December 16, 2007 Second Sunday of Advent
Sermon Title: “The Wonders of His Love”
Series: Love Came Down At Christmas
Text: Psalm 136:1-4
Dr.
Delivered on December 16, 2007
“O give thanks to the Lord…who alone does great
wonders,
For his steadfast love endures forever.”
Psalm 136:4
The Wonders of His Love
The “
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The Great Pyramid of
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The
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The Statue of Zeus at
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The
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The Mausoleum of Maussollos at
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The
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The Lighthouse of
These amazing
wonders were built by some of the greatest civilizations known to man. The
Great Pyramid was built by the ancient Egyptians, the
Webster’s
dictionary defines a “wonder” as, “something that causes astonishment or
admiration; something that is awesomely mysterious or new to one’s experience.”
I’ve got my own list of things that cause, or have caused, wonder in me as I
experienced them. I was present at the birth of both my children. What an
amazing wonder that was. Other experiences were more spontaneous, but no less
amazing: turning a corner in
This morning I want to talk about a wonder on an entirely different level, the “Wonder of God’s Love.” The Seven Ancient Wonders inspire awe, but they also proclaim man’s need for power, admiration, and spiritual satisfaction. They also wither under the forces of nature and man (only one of the seven is still standing). God’s wonders, on the other hand, are limitless and eternal. They strike awe into the hearts of those who behold them and they draw people to God so that He might establish a relationship with them. That was true in Old Testament times and it is true today.
We’re continuing
our series this morning called “Love Came Down at Christmas” and we’re
talking all about God’s love, which is also the first clause of our church
mission statement. Today we’re going to build a sentence together about the awesome
wonder of God’s love. By the way, that title came about because was I’ve been
listening to Christmas music a lot lately, and one of my favorite Christmas
songs is “Joy to the World.” In that song there’s a refrain that says, “And
wonders of his love, and wonders of his love, and wonders, and wonders of his
love.” I began thinking, “What are the wonders of God’s love?” I searched
through the Psalms, starting with Psalm 98; the one Joy to the World was based
on by
Before we go too far let me give you a little background the Psalm.
Psalm 136 is by
an anonymous author, but its message clearly reveals that the writer knew God’s
powerful love, valued the history of God’s people, and understood the
importance of praise. The psalm is a psalm of praise used in temple worship in
One of the most
important things about the Psalm is the use of a certain word, the Hebrew word hesed. Hesed is the Hebrew word for the consistent,
ever-faithful, relentless, constantly-pursuing, lavish, extravagant,
unrestrained, amazing love of God demonstrated most clearly in the birth, life,
death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The old King James version translated
the word “loving-kindness.” The main thing to remember about the psalm is the
one thing the psalmist won’t let you forget, and that is that “the steadfast
love of the Lord endures forever.”
That said; let’s construct our sentence about the “Wonders of His Love.”
Our sentence starts like this: God’s love ALWAYS. Always what? You might be thinking. Well…the answer to that is always everything! God’s love is always available to you. That’s what the Psalmist meant when he had the congregation repeat the refrain over and over again, “...for his steadfast love endures forever.” They repeated that chorus 26 times! (ki le'Olam khasdo pronounced Key-lay-olam-haatso)
You know, “always” is a word we hear, and perhaps even say a lot, but when it comes right down to it, how many things can you think of really fit the category of “always?” I mean, outside of the two classic ones you hear, “death and taxes,” what other things can you think of are “always?” We claim we’ll “always” love someone, or that we’ll “always” keep our promises, but honestly, in human terms we “always” usually really means, “most of the time.”
Not so with God. God’s “always” is just that, always. One of the great characteristics of God is what theologians call his immutability which is the divine attribute of unchangeableness. God said in Exodus 3:14, "I AM that I AM," signifying His eternal sameness and His sovereignty. In the New Testament book of Hebrews we read that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb. 13:8). It’s the divine quality of being incapable of mutation. We humans, on the other hand, change like chameleons. Like I said, our always means “most of the time.”
I can’t tell you how many weddings I’ve officiated at where I’ve read out those famous words to be repeated by the bride and the groom: “…for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until death do us part.” But human love being what it is, some of the marriages I’ve officiated at have dissolved. For whatever reason…one or both of the couple’s “always” didn’t really mean always.
God’s love,
unlike ours, endures forever – always!
The next word in our sentence is PROVIDES. God’s love always PROVIDES. God’s supply is always greater than your need. The four verses the psalmist recites here on creation remind of God’s constant provision: “He...laid out earth on ocean foundations...and filled the skies with light… He takes care of everyone in time of need.” Psalm 136:5-9,25 (MSG)
God knows that every living thing in this world wakes up each and every morning with an appetite. And yet he is not overwhelmed. He never forgets to provide, and his storehouse of provision is greater than we can possibly imagine. If you’re worried about God’s provision for you, remember this, the Bible tells us in the Book of Exodus that God sustained some 3 million Israelites in the wilderness for 40 years.
Jesus believed that God always provides. In his famous Sermon on the Mount he said, “Therefore do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear” (Matt. 6:25). Why not worry? Because your Father in heaven knows your every need and he always provides.
The Apostle Paul also believed that God always provides. In Philippians 4:19 he wrote, “My God will meet all your needs according to his riches in glory.”
The question for you is, do YOU believe that God, whose very essence is love, always provides for your needs out of that lovingkindness?
I don’t know about you, but I sometimes question God’s provision, especially for me. I sometimes feel like that (strange-looking) kid in the Polar Express movie that seems to be on 24/7 right now. I don’t know the whole story, but he clearly has trouble believing. He sees everyone else experiencing Christmas, but his heart won’t let him believe. He can even admit that Christmas is real and does come for some people, but it just doesn’t happen for him. That’s how I feel sometimes. Sure God is real, and he definitely provides for some people, but does he really know my deepest needs and is he trustworthy enough to provide what I need? Even me? When I start feeling that way in the future I think I’ll speak this truth over those “feelings.” “His steadfast love endures forever.”
The next word in our sentence is DELIVERS: God’s love always provides and DELIVERS. That means God’s power is always greater than your enemy, whoever, or whatever that enemy may be. In the case of the Israelites, it was the dreaded Egyptians. Verses 10-16 recount God freeing them from bondage to Egypt, “He...rescued Israel from Egypt’s oppression...took Israel in his powerful hand...split the Red Sea in half...led Israel right through the middle….dumped Pharaoh and his army in the sea….and rescued us from our foes.” Psalm 136:10-16,24 (MSG)
Of course, once they got the Egyptians off their backs there were a host of other “enemies” lined up that they had to deal with.
That’s often how it is with you and me too, isn’t it. God delivers us from one thing and the next thing we know, we’re on the brink of another disaster. Some other enemy has us by the throat. It reminds me of when our children were little and first learning to walk. Some days it seemed like they would totter from the brink of one disaster, say pulling a hot pan off the stove on their head, to another, like cracking their skull on the fireplace. At times it seemed like a full time job just keeping them from hurting themselves. I remember feeling like the house keeper for the old cartoon character Mr. Magoo at times. Remember him? Mr. Magoo was a wealthy, short-statured man who got into a series of sticky situations as a result of his nearsightedness, compounded by his stubborn refusal to admit the problem. He had this house boy who took care of him and he was continually getting hurt as he tried to keep Mr. Magoo from being injured. I remember quite a few “dives” and “last second catches” to keep my kids from injury.
That’s the way it was with the Israelites and God too. They’d stumble from the clutches of one danger or one enemy to another. And yet each time God would faithfully deliver them, often at great cost to himself. And every rescue God performed was done out of His love, not out of obligation. He didn’t have to, he wanted to.
Of course the
greatest example of God’s deliverance, fostered by his love, was what Christ
did for us on the cross. The exodus from
The final word in our sentence as we talk about the wonders of God’s love is SUSTAINS. God’s love always provides, delivers, and SUSTAINS. Look at what the Psalmist reminds us that God did next for his chosen people, “He...led his people through the wilderness...struck down great kings...and gave their land as a heritage.” Psalm 136:17-22. That means God has better plans for you than you do, and whatever God gives you can never be taken from you.
God created the entire universe, delivers it, sustains it, and is even now in the process of bringing it to its fulfillment. When the dark days come, we realize what sustains us is our relationship with God. But we need to grasp the understanding that even in the good times it is God who is sustaining us, bringing us into a “good land,” a “fertile land flowing with milk and honey.”
So often we
begin feeling invincible – what came to mind to me when I thought about this
was the situation with our drought here in
It’s not food, or water, or education that sustains us. It’s GOD who sustains us. And he sustains us every moment of every day. And he does so out of his heart of love. “His love endures forever.” That means God always provides, delivers, and sustains.
So what are we going to do about our sentence, now
that we acknowledge that God’s love endures forever? Well, in order to be
faithful to the psalmist’s vision we must first of all REMEMBER, and
then our remembrance will lead us to give THANKS and PRAISE.
The Psalmist opens and closes Psalm 136 with an
exhortation to “Give thanks to the Lord…” Psalm 136:1, 26. An “attitude
of gratitude” is what is called for here. And gratitude deeply felt will soon overflow
until our hearts and lips are full of praise for our glorious God. I like the
way the author of Hebrews put it as he was winding down his sermon. He wrote, “Through
him then, let us continually offer a sacrifice of praise to God, that
is, the fruit of lips that confess his name.” Hebrews 13:5. We are to
continually offer a “sacrifice of praise to God.
The “wonders of his love” kindle in us the joy of
new life, and so we cry out, as Isaac Watts wrote in his song, “Joy to the
world, the Savior reigns!” We are to sing out the Good News that our Savior
has come… the Savior who always provides, delivers and sustains. It’s not a
secret to be kept, but a great song to be shouted out and sung at the top of
our voices!
As I close today, let me ask you, have you beheld the
wonder of God’s love lately? I admit it might
be hard to do during the holidays because so much is directing your time and
attention away from the very thing the season is all about. But now is the best
time to behold his love because Christmas is all about the wonder of God’s love. It is the season each year when we celebrate
the introduction of the greatest and truest wonder of the world to a hurting
world – Jesus himself.
Has the wonder of God’s love expressed through Jesus
Christ touched your heart? If so, let’s shout it out! If not, ask God to make
His enduring love real to you today. He’s more than willing to do that, all you
need do is ask.
We’re going to close right after I pray with a
song called simply “Forever.” Its chorus reminds us “Forever God is
faithful, forever God is strong, forever God is with us, forever, forever.”
Let’s sing that song with hearts full of
thanksgiving and praise this morning, shall we?
Let’s pray.