Who is the Holy Spirit?

Isaiah 55:&-56:8, Genesis 1:1-3, John 14:15-18, John 16:8-11, Acts 2:1-4

Isaiah 55:6 God says “my word…always…accomplishes all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it”

But why? Why is God’s word so powerful? Why, when we speak the gospel of Jesus Christ to people – words which seem so weak and a story which seems so weird and powerless (a guy rose from the dead, yeah right) – why does that change people’s lives? How can the gospel transform somebody? Change them completely?
Why have so many of us here experienced exactly that – these words which transformed our life?
Why is it true that if you go you grow? That the more consistent you are at church and at Bible group and reading the Bible yourself – you really do grow? Why?

Because when we hear the word, read the word of God, the Bible, we’re not just reading a book or hearing ordinary words – we are hearing the Spirit speak. The Spirit of God is speaking when the Bible is read. When you open your Bible, His voice is what you hear. When you share the gospel, He is there in power.

We meet the Spirit right at the beginning of the Bible in Genesis 1:1-3. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

The Hebrew word for Spirit is ruach, also meaning wind or breath. Just as when you speak your words are carried on your breath, He, the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, is literally the breath of God. He is the way God’s words are carried out in to the world.

Note that if there is no breath, there is no words. There is no division between the Spirit and the Word. Without the Spirit the Word is dead. That’s why we pray before we preach, before we read the Bible – we need the Spirit to make the Word alive.

This morning we are celebrating the Holy Spirit. Because today is Pentecost (pinse) – the day the Spirit was poured out on the church and the church was born. He is the reason why the word always accomplishes all God wants it to (Is 55:6)

So we’re going to look at what happened in Acts 2 when the Spirit was poured out on the church.
Then we’re going to listen to Jesus tell us what the Spirit’s role is – what does He do?
And then we’ll bring it back to Isaiah and see how the Spirit’s work at Pentecost and his work today fulfil His words given to Isaiah so many years ago.

1. What happened today?

Acts 2:1 On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

Jesus had left them. 40 days he had been with them after his resurrection – but then he rose up into heaven and was gone. They were a small group of about 120 men and women (Acts 1:15). They were hardly the stuff of legends. A small, powerless group, waiting obediently in Jerusalem just as Jesus had commanded.

And then the Spirit moved. The room shook, the wind roared, heavenly fire came down upon their heads and a new power filled them – the very power of God.

So what did they do? Healing? Miracles? Foretelling the future? Have a music show with fog machines and a preacher-man up front slaying people in the Spirit. All that nonsense we associate with the “Spirit” now.

No. They began speaking in other languages – the reversal of Babel where humanity was judged for rebelling against God. Here is hope that one day humanity can be united again – but now under God, instead of against him.
And what were they speaking? About the wonderful things God has done (v11). About the gospel. About Jesus. About the God who keeps his promises to rescue his people. Different tongues, but one message. The mark of the Spirit is not miracles – but people witnessing about Jesus.

And so Peter stands up and proclaims in a loud voice that God is fulfilling his promises in scripture, the promise in Joel that God’s Spirit would be poured out on his people in the last days, the days we now live in, the days of the church. And His Spirit is with us, each one of us, young and old, women and men, without exception.
And he ends with these words – Peter, Peter who was always saying the wrong things at the wrong time, now empowered by the Spirit:
Ac 2:32–36 “God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this. 33 Now he is exalted to the place of highest honour in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today. … 36 “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”

Before Pentecost there were about 120 believers. The Spirit came down, empowered his people, and THREE THOUSAND responded to Peter’s message. (Acts 2:41). Three thousand saved in one day.

That is the power of the Spirit. And He is here today, this morning at work in this church. As we share the gospel at work, at home, wherever, whoever - He is with us. So let us not be afraid, but be bold to speak about Jesus. For we are not alone.

2. We are not alone. The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus, is with us

John 14:15–18 “If you love me, obey my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate (representative), who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. 18 No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you.

This is Jesus’ last night with his disciples before his betrayal, trial, and death by crucifixion. He is speaking plainly to them, preparing them for what will happen to them, and to the church after them. So what does Jesus say will happen?

Firstly, v16, Jesus, having become human, must return to heaven in order to be with his people. He cannot be everywhere at once, but his Spirit can. So Jesus returns to heaven and the Father sends the Spirit. And the Spirit will never leave us. Hurray for Ascension Day!

Secondly, the Spirit lives in us. V17 But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. That “later” was at Pentecost, when the Spirit entered in to the disciples in a visible way. And that is the experience of every Christian – the Spirit moves in, makes His home in our hearts. That’s why we start to change from the inside out. We can’t sin properly anymore! Because we’re under new management. The Spirit is at work.

Thirdly, to have the Spirit is to have Jesus. Note v18 “I will not abandon you… I will come to you” Jesus and the Spirit are one. One God in three Persons. The Father is fully God, Jesus is fully God, the Spirit is fully God. To have one is to have all. And we have the Spirit. We have the very power of God in us.

Jesus was leaving – but we are not left alone. His Spirit is with us. Not just alongside us, but in us. He gives us a new heart, new motivations – we are made new from the inside out.

So brothers, let us remember that next time we feel tempted to sin, or say “I can’t do it”. The Spirit of God is in you and in me.
The same Spirit who empowered the words “let there be light”. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead. You can obey God because He is with you and in you.

His word empowers us because the Spirit is with us.
We are not alone.

3. But what will the Spirit do?

When we start talking about the Holy Spirit and his work we often jump to things like healing or prophecy or singing. And we believe in those things in this church. We prophesy in Bible study, we sing here & in Bible study, and we pray regularly for healing. But that’s not what the Holy Spirit’s job is.

No-one can understand the Spirit’s work without carefully considering what JESUS said about the Spirit. His words are in John 16:8-11

8 And when he (the Spirit) comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. 9 The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. 10 Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. 11 Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.

What is the Spirit’s job? His primary job? To convict the world! He is the power which convicts which means to convince of error or sinfulness – to find a defendant guilty.

And how does he convict? Well notice that His work is focussed on Jesus.
He convicts us of sin. How? In our attitude to Jesus. V9 We refuse to believe in Jesus.
He convicts of God’s righteousness. How? Through Jesus, v10 – because he dies – he goes to the Father.
He convicts of judgement – because v11 the ruler of this world, Satan, is judged, and defeated on the Cross.

The Spirit’s primary role, the main event, is the gospel of Jesus. The Spirit’s role is to glorify Jesus, the Son. Jesus glorifies his Father. And the Father glorifies the Son.

If you want to be filled with the Spirit – tell people about Jesus. When we’re talking about Jesus, the Spirit is there.

So back to Isaiah.

4. Seek the Lord!

What better way to celebrate this Pentecost Day, this pinsedag than to Is:55:8 Seek the LORD while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. 7 Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the LORD that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously

Do you hear the Spirit’s words this morning? Do you hear him calling to you? Seek the Lord while he can be found. He will forgive generously. We know. We’ve seen the end. We’ve seen the promises fulfilled. Jesus, on the cross, his death paying for my sin – and yours. His resurrection life defeating death and bringing me eternal life. And offering you eternal life too.

Listen to the words of the Spirit.

Isn’t it an incredible message! Yes it is. This is what God has been saying to his people – I’m, going to do something amazing, something unbelievable. That God himself will come down to earth, become one of us, walk among us, eat with us, laugh with us, cry with us, be one of us – and then suffer for us, die in our place, that we might have life. But that’s not all – for when we accept Christ – when he swaps places with us and takes the punishment of death that our sins deserved – we swap places with him. In perfect relationship with God. So perfect, we are so righteous in God’s sight because of the work of Jesus, that His Spirit can come to live in us. New life flows through us because of what he has done.

8 “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. 9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

Who could have imagined such mercy? Thank God his thoughts are not like ours! Higher thoughts.

And so His powerful word goes out, changing lives. My life. Your life. Your neighbour’s life. The people you work with. Your children. Your parents. There is no-one beyond the power of God.

10 “The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. 11 It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.

And so, if we are in Christ, our hope is secure. The Spirit is the deposit guaranteeing our inheritance. He is the first taste of the joy to come. 12 You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills will burst into song, and the trees of the field will clap their hands!

The way is open. Foreigners (v3) and eunuchs (v4) (castrated servants) now have hope. They were excluded from worshipping at the Temple. On the outside looking in. But now the way is open. 7 I will bring them to my holy mountain of Jerusalem and will fill them with joy in my house of prayer. I will accept their burnt offerings and sacrifices, because my Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations. 8 For the Sovereign LORD, who brings back the outcasts of Israel, says: I will bring others, too, besides my people Israel.”

That promise happened today, 1977 or so years ago. When the floodgates of heaven were opened at the Spirit poured out on His church, and Jews from every nation heard the gospel in their own language. From Jerusalem to Jews, to Judea, to the Samaritans, and then to us Gentiles, foreigners, the Spirit spread His church, and is still doing so today – in China, in Iran, even in North Korea – and yes, even here in Notodden, Norway. He is at work, brothers and sisters. At work in us helping us obey Christ. At work in those around us, drawing them to Christ.

So what does this mean for us today? A few points of application to end.

Firstly: Seek the Lord while he may be found. If you don’t yet know him, seek him. Look for him. Listen to the Spirit calling to you. Investigate the evidence for Jesus’ death and resurrection. Keep coming to church and to Bible study. Search for the truth. And then ask the Spirit to show you Jesus.

Secondly: Christian brothers and sisters, let us obey Christ, knowing we have the Spirit of Jesus within us. The same power that raised Christ from the dead. As Jesus said “If you love me, you will obey my commands”.
What commands? Well, let’s consider the three big areas we struggle with because of the society we live in: time, money, and sex (or wallet, willy and watch as my friend Doug calls it).

Money: When we give, it is a sign that we trust the Lord, instead of ourselves, to provide. I am happy that about half the church gives. But concerned that half the church gives. This means that half of us are trusting in ourselves, rather than God, to provide for our needs. How much you give – that is a wisdom issue. But that you give, that we all give, I am very concerned about. We live in a greedy society, and we are greedy people. Giving breaks that hold over us. Ask the Spirit to break that hold in your lives, and make a decision to give regularly and give first – the first thing that goes out when you salary comes in – and you may be very surprised at what happens. The Lord looks after his people.

Sex: I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that every one of us in this room is a sexual sinner, whether in thought or in what we’ve done. God’s view on sex is easy: are you married to the person? Have sex with them. Lots of sex. Are you not married to the person? Do not have sex with them.
So if you’re married but not having sex often, repent. If there’s a medical reason – sort it out as quickly as possible. If there’s relationship issues, sort it out. You have the Spirit. Decide to obey.
And if you’re having sex with someone you’re not married to, repent. That includes looking at pornography. You’re not married to her, so you shouldn’t be watching her having sex. And if you’re living together, get married – it’s a statement that you trust God. And if you’re sleeping around (having sex with lots of people), just stop.
Why? Because if we love Jesus, we will obey his commands. Because we are new people and the Spirit lives within us, and the power of heaven is at our disposal, if we ask.
You do know how you fight sexual temptation? With your hat. Grab your hat and RUN! But seriously we mustn’t get ourselves into situations where we could be tempted. Don’t even go there.

Time. If you go you grow. Simple but true. And I’d simply like to challenge us all to put “church” and “bible study” in the same category we put work. If a friend phones and says “can I come over on Monday morning” you say “no, dude, I’m at work”. But if he says Sunday morning we’re often like sure, I can miss church once. Remember that we are in a battle. We need all the help we can get. We need each other. We need Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings. So many of us struggle – even just with money and sex, but also lying, gossip, anger, worry, disobedience, harsh words, bitterness, and so on – and part of the reason we struggle is because we’re not using the weapons God has already given us. This church! Satan shudders every time you walk into church. Because here you hear the Word of God. That powerful word, carried by the Spirit.

So let us obey the Lord, knowing we have his power within us. And let us share the joy that we have, the joy of Jesus, knowing that when we talk about Him, the Spirit is with us and is at work convicting about sin, about judgement, and about salvation.

Genesis 1:1-2:4 The God who speaks

Genesis 1:1-2:4

If God did not speak, we would all of us be lost.

For how could we know God?

If he did not speak, we would not know him.

We would know of him: all creation speaks of his handiwork. The detailed design in the world shows a designer - but we would not know the designer.

Last week we looked at the big point of Genesis 1: The God who is there. He is the Creator, and he is the ONLY Creator. The second big point in Genesis 1 is that The God who is there is also the God who speaks. He has made himself known. He speaks through his word, and his final word to the world is Christ Himself, the ultimate revelation of God. We know God, the unknowable, invisible, because he became a man, knowable, visible. He is the God who speaks.

1. God brings order through his word

2. God brings light through his word

3. God is his Word

1. God brings order through his word

1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.

The earth was without form and empty. The universe did not exist. No stars, no sun, no moon, no trees, no animals, no people, no light, no night, no day. Nothing. Empty. Formless.

And then God speaks.

There is order, purpose, set roles and responsibilities in the universe, in our world, because God has made it so. He brings order out of chaos.

The careful order of the chapter emphasises God’s order.

In the first three days, the earth is prepared – the next three days, the earth is filled.
On day 1 (v3-5) God creates day and night “Let there be light”...and he called the light “day” and the darkness “night”
On day 2 (vv6-8) God creates the oceans and skies “Let there be a space between the waters, to separate the waters of the heavens from the waters of the earth.”
And on day 3 God creates land and plants.

Then on day 4 (vv14-19) God creates the sun to fill the day, and the moon and stars to fill the night (created on day 1)
On day 5 (v20-23) he creates the fish to fill the sea and the birds to fill the sky – created on day 2.
And on day 6 animals and people, to live on the land, and eat the plants for food (created on day 3).

Order out of chaos. The first three days, the earth is prepared – the next three days, the earth is filled.

There is order in our world by the word of God. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Every day. By the word of God. The earth orbits the sun, every year. By the word of God. Summer follows Spring, Autumn follows Summer, by the word of God. Chemical reactions give the same result every time. Maths sums always yield the same result. We live in a universe of ordered predictability because God has created it so, by his Word.
It is this very idea, this understanding that gave rise to modern, experimental science. Without a belief in the Christian God science as we know it would not exist. Without Genesis 1 science would not exist. Other religions generally have a battleground of gods, which leads to great changes in the universe, making repeatable experiments impossible. Ironically, the modern atheist with all his faith in science has a worldview which depends on Genesis 1!

Science can exist because God’s word brings order out of chaos.

But there’s more. Because at the end of each day he pronounces his judgement on the day. V4, 12, 18, 21, 25, he saw that it was “good” 31 it was “very good”, and in 2:3 he blesses the day and makes it holy (set apart). God’s word brings not just physical order but also moral order. He declares what is good and bad.

What is “good” is whatever obeys him. The days are “good” because what he says must happen does happen. God’s will is done. That’s what good means. “God saw that it was good”.

Things are not good or bad in and of themselves, but based on God’s declaration. Our value is defined by God. He is Creator. Everything that aligns with his goals is good. Everything working against him is not. Think of an artist chipping away at a block of stone. The chips on the floor are worthless to him – the goal is the sculpture before him. Or a garden – trimming off branches that are growing the wrong way, or the soil producing the wrong plants, or a tree producing bad fruit – the branches are chopped off, soil is replaced, the tree is cut down – it is worthless, to be thrown into the fire.

That idea of “good” and “bad” is throughout the universe. Just like light and dark, there is good and bad. There are moral laws just like there are physical laws. And disobeying God’s moral laws has consequences, just like disobeying God’s physical laws. We can try to disobey gravity and jump off the roof saying “I can fly” – the reality will hurt! In the same way we can try to disobey God’s moral laws and say, for example, “I’ll just tell this little lie, that wouldn’t hurt anyone” – the reality will lead to bigger lies, mistrust, broken or damaged relationships.

Having sex with lots of different people will probably lead to a number of sexually transmitted diseases, maybe a lot of single-parent children (or worse, a lot of dead children killed in the womb) and will certainly lead to deep emotional pain. Just like kicking a wooden box with your little toe can maybe break it and will certainly lead to deep pain! We live in a world of moral and physical laws.

God has declared a moral order to the universe, and we cannot avoid it anymore than we can avoid gravity. The pain we experience when we have been hurt by someone, or even when we hurt someone reminds us that we are not God, we do not make “the Rules”.

Our society is always trying to get away from God’s laws and remake them in their own image. We trash our world, instead of ruling it in God’s image (see verse 26). And so we have acid rain, and cancer, and mad cow disease, and new deserts.
We trash our relationships, and call it “free love” – no sexual morals – “its morals that make us unhappy”. As a result we have a huge increase in STD’s, huge increase in abortions, kids living each week in a different house, huge increase in child abuse, not to mention all the people on sick leave or with psychiatric problems because of their relational mess. It’s like a tsunami or earthquake – the destruction in our society is huge.

God has ordered morality, and we break that order at our peril!

God’s word brings order. Physical order. Moral order.

2. God’s word brings light

After v1 “In the beginning, God” the most famous and arguably even more significant verse is verse 3 God said “Let there be light!” and there was light.

Light. God is light and he brings light to darkness.

Remember last week we saw that it is not the dark night sky that the Israelites were warned not to worship, and it was not the inky blackness that many nations around them worshipped (and many still worship) - but the great big lights, the moon and the sun and stars. We worship the light. We are made to worship the light.

We love the light, and we’re afraid of the dark. But we are also afraid of the light. Not the light itself – rather we fear being exposed by the light!
We fear the light. For we fear exposure. Adam and Eve in chapter 3 hide from God. Why? Because they had sinned against him and they feared being found out. But God knew where they were. Adam, Eve, where are you?

Light is both thrilling, invigorating, wonderful – and terrifying as we come face to face with the darkness within ourselves. If you’ve ever crawled through a dusty, dirty attic in the roof or cave or something – you don’t realise how filthy you’ve become until you stand blinking in the sunlight. Good grief! Look at me!
In the gloom of hardly any light you looked clean. In the bright morning sun – ugh!

“Let there be light” is a terrifying thing to hear for us. For we must then face that which we don’t want to face. We are dark, we are dirty, we are hiding in the bushes with a leaf around our genitals realising that we have sinned against God.

That’s why we so often struggle with the Bible. It is a deep, piercing light that cuts through to our very heart, exposing us before the eyes of the Lord. It’s like opening the sun, blazing out at us. God’s word brings light.

But God does not just turn on the light. He creates the light. Remember v2 The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. Then God said “Let there be light!”

Don’t forget that the same God who exposes your darkness also is the God who creates light out of darkness. He has done it before, and he will do it again. Genesis and the first five books (Pentateuch) are carefully structured to remind us that what God has done in the past, he will do in the future. It is written as an “eschatological reading of historical narratives” – looking back, it points forward. And we know that it points forward to Christ, and our hope in the gospel. For it is the gospel which brings light to the darkness.

In Genesis chapter 6 we will see that the world is plunged into darkness and chaos. Gen 6:5 The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil.

Darkness covers the world. And God says “Let there be light” 6:8 But Noah found favour with the LORD.
In chapter 11 the Tower of Babel was man’s attempt to reach up to pull God down from heaven, to say, “We are like God”. God reaches down and scatters the people, and darkness covers the land.
“Let there be light” and Abraham hears the word of God, believes him, and is credited with righteousness. Moses is declared to be righteous, David, declared to be a man after God’s own heart.
Let there be light in the darkness. And finally, someone arrives who says “I am the light”: John 8:12 Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”

God’s word brings light because…

3. God is his Word

Now before you accuse me of Bibliolatry (Bible worship!), I did not say that the word is God. The Bible is not God. However, God is the Bible, just like a recording of me, is me.
The Bible is God’s living Word to us, and His Spirit inspired it, He wrote it, He gives it power and life. It is his voice to us. The book of Hebrews in chapter 3:7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion” He speaks through his word today.”

To listen to God’s Word is to listen to God himself. Our God speaks to reveal himself to us. We can know him. We can know him!

And because God’s Word is God’s revelation of himself to us, Jesus himself is called “the Word” in John 1. Jesus is the clearest and ultimate revelation of God. To know Jesus, is to know God, for Jesus is God. John 1:1–5 (NLT) In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He existed in the beginning with God. 3 God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. 4 The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.

God is his word.
And therefore a Christian who refuses to obey the Bible is not a Christian.
A Christian who goes to church and prays but pays no attention to his Bible is not a Christian, just like a “friend” who comes up and talks at you and then leaves, never listening to a word you say, who does not even know the first thing about you, is not a friend.
To ignore God’s Word is to ignore God himself.

Someone who calls themselves a Christian but “has issues” with things clearly taught in the Bible like sex being for marriage, or God being sovereign, or Jesus rising from the dead, or Jesus being God, or Jesus being the only way to God, or that all of us - even children - are sinners, or the only way to be saved is through faith in Jesus’ work on the cross and not by good works… that person is on shaky ground. To ignore God’s Word is to ignore God Himself. To ignore parts of God’s Word, or to choose which bits you like or don’t like – is to choose to ignore God himself, and to set yourself up as God over God. Dangerous ground, and if that is you – repent.

Instead we should have confidence that the same Voice which called the Universe into being, which brought order out of chaos and light out of darkness, is the same Voice which can call order out of chaos in our lives, in our town. Don’t judge God’s word – obey it. Live in the light. Live in order, not chaos.

To preach the Bible is to declare the Voice of God to the world. That’s why I have confidence in Rock Church being filled to the brim – we looked at a building the other day which could only seat 60 and I said “that’s too small” – so did Mia. Our confidence comes not from ourselves but from the power of God’s Word. The same Word which brought order out of chaos and light out of darkness throughout history and today, right now, all over this world – that same Word can bring light and order to Notodden. Our friends and neighbours, those we treasure and love and care for, our townsmen – Lord, we give them to you. Speak your Word of Life to them Father.

Have confidence in the gospel. This seemingly weak, strange message of a God-Man dying on a cross is the very CREATION POWER of God. Look around you and SEE the power of God’s Word. With every breath be reminded that his Word is powerful. And speak the gospel. When you are afraid to share the gospel – look at creation, know that it is God’s Word that sustains it, you’re only breathing because God commands it - God is in control – and speak.

Because the Word of God declares what is “good” and what is not. We began by looking at God ordering creation, physically and morally. And we saw that God creates moral laws by saying “this is good”. The value of something, or even someone, is in God’s declaration. And through Christ’s work on the Cross, by God’s grace, he is in the business of declaring “good” what is, in and of itself, bad.

This really helped me, to see God declaring his creation work “good” or “very good”. Not in and of itself, but its worth coming from him. So when he says of me, in Christ, “good”, then it is simply true. I am good because he has declared me good. Just as on the first day light was good because God said it was so. Praise God.

In Christ I am good. Not because I am good, but by God’s word. To use the language of Romans: I am declared righteous. And therefore, I am righteous.

It is mind-blowing. God brings order out of chaos. God brings light out of darkness. Through his Word, because he is his word. Let us listen to him, let us know him.
"I am the Lord; I will speak the word that I will speak, and it will be performed." Ezekiel 12:25