E56 TRANSCRIPT Why being astonished about God is wonderful Who will be wowed and speechless
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Nancy Teague
nancy@crazygoodgod.org
Hi there. Welcome to crazy Good God podcast. I'm Nancy Teague and thanks for joining me.
00:15 Have you ever been wowed by God or something about Him? Have you ever thought your walk with Him would be one of astonishment about who He really is and who He says you are? Do you know that Isaiah 52 ends with astonishment?!
00:33 A few days ago I was being overwhelmed by how big His love is and I blurted out, “Lord, Your love knows no bounds!” It was so spontaneous it surprised me! The next morning I looked up the definition for bounds. It was like, whoa! It says, the line or plane indicating the limit of something; the greatest possible extent or degree of something. God’s love knows no degree or limit. KNOW in the GR – to see, perceive, experience. God experiences no line or plane in His love. It is un-dimensional because it is everywhere! LIMITATIONS of His love is NOT IN HIS KNOWING!
But religion sure defines limits and degrees! Guess what results? NO ASTONISHMENT! We are made to be astonished!
01:39 Do you know Augustine had an astonishing encounter with God when he died? Augustine, 354-430AD, an early church father who greatly influenced Protestant and Catholic theology. A prolific writer - over 200 books, 1000 sermons. Augustine said no intellectual processing could ever understand the mystery of the Godhead, but he was fascinated by its wonder. Augustine, on his deathbed, was surrounded by his closest friends. When he stopped breathing and slipped away to be with the Lord peace filled the room. Then suddenly, his eyes reopened! His face was aglow and he declared – “I have seen the Lord. All I have written is but straw.”, then he was gone. Isn’t that a telling statement?!
02:45 Another example of astonishment is Job. Towards the end of the Book of Job, the Lord asks him – “Shall the one who contends with the Almighty correct Him?” Job replied, “What shall I answer You - “I lay my hand over my mouth…” God then spoke to Job out of the whirlwind – “Prepare yourself like a man and I will question you and you shall answer Me…Would you indeed annul My judgment? Would you condemn Me that you may be justified?” Eventually Job was wowed. He said, "I have uttered what I did not understand...now my eye sees You."
03:32 Think about that! How easily we maintain our rightness and justify our beliefs, traditional church teachings, doctrines, philosophies of men which can be exalted thus judging and even condemning God! Are we more right in our rightness than God in His freely shared righteousness with all mankind?
03:55 How about this verse – ‘God in Christ reconciled the world to Themselves not counting their trespasses against them.’ That judgment of reconciliation is mind boggling! Check out Episode 55 for more understanding of God’s judgment.
04:14 Hmm, do we fit in C.S. Lewis’ statement –‘It would seem that our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak…like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the dirt because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday by the sea. We are far too easily pleased.’
Does our certainty (hmm, certainty is safe), how about complacency, ignorance, fear, pride keep us from astonishment?
04:51 Here’s Isaiah’s conclusion in Chapter 52 that ends in astonishment.
‘Depart, depart, don’t touch unclean things, go out from the midst of her.’ Earlier in Isaiah 52 God was saying – ‘Put on your beautiful garments, shake off the dust, remove the bond from your neck, stand up, then sit to abide in my rest.’
In other words depart from the lies you’ve believed about yourself, depart from the false identity – you are not wretched, not guilty or condemned. You are beautiful, accepted in the Beloved, made holy in Jesus before time began! Isaiah continues, ‘You will not depart in fear or haste for the Lord goes before you and is your rear guard!’ God will never leave us nor forsake us and He will perfect the good work He began in you!
05:43 Isaiah prophesies that Jesus’ visage was marred more than any man – yet He sprinkled the nations. He was exalted and very high.’ Consider how high Jesus was - lifted up on the cross. He said, “If I be lifted up I will draw all men to Myself.” That can also be understood as, “If I be lifted up I will draw ALL JUDGMENT TO MYSELF”. That’s a ‘WOW!’
06:11 Now the astonishing last verse in Isaiah 52 - “Kings shall shut their mouths at Him; for what had not been told them they shall see, and what they had not heard they will understand.” Look at that – even KINGS (AKA those who supposedly don’t need Him) will really see Him – be astonished, be speechless! Their positions of power, influence, intellect, giftings – will be like straw. My goodness, maybe we need to ask for STRAW ENCOUNTERS! How wonderful to know God really does want ALL to SEE AND HEAR astonishing truth!
Until next Wednesday, Bliss to you and never forget God is absolutely crazy about you.
References: Isaiah 52:11-15 Job 40:2-5,8 Job 42:3,5 Col 2:8 Heb 13:5 Php 1:6 2Tim 1:9 Jn 12:32 Isaiah 52:11