John 17 - Majesty

Okay, while he sorts it out, we are going to start a new series today. The series is John

17. So over the next few weeks we will go through John 17 and take themes from it, not

then see where we land. In a sense, John 17 is really the Lord's prayer. Even though we

always refer to our Father who is in heaven as the Lord's prayer, the real Lord's prayer

is John 17 where Jesus begins to pray. It is the kind of prayer which is for others,

but He really cannot teach it to anybody else because He is the only one who can pray that

prayer. So we will start with John 17. The reason I am here one week and not here another

week is because of being in St. Martin's where we have a retreat with people coming

from different parts of the world. So again, next week I won't be here, but it will be

every alternate week most likely. It is a lot of traveling, but it is absolutely worth

coming back here to be with you. That might sound terribly noble and Christian, but it is

true. And now if I can have my iPad back. Okay. So guys, when you look at John 17, today we

will start with John 17 5, John 17 5. So if you want to turn to it, John 17 5. Let me

read the verses 1 to 5. After Jesus said this, and what did He say? It is in 1633. I have

told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you have trouble,

but take heart and be patient. I have told you these things so that in me you may have

peace. After Jesus said this, He looked towards heaven and He prayed, Father, the time has

come. Glorify your Son that your Son may glorify you. For you granted Him authority over all

people that I have given you. I have given you the authority to be a good son. I have

given you the authority to be a good son. I have given you the authority to be a good

son. I have given you the authority to be a good son. I have given you the authority

that your Son may glorify you. For you granted Him authority over all people that He might give

eternal life to all those you have given Him. Now this is eternal life that they may know

you. The only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I have brought your glory on

earth by completing the work you gave me to do. We will talk about that one day. We will

talk about that one day. What brings God glory. So many things in this chapter that makes it

very clear what we need to do. I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you

gave me to do. And now Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you

before the world began. We are going to take that bit where it says glorify me in your

presence with the glory I had with you before the world began. So one of the things we need to

understand is that there was a pre-earth glory that Jesus had. One of the scriptures that the

disciples must have been completely confounded with was when Jesus says to the disciples,

it is beneficial for you that I go away. It will benefit you if I go away. The disciples must have

been thinking, how can it benefit, how can your going away benefit us? We are walking with God.

It has never happened before since Adam. The last person who walked with God was Adam in the Garden

of Eden. And now we've been walking with you. We've seen you. We've seen who God is through you.

How can you then say that it is beneficial for us that you go away?

And so they didn't understand it then, but as Paul then says in 2 Corinthians 5.16,

we do not look at Jesus as Jesus of Nazareth anymore. We look at him as not as Jesus of Nazareth,

not after the flesh. We look at him as Jesus of Nazareth.

We look at him as Jesus of Nazareth. We look at him as Jesus of Nazareth.

We look at him as not as Jesus of Nazareth, not after the flesh.

So we've stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ

merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now. And so there is a

pre-earth Christ that we need to recognize today. And we'll try to do that.

Go to John 1.1. John 1.1.

It says there, and I know you know this, but John 1.1 says,

in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God.

The Word was with God, and the Word was God.

We're talking about this Jesus that we worship here has pre-existed

without a beginning or an end. In the beginning. As in, right from when it started,

and he has no start, it talks about him. And then go to John 1.14 and read it from the message.

John 1.14. John 1.14 from the message.

The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.

We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one of a kind glory, like father, like son.

Generous inside out, true from start to finish. If you read it from the NIV it says,

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory,

the one and only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Go to John 8.58. John 8.58. And you see Jesus making an amazing statement.

It must have so riled up the Pharisees.

We start at verse 57. John 8.57.

You are not yet fifty years old, the Jews said to him. And you have seen Abraham?

I tell you the truth, Jesus answered. Before Abraham was born, I am.

At this they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself,

slipping away from the temple grounds. I tell you the truth, before

Jesus answered, before Abraham was born, I am. And so it's this idea of

a pre-earth Christ.

Now go to Daniel. Daniel chapter 7, verse 14.

Daniel 7:14

Daniel 7.14. Daniel 7.14.

Let the scriptures speak to us, yeah?

How they speak to us, it will be the Holy Spirit who helps us.

But each of us will begin to see things that we need to see.

Daniel 7.14. So there's the pre-earth Christ and we talked about John

1.1, 1.14, 8.58,

as in before he came to the earth.

And then there are

scenes where his glory was made evident in visions.

His glory in visions before

he came to the earth. Before and after he came to the earth.

And so the first one is Daniel 7.14.

Daniel 7.14. And here's what it says.

Let's start at verse 13. In my vision at night,

I looked and there before me was

one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven.

He approached the ancient of days and was led into his presence.

He was given authority, glory, and sovereign power.

All nations and peoples of every language worshiped him.

His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away.

And his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.

Go to Ezekiel 1, Ezekiel 1, 26-28,

Ezekiel 1, 26-28,

Ezekiel 1, 26-28.

Here's what it says. Above the vault over the heads

was what looked like a throne of Lattice Ladiuli.

And high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man.

I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up

he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire.

And that from there down he looked like fire.

And brilliant light surrounded him.

Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him.

This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord.

When I saw it, I fell face down, and I heard the voice of one speaking.

And then we know that he's seated on a throne now.

And we can go to Hebrews 1, verse 3,

Hebrews 1:3

Hebrews 8, verse 1,

Hebrews 8:1

and Revelation 4, verse 2-5.

Revelation 4:2–5

Let's have a look. Hebrews 1, verse 3.

Hebrews 1:3

Hebrews 1, verse 3.

Hebrews 1:3

The Son is the radiance of God's glory

and the exact representation of His being,

sustaining all things by His powerful word.

After He had provided purification of sins,

He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in Heaven.

Hebrews 8, 1.

Now the main point of what we are saying is this.

We do have such a high priest

who sat down at the right hand of the throne

of the Majesty in Heaven, and who serves in the sanctuary,

the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by a mere human being.

Revelation 2,

sorry, Revelation 4, verse 2-5.

Revelation 4:2–5

At once I was in the Spirit,

and there before me was a throne in Heaven with someone sitting on it.

The one who sat there had the appearance of Jasper and Ruby.

A rainbow that shone like an emerald encircled the throne.

Surrounding the throne were 24 other thrones,

and seated on them were 24 elders.

They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads.

From the throne came flashes of lightning.

We had that last night, right? From the throne came flashes of lightning,

rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne,

the stars were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God.

So you have him seated on the throne,

and then you have eyewitnesses of his Majesty in the Scriptures.

Eyewitnesses of his Majesty.

Sometimes through the miracles he did,

sometimes through other revelations that happened.

You see the first one in Luke 9, 43, and the second one

in 2 Peter 1, 16 onwards.

So Luke 9, 43. Luke 9, 43.

Starting at verse 42.

Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion.

But Jesus rebuked the impure spirit,

and he healed the boy and gave him back to his father.

And they were all amazed at the greatness of God.

While everyone was marveling at all that Jesus did, he said to his disciples,

listen carefully to what I'm about to tell you.

In some versions, it says, they were all, in the ESV for instance,

and all were astonished at the Majesty of God.

All were astonished at the Majesty of God. Eyewitnesses to his Majesty.

2 Peter 1, 16. 2 Peter 1, 16.

Here is a man who was actually an eyewitness to what happened.

2 Peter 1, 16 and 17.

2 Peter 1, 16 and 17.

For we did not follow cleverly devised

myths when we made known to you

the power and the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his Majesty.

For when he received honor and glory from God the Father,

and the voice was born to him by the majestic glory, this is my beloved son,

with whom I'm well pleased. They're talking about the time of transfiguration.

That's what they're talking about.

So why look at all this? Because Psalm 145, verse 5 says

Psalms 145:5

that you need to meditate on this and then speak about it to the next generation.

If you go to Psalm 145, verse 5,

Psalms 145:5

Psalm 145, verse 5, it says that

Psalms 145:5

one generation, verse 4, one generation shall

commend your works to another and shall declare your mighty acts.

O on the glorious splendor of your Majesty and on your wondrous

works I will meditate. Why do we need to meditate this? Because

most of the time, guys, Jesus is just

someone who's far better than all the people on earth.

Our Jesus is a very mid-sized Jesus.

He's greater than all the kings and presidents.

It's no big deal being greater than all the kings and presidents in the world.

That's not power.

Our Jesus is very small and the Jesus of the Bible is

enormous. And we need to figure him out differently.

Because a mid-sized Jesus can only be

approached for mid-sized results.

So when you really look at it, he's just not lord over

he is not just

lord over heaven and earth.

He's not just lord over the earth.

He's not just superior or far superior.

He's not just far superior to the

rulers of the earth.

He's not just

stronger than Satan

and principalities.

He's not just stronger than them.

He's not just more

brilliant or more intelligent or more creative

than us.

than us.

He's not just vastly, not just vastly superior

wiser,

greater

in power than us. This is how we have a tendency to think.

This is why sometimes it's

important not to be taken captive

by the chosen or by a portrayal of Jesus

by Hollywood or by Christian

TV or movies. Because this Jesus is far

greater than that. I'm not dissing chosen. But I'm just saying

I know I've said this before. What did

Michelangelo do when he wanted to portray God? He made him look older

than Adam and man reaching out to touch his hand on the Sistine

Chapel. That's what we do with idols. We make

idols look greater than humans. This God

is not just far superior to the

rulers of the earth. He's not just stronger than Satan. He's just not

a little more intelligent and creative than all of us. He's not vastly superior

vastly wiser, vastly greater in power than us.

It's unimaginable this God.

I mean, when you really think of it

I'm trying to capture the idea of him. We've got to get

used to this word.

Transcendent

majesty.

You have to get used to this word. Transcendent majesty.

He's not part of this earth. He's not part of the universe.

He's not part of the heavens. He transcends

all that. And he is majesty.

He's not just the Lord of

the earth. Do you know this number?

Try figuring out this number.

Do you know what that number is?

That's the number of galaxies

that exist.

To the observable.

These are just, that's three trillion galaxies.

That's three

followed by twelve zeros. That makes three trillion galaxies.

And that's just what we know. That's what has been

hypothesized through discovery. It's not even that it's been

counted. Do you know how many planets in each galaxy?

A hundred billion planets

in each galaxy. Do you know how many

stars in each galaxy?

Four hundred billion

stars in each galaxy.

The closest star to us is a star called

Proxima Centauri.

Tonight if you look at it,

the light from that star started traveling to you in May

of 2022 if you see tonight. And it's traveling

at 300,000 kilometers per second.

And it started in May of 2022.

And if you look up and see today, it started traveling. That light

that you see today started traveling four and a half years ago.

I want you to know, I want

me to know, there's God.

It's

unfathomable with my mind.

But the more I think of this God, the more

I think to myself, what am I afraid of?

Do you understand why Chris Tomlin in 2004 wrote

Uncontainable, Indescribable?

And this God happens to be

my father and I am his beloved and

he takes delight in me. It doesn't compute. You know why I can't

emotionally try to drum up something? Because you have to compute

things for emotions to write. I cannot.

You know,

because I can see the sunset every day

from the 37th floor, one of the things I do, especially during summer,

is I'll walk on my balcony, turn around, and then

quickly turn around and look at it again because every couple of minutes

the sky changes. Vignettes of sunset

that changes every single day.

That changes every two minutes you'll see colors change.

Clouds catch light. And it's not as if

he's got a few options that he's trying to

permute and combine. It's not permutations and combinations of a few

different palettes that he has that he's throwing. This God

does not have a limit when it comes to creativity. It is infinite.

We do not understand infinity. But he isn't playing

with a few things. He's not trying to say

use blue and yellow yesterday. Let's try yellow, green, and blue.

He's not playing with the colors of the rainbow. It's unlimited

what he can do. And when he has reached what you think is the limit,

there's a new limit tomorrow. It's impossible.

This is the God that we're talking about.

You have to take that God and now

put him in a baby.

You have to take that God and put him on a cross.

You have to take that God

and worship.

It's very different guys.

This is why Paul said we do not evaluate him according to the flesh.

We cannot.

This being

or for us as believers, he

Jesus, the

anointed creator,

king, which term will fully

capture it? None!

None. This being

is, he's outside

of creation. He's

outside of creation. He's not part of the three trillion galaxies.

Adam was supposed to

find out more with God.

To explore more with God. Didn't work out.

But a time is coming when

life after this earth will be an exploring of

God.

It's such a privilege to belong to him guys.

He lives outside

of creation. He is undefined.

You cannot define him. The best that you can come up with

was his self definition.

When he goes to Moses and he says to him that I am the Lord

gracious and compassionate. Full of mercy.

That's his first self revelation. And then his second self

revelation is the Christ. Full of grace and truth who lived

amongst us. This God living amongst us.

And then the third full revelation is actually supposed to be

the bride.

Where it will have to come to a point

where we will have to deal with what Jesus says in John

17 where he says that they will know me

because of how you love each other just as I have loved you.

Acts 29 knows what it is to be united.

Acts 29 does not know what it is to be one in love.

We don't.

Acts 29 knows how to be united in purpose.

United in following God. United in worship. But Acts

29 does not know what it is to love each other

like Christ loves us. That kind of oneness we do not

know. But thank God for the Holy Spirit. Thank God for the

word. And thank God for how the word and the Holy Spirit can change us

like he has changed so many areas in our lives.

And he shall do it again.

I am

so scared and excited about it

because it will require a transparency on my part that

I have never touched before.

But we'll go there.

You know what's so encouraging is that Jesus

prayed the prayer and what he prays is answered.

His outside creation is undefined. He is indescribable.

He is uncontainable.

He is all powerful.

These are words that try so hard to capture who he is.

All that may be true but here's what blows my mind.

He's all that and I

am invited

into him

and the Father.

I am invited into him and the Father

by the Spirit.

Just think of that for a second.

There's this God who

is beyond three trillion galaxies with a hundred billion

planets and four hundred billion stars in each galaxy. There's this God

that is transcendent outside of creation.

You know when we use those dolls for Christ's life and try to

explain the Holy Spirit in us, we end up imagining

that there's a big doll called Jacob and in that is a little Holy Spirit.

Christ in us, it reduces everything.

What we are trying to capture is different here. We are saying

that this God who is so big is saying

hey Jacob, he says in John 14 verse 20, hey Jacob

John 14:20

I am in the Father

you are in me

and I am in you. What he really means is Mark

I'm inviting you into the fullness of my Godness.

You're like a little cork bobbing up and down

in the endless

pounding waterfall called Niagara. Imagine throwing

a cork into the waters of Niagara and imagine it bobbing up

and down delightfully, happily. It's unending water.

It has been going on for years every time I go there and I stand there

and I hear the loudness of that waterfall. I'm in awe.

It just keeps going, keeps going and comes crashing down.

And imagine being a little cork thrown into the water bobbing up

delightfully, caught up in the waters, not knowing where

it's going but caught up. That is what God is doing to me and to you.

Caught up in his bigness, in his bigness to be invited

into that God itself shows that I'm obviously loved.

This is a God who says come, sit at my table.

What kind of table is it? I don't know. Come, explore.

And he says,

you can be one with me. How does this work?

How do you become one with this transcendent

majestic being? He says come and be one with me. And it's not

an impersonal force like chi or some stuff that comes

from Eastern mysticism. It is a personal person.

Full of truth and grace. Full of

truth and grace is not limited to 5'8' Jesus

or 5'9' Jesus. Full of truth and grace

is more enormous than the universe. We do not understand

the truth and the grace that is him if we don't begin to try and

fathom the bigness of this God.

Everything about him, everything, there is no part

of his nature or character that is not infinite.

There is nothing about him that is not infinite.

His grace is infinite. His truth is infinite.

His love is infinite. His mercy

is infinite. It is always infinite.

It is always infinite. And I'm being asked to become

one with this God and in his oneness I know

I'm obviously loved. Why would this God

pick Jacob to be one with him if he didn't

love him? This is holy.

This is sacred bigness. It's not just size.

It is holy. He is holy. I sometimes say it because

he's a being outside of the limits of our thinking and our

universe. He is holy.

If he picks you and says you can be one with

me. He's not talking about one as in spend some time with me.

He's talking about your spirit and my spirit becomes one.

That there is no difference. There's an inseparability

to my life and this person that we are talking about.

An inseparability. How else

can it be true if it wasn't love?

Then you think to yourself, why

are you so afraid Jacob?

And the love is the love

of a father for his child.

You see how

privileged we are?

Do you see what we mean when we sing you are alpha and omega?

We worship you, O God,

for you are worthy to be praised. Why you?

Why you?

Do you see the power

he has?

Come sing amidst the row.

Then we can continue.

You don't have to stand. You do what you want.

Sing the way you need to sing this

in the awareness of who we are worshiping.

Sometimes to even say that he's in this room.

No, no, no. He's...

I am somewhere and he's somewhere.

What I mean is the oneness is not even the oneness of Christ

is present here. That presence is true.

And it is true Christ is seated on a throne in the heavens.

That is true too. But there is

another place that he dwells in and I dwell in

that is inseparable.

And this is why it is required that we worship with our spirits before we worship

with our minds and our hearts and our bodies.

We might only sing the first one.

This one. We'll see whether we'll sing the second one.

Spirit of God, would you take the words that we've spoken,

the scriptures we've spoken about.

The scriptures we've spoken about. Could you help us worship

you, O God, Holy Spirit.

You were there at the beginning. The Father

willed it. Christ spoke it. You began to create.

You were there when three trillion galaxies

that we know about came into existence. You were there, Jesus Christ,

when the morning stars sang as you spoke and the Spirit of God

created. You were there, Father, as you willed it

to exist.

The angels have to shield their eyes

from wondrous things beside

around your throne.

Around your throne the living creatures

say

elders cannot stand before the King

even

angels have to shield their eyes

from wondrous things beside

from your eyes the

thunderings of your love

lightning flashes glimpses of

your heart

fiery burning beauty wrapped in

light how awesome is the sight

how awesome is the sight

no eye has seen, no ear has heard

no one could know or fully search

mysteries that lie inside your heart

call to my deep

amistor roar the roar of your mighty

waterfall your waves of love come

below the waves

no eye has seen, no ear has heard

no one could know or fully search

mysteries that lie inside your heart

call to my deep

amistor roar the roar of your mighty

waterfall your waves of love come

below the waves

you'll be low

you'll be low

you'll be low

you'll be low

I am

just a man of flesh and bone

I am just a man

of flesh and bone

one with Christ I stand before your throne

I am just a man of flesh and bone

I am just a man of flesh and bone

I am just a man of flesh and bone

one with Christ I stand before your throne

spirit open up my eyes to see

enduring majesty

enduring majesty

no eye has seen, no ear has heard

no one could know or fully search

mysteries that lie inside your heart

call to my deep

amistor roar the roar of your mighty

waterfall your waves of love come

below the waves

no eye has seen, no ear has heard

no one could know or fully search

mysteries that lie inside your heart

call to my deep

amistor roar the roar of your mighty

waterfall your waves of love come

below the waves

you'll be low

you'll be low above me

you'll be low you'll be low

you'll be low above me

above, you'll be low

you'll below above me

you'll below, you'll below

you'll below above us

Do you see why tongues are such an important gift?

Where do you go after indescribable, uncontainable?

Where do you go after all powerful?

What to give expression to those words,

call to my deep amidst the roar,

the roar of your mighty waterfall?

Do not sidestep or negate tongues as a gift, perhaps, for a few.

It is so that we can give expression to deep calling to deep.

Where do you go after indescribable?

You are not worshipping from the outside, guys.

By the Holy Spirit, you are in Christ.

Christ is in you.

It's not an in as it contained it.

It is you become one so that you are in.

It's like milk and water.

It's not that milk is in water or water is in milk.

But you say you pour water into milk.

What you're trying to say is the two have become one.

We're talking about someone who is transcendent Majesty.

Whose desire is to invite us to explore, to know.

There's nothing more he can do but invite.

Thanks, Tuli.

Thank you, guys.

What you and I have every second of the day are delightful encounters from another dimension,

delightful encounters with this God that comes from another dimension, transcendent Majesty.

When you look at the, when this teaching is put online and you look at the picture

that I've chosen for the title picture for the sermon, you'll see that it's a door opening

and a hand, there's no hand, but it's a door opening and a hand literally pushing you into

a brand new, into a brand new, unvisited, into a brand new, unvisited, unvisited space.

And a voice saying, all this is yours.

Pour it with me.

That's what God is inviting us to.

Earlier during worship when we started the service, Jane had said during worship, I saw

people at Acts 29 walking across a threshold like the Israelites crossing the Red Sea.

And as they crossed into the promised land, we are surrounded by mist and cannot see clearly

but know that there's a brand new unknown land or realm full of God to step into and

explore.

And I so look forward to doing this with you, yeah, to know this God who is one with us.

You know, John 14, 20 doesn't say you are in Christ and Christ is in you.

It says we are in Christ and Christ is in us.

It's an us thing.

If we get the hang of it, it will change our vocabulary, it will change how we look at

circumstances, it will change why we wouldn't sin.

This is what then 1 Corinthians 6 refers to where it says if you have become one with

Christ, how can you take your body, separate it from Christ and join it to a prostitute?

Because you are a part of Christ, how can you remove yourself from Christ and join yourself

to a prostitute?

We'll talk about that another time but it's so profound when you look at it that he actually

thinks that I am a part of him, one with him.

He thinks like this.

You see why he would be concerned about Heidi.

And then 1 Corinthians 6, 19, it's actually talking about the physical body, it's not

even spiritual oneness.

It's just nuts if you think about it for a second.

What if majesty isn't just about how God carries himself?

It's also how he intends to carry you through.

It is also how he intends to carry me through every circumstance.

It's also how he intends to carry me through every circumstance, every situation that is

overwhelming.

What if majesty isn't just something that he carries?

What if majesty isn't just about how God carries himself?

What if it is also how he intends to carry me through every circumstance?

Jacob, I will show you who I am in your circumstance, just as I did with Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles

20 where his circumstances and his situations were overwhelming but then I turned up and

I turned up in my brilliance, in my majesty, in my bigness.

What about circumstances like in Exodus 14 verse 13 where the armies of Egypt were behind,

Exodus 14:13

the Red Sea was in front and then I turned up and I turned up in my majesty.

They began to say of the God of Israel that he is the one that put Pharaoh and the gods

of Egypt to shame.

What if that's how he thinks?

What if John 11 verse 40 where Martha and Mary are crying and Jesus begins to say that

John 11:40

I am the resurrection and the life, everything that exists exists because the mean is contained

in me.

Three trillion galaxies, that ain't the end of it.

They're all contained in me and I have become one with you.

Now you can see why the writer in Hebrews 13 says, the Lord is my helper, why should

I fear?

What can mortal man do to me?

Is it possible to get to a place where we stop managing fear and start banishing fear?

The Holy Spirit has the ability to do it.

When you stop managing fear, you banish fear.

I was once with a young guy who was the son of the governor of an entire province and

in that country, the governor of a province is like the king himself.

He had no fear.

He had no fear because he was the governor's son.

He had no fear.

This is why guys, because God is the way he is, this is why God isn't calling you to

something you can do.

God doesn't call you, God doesn't call you, God doesn't call me or you to anything that

we can do.

Please understand the majesty of this transcendent being.

He's transcendent in his majesty.

He's not asking you or me to attempt anything that we can do.

He's not a part of who he is.

He will always ask you, invite you to always do what you're not able and what you're not

skilled at.

And then he turns up in his transcendent majesty, in his power that is not a greater power than

all the powers on the earth.

It is these words exist because he exists.

Words like kindness, goodness, power, mercy exist because he exists.

Those words will disintegrate if he stops.

They exist because he exists.

This is not vastly superior.

There's no word to describe it.

We need to stop domesticating God's agenda.

The world is radicalizing while the church is domesticating his agenda, taming his agenda.

The world gets more radical.

The church begins to tame his agenda or don't say this or don't say that.

This could be that.

This could be this.

This could be a cult.

This could be that.

Don't do this.

Don't do that.

We are taking our God and making him like a kitten.

We've got to stop domesticating the agenda of God when the world is radicalizing.

Where are the phinehases?

Where are the phinehases that have this fierce jealousy for the things of God and for the

person who God is, who stand up and it doesn't matter who says, we don't care for you.

We think you are this, this accusation, that accusation.

And you stand up and say that I am jealous for the God that I am beginning to know.

And that God is beyond all human logic.

So your human logic or reasoning is not going to make me shut up.

Stop scrounging, Jacob, like a chicken when you're an eagle.

It's scrounging for little earthworms.

You know, when we talk about the majesty of God, we're not trying to say we are entitled

or that this is some prosperity gospel or that we are king's kids.

No, nothing.

We're not saying that at all.

If anything, this will help us glorify the God as he is and benefit people.

That's the intent.

Glorify God as he is.

And don't trifle with someone like this.

Yes, he is merciful, but do not trifle with this God.

We need to talk about that for a second.

It's not in my notes, but suddenly I feel this urgency that you don't trifle with this

God, you don't mock him, you don't treat him like less than sacred.

Galatians 6, verse 5 and 6, do not be mocked, sorry, do not be deceived.

Galatians 6:5

God is not mocked.

What you sow in the flesh, you will reap in flesh.

The spirit you will sow in, the spirit you will reap in spirit.

Be warned.

I won't be able to finish what we have, so I'll maybe touch on one or two points and stop.

Maybe you can ponder on these.

Majesty, how do we develop a majesty mindset?

That's the question.

Majesty begins with holy.

If you look at Isaiah 6-3, I saw the Lord seated on his throne and the train of his

robe filled the temple.

Filled the temple.

And then you hear the antiphonal singing by the seraphim as they begin to say holy, holy,

holy.

The Lord God Almighty, the heaven and earth filled with his glory.

I'm not elaborating.

This is what happens with Moses in Exodus 3, verse 6.

Exodus 3:6

What happens to him first?

He's a prince, by the way.

He knows what majesty is.

He's been a shepherd for 40 years, but he knew what it was to be a prince, one of the

most powerful empires of the world.

How does it all begin?

How does the renewal of majesty begin in Moses' life?

He comes to a burning bush and what does he hear?

Take off your shoes for the ground that you stand this.

Holy.

Majesty always begins with holy.

We won't.

We'll have to do it another time.

Yeah, we'll have to end this.

If you can write it down fast, I'll just read the titles and you can think about it at home.

Majesty begins with holy.

That's one.

Second, majesty means being part of the glory of God.

Majesty means being part of the glory of God.

As in part of his glorious presence.

Third, majesty requires wonder.

Majesty requires wonder.

There are things that we don't do.

Do you ever wonder what majesty will look like in an encounter tomorrow?

Do you ever wonder?

A mid-sized God doesn't provoke much wonder, but do you ever wonder what he's going to

do tomorrow?

Not in a small way, in his way.

Do you ever wonder?

And if you ever wonder about majesty, we start thinking of money.

No, not money.

Do you ever wonder the encounters that you can have with this God who is beyond the universe?

The wonder that a child has.

Next one.

Majesty costs.

Majesty costs.

It costs to carry the weight of majesty.

Next one.

The more intimate you get with majesty, the more you increase in your authority.

The more intimate you get with majesty, the more you increase in authority.

Next one.

Majesty is grasped when you start tanking and rejoicing.

When the shout of the king is in your midst, majesty is grasped when you start tanking

and rejoicing.

And finally, majesty and meekness are inseparable.

Majesty and meekness are inseparable.

It's crazy, eh?

In Matthew 21 verse 5, and we'll end with this thought, in Matthew 21 verse 5, majesty

Matthew 21:5 Matthew 21:5

comes riding on a donkey in meekness.

In Matthew 21 verse 5.

Matthew 21:5

He comes riding on a donkey in meekness.

That's in Matthew 21 verse 5.

Matthew 21:5

In Matthew 21 verse 13, the same king who came riding on a donkey in meekness takes

Matthew 21:13

a whip and he exerts the authority and power of a king over his house and he begins to

chase out extortionists and corrupt officials.

In Matthew 21 verse 14, he begins to invite the blind and the lame and the crippled and

Matthew 21:14

begins to heal them.

In Matthew 21 verse 15, he says, do not stop the children for they begin to shout hosanna

Matthew 21:15

and he says, out of the mouth of babes I have ordained strength.

This idea of majesty and meekness is something that we need to grasp.

Graham Kendrick wrote a song which some of the old timers may know and it says, meekness

and majesty in perfect harmony, kneels in humility and washes our feet.

The Lord of infinity, stooping so tenderly, lifts our humanity to the heights of his throne.

It's called meekness and majesty.

You should listen to it.

Let's stop there.

Let's pray.

Father, you want us to ponder on some sentences before we go.

For the first sentences, each of us to ponder it individually.

For the first sentences, you and I are one.

I am in you.

And you are in me.

I have invited you into oneness with me and the Father by the Holy Spirit.

I heart so overwhelmed.

I am in you.

The second statement you want us to think about is Jesus saying, the oneness I have with the Father is the oneness that I give you and invite you into.

And it's lifelong into eternity.

The oneness I have with the Father is the oneness that I am inviting you into.

The third thing you're saying is that he wants us to try to fathom first with our spirit.

That you are transcendent majesty.

To lose ourselves in you is to find ourselves in you.

You're saying, can you go limp as a baby goes limp in your arms once it goes to sleep with its head on your chest?

Can you go limp in my arms?

You carry so many burdens, thoughts, problems.

You're already thinking of tomorrow.

Can you go limp for a second?

You can lose yourself in transcendent majesty.

You're saying, can you go limp as a baby goes limp in your arms?

And the last statement.

Come join the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in our dance of love.

Come join the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in our dance of love.

In our dance of love.

Most joyous, transcendent, majestic being on earth, teach us.