.
Do you know that God?
He was great.
He was glorious.
He was excellent.
More than the mountains of prey.
Come with me to Psalm 76.
Let's continue.
Verse number five.
Psalm 76 and verse number five.
The stout-hearted are spoiled.
They have slept their sleep, meaning they've died.
And none of the men of might have found their hands.
So obviously the stout-hearted,
these are people that are rebellious against God.
Maybe God's enemies, you know,
you can throw them in that category.
It says they've slept.
They've died in that sense.
And in what sense?
Look at verse number six.
At thy rebuke, O God of Jacob,
both the chariots and horse are cast into a dead sleep.
There it is, right?
There's the sleep.
It's a dead sleep.
So what do we learn?
That God kills.
And says verse number six.
At thy rebuke, O God of Jacob.
Next point that I have for you brethren,
is that our God is a God who rebukes.
Our God is a God who rebukes,
even to the point of death.
If God sees fit this person,
this situation, this army,
they've gone too far.
He says, let him sleep.
A dead sleep.
He can put people to death at his will as he rebukes.
But our God is a God that rebukes.
You know, to rebuke is a strong disapproval,
a sharp criticism.
You know, sometimes it's good to be a church,
not sometimes, it is good.
It is always good to be at a church
that you'll hear rebuke.
And I want to be able to rebuke you
through the Word of God.
As I prepare sermons,
I get rebuked as well.
All right, because God's Word is always true
and God's Word is like a mirror
and we look at it and we see our failings.
Every one of us.
Our God is a God that rebukes.
Do you know that God?
Are you willing to go before God and say,
God, I need to know you better.
God, I need to be rebuked by you too.
Wow.
God, I need to be corrected by you.
Lord, can you come down hard
when I'm in the wrong?
Can you criticize me sharply?
Can you make it obvious to me, Lord?
Boy, sometimes that's needed.
Many times I'm like, God, be merciful to me.
You know, because I know I'm at a point,
obviously now I've matured in the Lord, grown.
I know his Word.
I know the Lord more, God, God more.
And when I see my failings and my weaknesses
and my unfaithfulness,
then I know his rebuke is sharp.
So Lord, forgive me.
Be merciful to me.
You know, I know I'm in the wrong, Lord,
and I'm always in the wrong
and you're always in the right.
Do you know that God is a God who rebukes?
Because I've come across a lot of Christians,
when they're in the wrong,
they want to justify their error.
Sometimes I get phone calls,
Pastor, I've done this, this, this.
It's almost like, Pastor,
can you justify my actions?
Who am I but a man?
You're in the wrong, bro.
Like, you better run to God quickly
and sort it out quickly with him.
You know, our God is a God.
Are you ready to be rebuked?
Because a lot of us just make excuses.
Oh, well, God understands my situation.
I mean, if your situation is contrary to his Word,
yes, God understands,
and you're going to be rebuked for it.
God understands that you failed.
God's not like saying,
oh, he's sinned, but that's okay.
That's fine.
No, our God is a God that rebukes.
We need to be in that church
that we hear the rebuke of the Word from time to time.
Like, that's not my God.
My God is not just continuing to rebuke, rebuke, rebuke, rebuke.
But you know what?
If there are certain characteristics here tonight,
and you say, Pastor, I do not know,
I don't know that God.
Or I don't know that side of God.
Let that be a rebuke to you then.
Do you know God?
Because you've been saved for some time now.
You have his Word at your fingertips.
You have this church.
You have a lot of great online preaching even,
if you want to delve in deeper into God's Word.
We have the resources.
We have the information.
We have the truth of God's Word.
Do you know God though?
Do you know the God of Psalm 76?
He's the God that rebukes.
The Bible says, I'll read it to you quickly.
Hebrews 4-12, for the Word of God is quick and powerful
and sharper than any two-edged sword,
piercing even to the divinest sunder of soul and spirits
and of the joints and marrow,
and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the hearts.
Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight,
but all things are naked and opened
unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
God's Word just pierces through, looks at you openly.
You can't hide from God's Word.
You can't hide from his Word tonight.
And look, if there's something to be rebuked about tonight,
take the rebuke.
There are people that don't like our style of church.
It's too negative.
I mean, being rebuked is a negative thing, and that's our God.
A God is a God who rebukes.
Do you not want to know the Lord God of the Bible?
You want to create your own imaginary God
that's always fine with what you do and how you feel and how you think.
Man, I was sick and tired of that God.
I wanted to know the true God when I turned 18, 19.
So God, tell me who you are.
Reveal yourself to me, Lord.
Because I've been going to these watered down churches for long enough,
and I just don't even know sometimes, God.
Thank you for showing me the King James Bible.
I can know you better now.
So this is a good start to a good journey, I think, God.
And man, I had to be rebuked.
I wanted to hold on to that NIV, do you know that?
I wanted to hold on to that New King James Bible.
And God had to rebuke me.
I had to see the corruption of the word
and I might have had sentimental feelings toward those Bibles
because they were given as gifts or things like that,
people that I love and care about, you know?
So no, this is going straight to the bin because I want to know God.
I want to know who he is.
Back to Psalm 76 and verse number seven.
This is another area of God that I just did not know, verse number seven.
Thou, even thou, art to be feared.
You know, I go to church, the fear of God.
Oh, that's just a holy respect.
I'm like, yeah, but like I respect the pastor.
I respect my parents.
As a general thing, like people in authority
and people that are well to do, like not well to do,
like people of character, of, you know, of a decent,
you know, testimony and reputation.
I respect those people.
Is that what he means to fear the Lord,
just to kind of respect him, just to have a reverence toward him?
This is a sight of God that I did not know.
Thou, even thou, art to be feared.
And who may stand in thy sights when once thou art angry?
Look, our God is a terrible God.
Our God is a, I didn't want to say a God to be feared,
because as I said, people say, well, that's just respect.
No, no, no, no.
Our God is a terrible God.
Say, pastor, I've got a problem with you saying that.
Look at verse, look at the last verse in verse number 12.
He shall cut off the spirit of princes.
He is terrible to the kings of the earth.
To be feared is to have terror.
To shake in your boots at the thought of an almighty holy God,
and known full well you're a filthy sinner made of dust.
He who is not created, who has always been, right?
And who are we?
Man, thank God for salvation.
Thank God for Jesus.
I don't want to stand before God in judgment,
in my resurrected dust, going, God, let me into heaven.
I've done the best I can, and just showing him filthy rags.
Boy, you know, when we preach the gospel to the lost,
we're trying to get them to fear the Lord.
You're a sinner, and as sinners, we deserve hell.
We deserve the lake of fire forever and ever.
Oh, I don't want to know that's too scary.
That's the God that we saw.
Our God is a terrible God.
You're in Psalm, keep your finger there, come into Psalm 47.
While you turn to Psalm 47, I'll read to you from Deuteronomy chapter 7 21.
Deuteronomy 7 21 says,
Thou shalt not be a fright at them,
for the Lord thy God is among you, a mighty God and terrible.
Nehemiah 1 5, and said, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven,
the great and terrible God that keepeth covenant and mercy
for them that love him and observe his commandments.
You're there in Psalm 47 verse number two,
for the Lord most high is terrible.
He is a great king over all the earth.
Come with me to Psalm 68.
Psalm 68, please.
Psalm 68 verse number 35.
O God, thou art terrible out of thy holy places.
The God of Israel is he that giveth strength and power unto his people.
Blessed be God.
Wow, our God is a God of terror.
A terrible God.
One that ought to bring fear into our hearts.
And like, I don't know, I hate horror films,
that's not the kind of terror we're talking about.
This God is approachable.
You know what, when normally you have fear and terror,
you want to run away.
But you know what, when we see,
when we have the fear of God in our hearts,
and we shake in our boots,
really, that ought to go,
man, I want to know you more God.
What a great God that I serve.
All these pastors speak of him being terrible,
and yet great blessings upon his people that know him as such.
Yeah, I have a terror of God even tonight as I preach his word.
I want to do God justice.
Do you know God?
I'm trying to do my best to tell you who God is,
according to Psalm 76, at least.
Yeah, man, we could go on and on in the Bible,
look up the word terrible in the Bible about God,
and you'll find so many references
that he is a God worthy of our fear.
Yes, worthy of our respect.
Yes, worthy of our reverence,
but worthy of our fear.
Man, when you got the right dose of fear of God,
I promise you this, you're not going to fear anything else.
You're not going to fear man.
You're not going to fear the world.
You're not going to fear the devil,
because there's no one greater to fear than God himself.
Do you know this God?
I did not know that God.
I really did not know.
I mean, I guess I was concerned when I was a teenager.
If I messed up, God will chastise me.
But I can't really say that even as a teen,
I really suffered a great chastisement of God.
I mean, later in life I did.
I have, still do sometimes.
But, you know, even back then, I kind of,
maybe God's just more merciful to those
that lack a bit of knowledge, you know,
for those that seek him,
he's going to obviously lead us in paths.
And he's gentle, of course,
we know all these other wonderful attributes of God,
and he's long suffering, and he's merciful.
And I just wonder, boy, if I asked God,
if I said that prayer to God,
God, tell me who you are.
I want to know who you are.
And as God revealed himself to me,
if I just rejected it, where would I be?
Where would I be in life today?
I mean, I knew I was saved already,
but what kind of Christian would I be?
I don't think I'd be much,
I'd be on my way to heaven,
I'd be saved, praise God for Jesus Christ,
but I wouldn't be much more than that, I think.
You know, if you want to know God,
he's going to really reveal himself to you.
Are you ready to know this God?
He's a God who invokes fear.
He's a terrible God.
Come back with me to Psalm 76.
Psalm 76, Psalm 76 and verse number 8.
I won't spend too much time on this one,
but it says,
Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven,
the earth feared and was still.
Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven.
Our God is a God of judgment.
And this is one of my favorite attributes of God.
Because again, when I was that age, that 18,
I was really, what I really wanted,
I didn't know what I was asking for exactly,
but I was looking for a God of judgment.
God, what's right?
What's wrong?
You know, I go to this Christian school
and I listen to these teachers
and they're like,
ah, there's, you know,
God doesn't really throw anyone in hell.
It's like, no, the Bible says though.
Like I've got my school teacher telling me
God doesn't really throw anyone in hell
and the hell's not really a place of fire.
It's just eternal separation from God
and just a place of darkness.
And what's that?
Because the Bible tells me it's a place of fire and torment.
You know, I needed to know a God of judgment,
a God that tells me what is right and what is wrong.
A God that tells me what is holy and what is unholy.
A God that tells me what is day and what is night.
I wanted that God.
I didn't know what I was asking for exactly,
but that's really what I was seeking for.
Because again, you're at that certain age
and you realise, man, I'm coming out of high school.
It's like when you're in your schooling years,
your life is very structured.
You know, you just get on the train,
you go to school, you do your subjects,
back on the train, get back home
and watch Ninja Turtles or something
or whatever show was on at that time.
And that's the structure of your life.
And then you come out of school
and it's like, what now?
All this work, yeah, what kind of work?
Do I have TAFE, university, apprenticeship?
Do I want to work?
Do I just relax?
I've been in school all these last 13 years.
Do I want to do school again for four or five years?
So, lots of questions.
And then I'm seeing my friends who are Christians
living these ungodly lives.
And I'm just like, Lord, I don't understand.
What is right and what is wrong?
And then I'd visit a church
and I'd see people falling down and going crazy.
And they're telling me it's the power of the Holy Spirit
causing them to be slayed in the spirit
and they're jabbering in blah, blah, blah, blah, blah,
garbage tongues.
What is this God?
Some of these people are my friends.
Are they even saved?
Am I saved?
Like, what is right?
God, tell me who you are.
Show me who you are, Lord, please.
I didn't know what I was looking for at that time.
I was looking for his judgment.
God, tell me what is right and tell me what is wrong.
I need to know because I'm very confused in this world.
I go to these organizations called church
and I still don't know what's right and wrong.
I'm more confused than I've ever been, Lord.
Can you tell me who you are?
Look, our God is a God of judgment.
And look, his word tells us what is right.
Look, I tell you, your life will be blessed
if you just do what is right, even if it's hard.
You know, and yeah, you want your life to be hard?
Just do the opposite of what God says in your life.
You want to have major challenges
and unnecessary burdens and problems?
Just do the opposite of what God says.
I've lived long enough to see, man,
there's great blessings if you just do what is right.
If you say, God, your judgments are right
and help me walk in your paths of righteousness.
There are great blessings to be had.
So our God is a God of judgment.
I won't labor on that point too much.
Let's continue in verse number nine.
It says here, when God arose to judgment
to save all the meek of the earth, Selah,
our God is a God who saves.
Now we know that, right?
The God of our salvation, a God who saves.
I'm glad because man is a God of judgment
and I know I'm wrong.
I know I'm a sinner in his sights
and I deserve hell, but then he also saves me.
Oh, what a great God.
And it's not that my punishment disappeared or something.
No, the punishment that I deserved
was put on his son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
He's still just.
His judgment is still true.
My sins still needed to be punished.
But instead of putting it on me,
he saved me and put it on his son.
Wow, that's a great God.
That's a God worthy of praise and worship
and honor and fear.
A God that saves.
Isaiah 43 verse 11 says,
I even I am the Lord and beside me, there is no savior.
Beside me, there is no savior.
I can't remember what podcast I was listening to now.
The guy I've been interviewed said,
there is no God.
There is no one coming to save you.
You need to save yourself.
What garbage.
Besides God, there is no savior.
I praise God for the salvation of my soul.
That my Christ was punished in my place.
And who am I to deserve?
Man, I don't deserve it
because he's a God of mercy, a God of grace.
This is the God that I know.
I knew this already.
I knew this was my God.
And I'm so glad that I knew this God.
I'm so glad that at least I knew
that my God is a God who saves.
And again, I just thought when I was young,
that all my friends from our Christian school,
even if you're Lutheran, and even if you're Pentecostal,
and even if you're Anglican,
and even if you're Presbyterian,
I just thought we're all saved, aren't we?
It's Christ alone, faith alone.
And then it's like, yeah, yeah, yeah.
But, but, but what?
Did you turn from your sins?
No, I still sin today.
And so do you, you stupid liar.
You don't know the God that saves.
You're still trying to save yourself.
How foolish.
But I didn't know that.
I needed God to show me that.
Your friends are not saved.
What?
But they talk about Jesus.
Oh, the Bible says there's another Jesus.
There's another gospel.
There's another spirit.
Oh, I see now.
But I did not know that.
I just thought you said Jesus, you're saved.
You know, if you talk about Jesus
as your savior somehow,
whatever words you choose to use,
I thought we were just brothers in the Lord.
I did not know.
I did not know, really, that these people,
how lost, I mean, they don't know
the God that saves, really.
Thank God, I still knew this God.
I knew this one,
who saved me through Christ Jesus alone.
I'm glad my parents gave me that gospel message,
that it didn't have to be confused
as a young, at a young age.
I was confused at times,
but I wasn't confused because of God.
I was confused because of the crappy preaching
that I would hear at these Christian schools.
I'd hear about this guy who used to be
a drug addict and running with gangs
and in prison for 10 years
and his life turned around
and he's looking, I'm saved
because my life is better.
And I'm thinking, I don't know
if my life is really that much better.
Am I really saved
because I don't have this testimony?
Oh, my only testimony is Jesus.
I don't have this fancy one over there.
Oh, it took time, right?
No, no, no, you've got the right gospel.
You got the right Jesus.
Stop listening to this garbage.
I needed God to show me that it's garbage.
All that other stuff that I was listening to
was garbage.
What a waste of my time.
They're trying to tell me about a God
that is not even a God of the Bible.
I'm so thankful my parents told me
about the true God that saves.
Come with me to Psalm 76
and verse number 10.
I love this verse so much.
Surely the wrath of man
shall praise thee, huh?
The remainder of wrath
shall thou restrain.
The wrath of man,
God, like man's anger toward God.
All right, if God really existed,
you know, people would not be dying
of hunger on this earth.
What a horrible God you serve.
That wrath, the Bible tells me
that same wrath is going to praise him.
The Bible says in Philippians 2 10
that at the name of Jesus,
every knee should bow
of things in heaven and things in earth
and things under the earth.
You know, everybody that dies
and goes to hell
and rejected Christ as Saviour,
they're going to one day bow their knees
at the name of Jesus.
And it says in verse number 11
that every tongue,
the same tongues
that had the wrath of man toward God,
that every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord
to the glory of God the Father.
You know, all this wrath,
all this anger,
these enemies of God
that hate God so much,
God's going to judge them.
God's going to throw them in hell.
And you know what?
That's going to give God praise
as we see his righteousness
and his victory of these wicked people.
And they can't help it.
One day they're just going to be
giving praise to Jesus Christ
at the same time suffering
torments in hell forever and ever.
You know, I've heard about the Paris Olympics
and the opening ceremony.
I don't watch that stuff.
And it's all over Facebook.
I had to, not unfriend,
I had to unfollow a lot of people on Facebook
because they posted all these things
that were blasphemous toward God.
And I guess that's fine,
but I don't want to see
a whole bunch of trannies on Facebook.
I don't want to see these faggots
blaspheming God.
I don't want to see these,
I don't want to see them.
These people that are God haters,
I don't want to see their faces.
And you know, it's like,
I'm going to boycott the,
good, boycott the Olympics.
Good.
What junk.
But you know what?
At the end of the day,
I can get temporarily fired up a little bit
and just,
I'm more frustrated at seeing their faces
than what they did.
Because the Bible tells me,
surely the wrath of man shall praise thee.
At the end of the day,
these same filthy faggots
are going to be in the same tongue in hell
praising Jesus.
Saying, here's the Lord.
Here's the King.
Their knees are going to be bowed to Jesus.
They're going to be praising him.
Wow.
How much more should we praise him?
My final point was,
he's a praiseworthy God.
He's a praiseworthy God.
Man, these wicked people
are going to be forced
on their knees to praise God.
I just want to do it freely.
I'll give God's praise right now
at church,
amongst the great congregation.
I'll praise my heavenly Father
and his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
He's a praiseworthy God.
Let's continue there in Psalm 76 verse 11.
Vow and pay unto the Lord your God.
Let all that be round about him
bring presence unto him
that ought to be feared.
He shall cut off the spirit of princes.
He is terrible to the kings of the earth.
So look for us,
we have certain obligations.
We ought to be in church.
We ought to be reading the Word.
We ought to be opening our hearts to him in prayer,
bringing our supplications to him.
We ought to be preaching that wonderful
news of the gospel to the lost.
We have our obligations.
We have the things that we ought to do.
But you know what?
You're going to be more successful
at doing these things for God,
knowing who your great God is.
In conclusion,
number one,
your God is a great God.
Number two,
he's a God that dwells in peace.
Number three,
he's a God of war.
Number four,
he's a God most glorious and excellent.
Number five,
he's a God who rebukes.
Number six,
he's a terrible God.
Number seven,
he's a God of judgment.
Number eight,
he's a God who saves.
And number nine,
he's a praise worthy God.
Do you know this God?
Do you know the God of Psalm 76?
It was a bit of a journey for me
and I'm still discovering him more and more
and he's a wonderful God.
The more I know him,
he's my best friend.
He loves me.
He cares for me.
He cares for you.
He wants the best for you.
And I just thank God for who he is
and for revealing,
just like a friend.
You get to know a friend more
the more time you spend with them, right?
And the problem with a friend though,
you see the defects.
God's got no defects.
He's got no defects
and God sometimes tells me,
shows my defects.
He still loves me though.
He's still merciful.
He still rebukes me
but he does it for my benefit.
He does it for my profit.
He's a beautiful God that we serve.
Okay, let's pray.