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10 THE CONVENTION TEACHER Lesson II. January 11, 1948 WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT GOD SENIOR TOPIC: BELIEF IN GOD TODAY Isaiah 40:28-31; John 14: 8-14 [[line]] AUTHORIZED VERSION 28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. 29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall; 31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. 8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. 9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? 10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake. 12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. 13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it. [[line]] REVISED VERSION 28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard? The everlasting God, Jehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary; there is no searching of his understanding. 29 He giveth power to the faint; and to him that hath no might he increaseth strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: 31 but they that wait for Jehovah shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk, and not faint. 8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. 9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and dost thou not know me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; how sayest thou, Show us the Father? 10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I say unto you I speak not from myself: but the Father abiding in me doeth his works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake. 12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto the Father. 13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If ye shall ask anything in my name, that will I do. [[line]] MOTTO TEXT-Without faith it is impossible to please him. For whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Heb. 11:6. [[line]] LESSON SETTING Time: B. C. 708; A. D. Places: Judah and Jerusalem. LESSON OUTLINE 1. God is Almighty. (VV. 28-31.) II. A Special Discovery of God. (VV. 8-11.) III. Belief in God Brings Great Power. (VV. 12-14.) DAILY HOME READING January 5 - January 11. M. God Our Creator. Isaiah 40:28-31. T. God Our Deliverer. Psalms 33:12-22. W. God Our Refuge. Psalms 46. T. God Our Provider. Matthew 6:25-30. F. God Our Lord. Acts 17:22-31. S. God Our Joy. Philippians 4:4-9. S. God Our Father. John 14:8-14. INTRODUCTION The first four words of the Bible set for us the theme of Holy Scriptures. The creation story goes back to God as the source of all things, and the other part of the Bible is the record of God's revelation to man and of man's response to it. The inspired writer begins with the beginning, with the most important of all facts, the fact of God, the Creator, the Preserver, the Ruler and Redeemer of mankind. There is one thing basic in a man's theology--his thoughts of God. This idea regulates all his religious thinking. The thought you make of God is the thought that makes you. As is a man's thought of God so will his religion be. Given the arc, we can complete the circle; given a man's conception of God, we can know his religion. [[end page]] [[start page]] THE CONVENTION TEACHER 11 EXPOSITION I. GOD IS ALMIGHTY. (VV. 28-31.) (28) Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. The prophet reminds the people that the things they heard about Jehovah were sufficient to silence all their fears and distresses. Israel was a knowing people, or might have been, and their knowledge came by hearing, for wisdom cried in their chief places of their assemblies. Among other things, they had heard that power belongs to God. Psalm 62:11. He was from eternity and He will be to eternity; and with Him is no deficiency nor decay. He has His being of Himself and thus all His perfections must need be boundless. He is without beginnings of days or end of life. He is also the Creator of the ends of the earth. He, therefore, is the rightful Owner and Ruler of all; and must be known as having absolute power over all, and an all-sufficiency to help His people in their great straits. Thus He is just as able to save His church as to make a world. He has wisdom to contrive the salvation, and that wisdom never runs out. He never weakens, fainteth not, nor is weary, grow dull. There is no searching of his understanding, so as to countermine the counsels of it and defeat its intentions, not so much as even to determine what He will do, for He has ways by Himself. Nobody can say God's wisdom can go only so far; for He upholds the whole creation, and governs all the creatures, and is never tired. (29) He giveth power to the faint: and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Many suffering bodily weakness are wonderfully recovered, and made strong by the providence of God; and many that are feeble in spirit, cowardly and fainthearted, unable for services and sufferings, yet strengthened by the grace of God with all might in the inward man. Those who recognize their weakness and are ready to acknowledge they have no might, God does in a special way increase their strength, for when we are weak in ourselves, then are we strong in the Lord. (30) Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall. There are many youths who trust to their own efficiency, and are so confident of that, that they neither exercise themselves to the utmost and seeing their need of help must seek unto God for his grace. Some youths, because they are young, think themselves stronger than they are. They shall faint and be weary, yes they shall utterly fall in their services and fail in their conflicts and burdens. They soon shall see the folly in trusting in themselves. (31) But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Those who wait upon the Lord, who make conscious of their duty to Him and by faith rely upon Him and commit themselves to His guidance, those who do this God will not fail them. They shall renew their strength. They shall change their strength, as their work is changed; doing work, suffering work; they shall have strength to labor, strength to resist, strength to bear as the day so shall the strength be. With this added strength they shall soar upward, upward toward God. They shall mount up with wings as eagles; so strongly; so swiftly, high and heavenward. In the strength of divine grace, their souls ascend above the world, and even enter into the holiest. They shall press forward, forward toward heaven. They shall walk, they shall run the way of God's commands and with perseverance they shall not faint, and in due season they shall reap. In whatever work they are pursuing they shall not in any way be weakened. II. A SPECIAL DISCOVERY OF GOD. (VV. 8-11.) (8) Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Philip wanted to get some special discovery of the Father. Shew us the Father and it sufficeth us. This supposes an earnest desire of acquaintance with God as a Father. Grant us but one sight of the Father, and we have enough. As Philip speaks here, it intimates that he was not satisfied with such a discovery of the Father as Christ thought fit to give them, but he would press upon Him something further, and no less than some visible appearance of the glory of God, like that of Moses
