(This sermon is part of Dr. Manuel's sermon series: "What is Foremost?" Links to
each of the sermons in the series will be found here as they are posted.)
God expects His people to emulate Him in both character and conduct. For example, He says in Lev 19:2, "Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy." He then follows with several examples of how a holy people should behave. So, how far does imitating God go?
As finite creatures, one of our collective shortcomings is that we are bound by the constraints of time. It is a deficiency that confronts us more as adults than as children. When we are young, we are rarely in a hurry, thinking we have all the time in the world. As we get older, while some people still do not hurry, it begins to dawn on most of us that we do not have all that much time, that there is a limit, not only to what we can do but when we can do it. We mark the passage of time with deadlines, expiration dates, and more candles on our birthday cakes. Some of us are so fixated on this phenomenon of time that we have a clock in almost every room of our home, in addition to one we carry with us, just to keep us on time—not too early and not too late.
Did you know that God does not need a watch? ...He has an innate sense of time, the correct time all the time. Unlike us, He is never in a hurry, and He is never late. In other words, He is always on schedule.1 That is because He exists outside of time. He does not view events in a linear fashion, one after another, but together, all at once. From our perspective, that appears as...
* XII. The Foremost Compression2
...yet it is...
Moses probably wrote this psalm toward the latter part of his life, shortly before Israel enters the land. He is reminding the people about this God they have come to know, that the next stage in their adventure may be unfamiliar territory to them, but it is not unfamiliar to Him. He not only preceded them to this place, He created it:
As Moses writes this psalm, a new generation of Israelites is preparing to enter the Promised Land, and several incidents have marked their history thus far, as recorded in the Book of Numbers:
The Foremost Compression (Ps 90:2, 4)
In these verses, Moses contrasts the nature of God with the nature of man. Whereas man is temporal, God is eternal.12 Moreover, unlike man, God's view of time is comprehensive, "from everlasting to everlasting," as well as compressed, with "a thousand years...like a day." That timeless perspective, supported by His complete knowledge (omniscience) and absolute power (omnipotence), enables Him to makes timeless plans with complete and absolute confidence,13 plans in which we can have complete and absolute confidence as well.14
Listen to what those plans include, and consider how they benefit you. These are a few timeless elements God has prepared, elements that make your future timeless as well.15
God has a unique view of time, one that employs The Foremost Compression. As a result, He is never late in meeting your needs. Moreover, He is never in too much of a hurry to help you, never too busy to hear your prayers. On the contrary, He always has enough time to do whatever He wants, including what He would do for you.
Having considered The Foremost Compression, we will look next at The Foremost Compulsion, which is revealed by the pronouncement of God, in Isa 45:23.
For the Bibliography and Endnotes, see the pdf here.
A young boy, visiting his grandmother, asked, "Grandma, do you know how you and God are alike?" Confident that she had set a good example for him, she mentally polished her halo and asked, "No, how are we alike?" His reply was not quite what she expected but was typical of a child's perspective... "You're both old."As children look at you, I hope that is not the only resemblance to God they notice. In any case, age is not a resemblance at all.
As finite creatures, one of our collective shortcomings is that we are bound by the constraints of time. It is a deficiency that confronts us more as adults than as children. When we are young, we are rarely in a hurry, thinking we have all the time in the world. As we get older, while some people still do not hurry, it begins to dawn on most of us that we do not have all that much time, that there is a limit, not only to what we can do but when we can do it. We mark the passage of time with deadlines, expiration dates, and more candles on our birthday cakes. Some of us are so fixated on this phenomenon of time that we have a clock in almost every room of our home, in addition to one we carry with us, just to keep us on time—not too early and not too late.
Did you know that God does not need a watch? ...He has an innate sense of time, the correct time all the time. Unlike us, He is never in a hurry, and He is never late. In other words, He is always on schedule.1 That is because He exists outside of time. He does not view events in a linear fashion, one after another, but together, all at once. From our perspective, that appears as...
* XII. The Foremost Compression2
...yet it is...
- The perspective of God (Ps 90:2, 4)
Ps 90:2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.... 4 For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.3Moses, the traditional author of this psalm.4 is reflecting upon the nature of God. He learned during their first encounter, at the burning bush, that God has been around for several generations. When the Lord introduced Himself to Moses, He said...5
Exod 3:6 ...I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.Later, the Lord told Moses that He was here long before the patriarchs—before any people—that...6
Gen 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.This may not have come as a surprise to Moses because of a family tradition that...7
Gen 21:33 Abraham...called upon the name of the LORD, the Eternal God.In any case, by the time Israel is ready to enter Canaan, the people's experience with God is fairly extensive, having witnessed His power in the recent past as well as having heard about His activity in the distant past, how "in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth" (Exod 20:11; 31:17).
Moses probably wrote this psalm toward the latter part of his life, shortly before Israel enters the land. He is reminding the people about this God they have come to know, that the next stage in their adventure may be unfamiliar territory to them, but it is not unfamiliar to Him. He not only preceded them to this place, He created it:
Ps 90:2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God....This is the first difference Moses wants his readers (including us) to understand about the perspective of God...
1. Your sense of time is finite: His sense of time is infinite.While you probably cannot recall when you became aware of your surroundings, the initial sights and sounds, you know there was a point in time when those sensations had a definite beginning. You also know there will be a point in time when those sensations have a definite end, at least in the physical sense.8 Life is what occurs between those two points. It is like that for everyone... everyone except God. He alone exists "from everlasting to everlasting."9 He has no beginning and no end. Hence, while your sense of time is finite, His sense of time is infinite.
As Moses writes this psalm, a new generation of Israelites is preparing to enter the Promised Land, and several incidents have marked their history thus far, as recorded in the Book of Numbers:
The Foremost Compression (Ps 90:2, 4)
- The earlier (and failed) attempt at conquest (Num 14)
- The rebellion of Korah (Num 16)
- The deaths of Miriam and Aaron (Num 20)
- The apostasy at Peor (Num 25)
- The defeat of Midian (Num 31)
Ps 90:4 For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.This is the second difference Moses wants his readers (including us) to understand about the perspective of God...
2. Your sense of time is fixed; His sense of time is flexible.When we are young, time seems to drag:
- Our next birthday is so far away.
- Will Christmas morning or summer vacation ever come?
- Birthdays come in more rapid succession.
- Christmas morning threatens to arrive before our shopping is complete.
- A week of vacation is over in the blink of an eye.
In these verses, Moses contrasts the nature of God with the nature of man. Whereas man is temporal, God is eternal.12 Moreover, unlike man, God's view of time is comprehensive, "from everlasting to everlasting," as well as compressed, with "a thousand years...like a day." That timeless perspective, supported by His complete knowledge (omniscience) and absolute power (omnipotence), enables Him to makes timeless plans with complete and absolute confidence,13 plans in which we can have complete and absolute confidence as well.14
Listen to what those plans include, and consider how they benefit you. These are a few timeless elements God has prepared, elements that make your future timeless as well.15
- The first and foremost element comes to you free, and that is eternal life.
The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
- Having eternal life is not simply continued existence, it is eternal salvation.
He became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.(Hebrews 5:9)
- Knowing you have eternal salvation is cause for eternal encouragement.
Our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father...gave us eternal encouragement. (2 Thessalonians 2:16)
- That eternal encouragement is bolstered by your knowing about the eternal inheritance that awaits you.
Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance. (Hebrews 9:15)
- Your eternal inheritance will include, among other perks, an eternal home.
We have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. (2 Corinthians 5:1)
- That eternal home is only part of what awaits you in God's eternal kingdom.
These are just a few of the timeless features that are in your timeless future.You will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:11)
God has a unique view of time, one that employs The Foremost Compression. As a result, He is never late in meeting your needs. Moreover, He is never in too much of a hurry to help you, never too busy to hear your prayers. On the contrary, He always has enough time to do whatever He wants, including what He would do for you.
Having considered The Foremost Compression, we will look next at The Foremost Compulsion, which is revealed by the pronouncement of God, in Isa 45:23.
For the Bibliography and Endnotes, see the pdf here.
(This sermon is part of Dr. Manuel's sermon series: "What is Foremost?" Links to each of the sermons in the series will be found here as they are posted)
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Jim Skaggs