“Even from eternity I am He, And there is no one who can rescue from My hand; I act, and who can revoke or reverse it?”

Before any created thing ever even heard my Voice as I stood over the void. Before time, as it exists in your finite minds, was, I have always been.

You will never be able to undo the plans I have for you…

I don’t know about you, but for me, that’s a lot to take in. I imagine even those we consider “fathers of the faith”, those we place in the “super-Christian” category paused for a moment when taking a drink from that very tall glass?

Baby sips. That is how we must drink in—absorb, the enormity of our God. His scope. And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.” Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”  But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live”  Exodus 33:18-20.

He alone knows what we’re able of taking in at one sitting. And He alone knows what we can’t take in. What will stop us from flourishing. This Omnipresent, Omnipotent, Omniscient God offers us sips, recurrently, consistently over our lifetimes, allowing the densely concentrated richness of Himself to nourish, sustain, and increase our understating of just who this God we love, is. Consequently, through this sipping—via this gnosis, we grow as He Expands—increases, our capacity to take in more of Him. And so it goes with each new sip. As it is with our sanctification, so it is with our “understanding” of this unplumbed God. “Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways, and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?” –Job 26:14.

When we allow the Truth of this passage of Scripture to wash over us—to wash us clean of our usual “everyday” seeing; in an instant of divine revelation, divine clarity, we’re brought face to face with its purity, its holiness, and its scale. Then again, how could God’s Word be anything other than what He is? And, in that transformative moment of revelation—of awakening from our every-day-ness, we cannot help but be both humbled and enlarged—in chorus.

Suddenly this Sovereign God of the universe—the universe, shows up. Dwells among us. Stirs up our bellies. Our inner-most parts.This same God whom we all too often try to condense, make small to fit our desire for the route one-point-five-hour version of the God we seek on Sunday mornings, just shows up! Filling us with just the faintest whisper of His presence. And we are left silent, awe-struck, left limp, splayed out before Him. Coming away from this “unscheduled” encounter with just the slightest clue, the slightest clue, into just how powerful this God we serve is. He comes  to us when He chooses and, He leaves us in much the same way. “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon, and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” –Psalm 8:3-4.

Job knew this all too well.

In one day, out of what I’m sure felt like left field to him—this devout, “blameless” man of God, this loyal, church-going, every day Bible reading man, lost all 10 of his children, his servants, wealth, livestock, and health. Even his four besties turned on him! These “friends” of his share their opinions on his sudden calamity. They range from: it must be all your fault Job, to, perhaps God hadn’t punished you severely enough! And, adding insult to injury, these friends also suggest that Job’s children must have done something “awful”. Suggesting that perhaps they had brought about their own deaths. If Job hasn’t yet completely imploded from the weight of his sheer grief and dejection his own wife now takes a turn at him telling him to curse God and be done with it! After all, this isn’t what she had signed up for! And all of this because this unsearchable God allowed—granted, permission for Satan to test Jobs faith.

Our God is the God of Job. The unsearchable One. The One who both gives and takes away. For His good purpose…

And, if our love for this God should ever be so tested, we would be wise to be of the same mind concerning the ways of the Lord as was Job when, after much striving to figure Him out concluded: The wisdom of God is hidden from the human mind. Nonetheless, Job determines he will pursue such wisdom by fearing God and avoiding iniquity.  “After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.” –Job 42:10.

Our Big God is also the God of Abraham.

The God who provides a Ram in the bush foreknowing we’ll take up the knife in obedience.

He is the God who gives us the desire of our heart long after our hope for the thing has all but faded away. Then, once we “have” this desire—this precious thing He’s blessed us with, this God who is jealous for our affections just may ask us to return it—to offer it up to Him in faith. Not because He needs, He owns both the universe, as well as all the gifts He’s given us. It may not be that He even wants it back. What He wants, what He’s seeking, is us. All of us. All our heart, soul, mind, and strength. What He wants is for us to trust Him. To love Him above all else. All else. And, yet, knowing our love for Him is true, is first, held precious in our hearts above all else, He built into this test of loyalty, of commitment, mercy.

This All-knowing God has His answer before He ever asks us the question. The testing of our commitment to Him above all else is for our benefit not His. It’s for our growth. To strengthen our faith in this God we love and serve. He is after all, God all by Himself. He does not need us, He chooses us. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” –James 1:2-4.

This God, this beyond what we can even wildly dream of God, the One who speaks galaxies into existence, more, created the complexity and intricacy of those galaxies, putting them into orbit, each exact element in its exact place. He too hung the stars in the night sky and knows each by name. He’s the only One who has the answer as to how many grains of sand exist on every beach, lake, pond, on each shore, everywhere. As well as how many and the exact number of hairs on your head, on my head, on every head.

This same God thought up just how to create the most gossamer of veils. Then He placed them, these whisper thin filmy creations as wings on the backs of Dragon Flies. And He created green. And all the other colors. This Mighty God, this God who sits on the Throne of heaven seeing every-thing, everything, at once. Nothing—not one thing ever, escaping His All-Seeing eye fits Himself into my too small frail flesh that we might be One. That I might—you might, partake of heaven, of Righteousness—His, not ours, now, here on this earth. This God, too big to take in in 1000 lifetimes created me—you, that we might co-create with Him. Doesn’t that just blow your mind! God wants to use you. Partner with you.

This same God who created Neptune and breath and daisy petals wants to partner with you…

So, when I contemplate today’s Scripture, I quickly realize there is far too much I do not know—will never know, was not meant to know, this side of eternity, about this God. And I’m okay with that. I’m okay with it because I can pray for the wisdom I need. He gives it in abundance, freely. I can scour His Word too. And, I can seek this God directly for His wisdom. I have that kind of relationship with Him, because of Him. So, rather than even trying to answer today’s question posed by God ourselves, instead, let’s allow His own Words to give us our answer: “When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth.” The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” Only God can undo something He has done—allowed. Only He has that kind of Power. Even the curse of death must obey Him. Only God can save. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” This is the God we serve. And I for one, am humbled and blessed to be called to sit at His feet and proclaim, “My God How Great Thou Art!” Knowing I have only the slightest understanding of this Truth.

We come by faith believing, baby sips…

Friend, if you have yet to meet this God who you’ve just read about, now is the right time. This is the right place. You’re not here by accident. Please, stop, and repent of your sins, just tell God you’re terribly sorry, and ask this God into your life as your Lord and Savior. Remember, nothing gets past Him. He knew you’d be here, more, He’s the reason you are here….