· Sovereign
· Shepherd
· Omniscient
· Omnipotent
· Tireless
Excerpts from Dr. Charles Stanley:
The Picture of Our Comforter Eternal:
“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.” (Isa 40:8). People live for only a short time, and the world will one day pass away. But the Lord is everlasting—He always has existed and always will exist. This is the significance of “I AM,” the name which the Lord revealed to Moses in Exodus 3:14. Not only is God everlasting, but so is His Word. Its principles are not only powerful, they are eternal. \
“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.” (Isa 40:8). People live for only a short time, and the world will one day pass away. But the Lord is everlasting—He always has existed and always will exist. This is the significance of “I AM,” the name which the Lord revealed to Moses in Exodus 3:14. Not only is God everlasting, but so is His Word. Its principles are not only powerful, they are eternal. \
Sovereign: “Behold, the Lord GOD will come with might, with His arm ruling for Him. Behold,
His reward is with Him and His recompense before Him.” (Isa. 40:10) At all times, He is in control of every situation. From our limited perspective, it may not look as if He is sovereign. We don’t always understand His purposes for allowing difficulty and trials. However, we can turn to Him with confidence in the midst of heartache or trouble, knowing that He has the power to change everything.
A Shepherd: “Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, in His arms He will gather the lambs and carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes.” (Isa. 40:11) A shepherd cares for and protects his flock. When Jesus spoke about being the Good Shepherd (John 10:11), He was revealing the heart of God the Father. The Lord desires to carry us through hardship and difficulties in life.
Omniscient: “Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or as His counselor has informed Him? . . . The nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales; behold, He lifts up the islands like fine dust” (Isa. 40:13, 15). God is transcendent—He reigns over all that exists. We can only see to the horizon, but He observes the entire world at once. Isaiah wrote that the Father can measure the oceans and the heavens with the palm of His hand (v.12).
His wisdom and knowledge are more than we can comprehend. There is nothing He does not know (v.13). You may wonder if God has forgotten about you or is unaware of your needs. But He does see your situation; you and I never have to inform Him about anything.
Omnipotent: It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. He it is who reduces rulers to nothing, who makes the judges of the earth meaningless.” (Isa. 40:22-23) We worship an all-powerful God. He controls the authorities and rulers of this earth—He sets them up and brings them down. Nothing compares to the Lord; man’s arrogance and accomplishments fail to impress Him (v.25). He not only created all the stars, He knows them each by name (v.26).We are foolish to turn to worldly things for comfort when we can rely upon our all-powerful God.
Tireless: “mount up with wings like eagles” Isa. 40:31 The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. Humans run out of energy, but God never does. We can approach Him with the same situation over and over, and He still listens to us patiently. The Lord doesn’t always respond instantaneously to our need; sometimes He allows us to come to a point of desperation. His ultimate desire is for us to depend upon Him completely.
Scripture to Claim:
Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. James 1:17
