“There is none like You, O Lord; You are great, and great is Your name in might.” (Jer. 10:6)

The everlasting Creator

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.” (Isa. 40:28 ESV)

Greatness, power, glory, victory and majesty

“Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all.” (1 Cor. 29:11)

The God of gods and Lord of lords

“For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe.” (Deut. 10:17 ESV)

Greatly to be praised 

“For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; He also is to be feared above all gods.” (1 Cor. 16:25)

“For God is the King of all the earth; Sing praises with a skillful psalm.” (Psalm 47:7)

“Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.” (Isa. 12:6)

Therefore

“I said, “I beseech You, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments,” (Neh. 1:5) 

Quote

“If God is the Creator of the entire universe, then it must follow that He is the Lord of the whole universe. No part of the world is outside of His lordship. That means that no part of my life must be outside of His lordship.” - R. C. Sproul

“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.” (Isa. 60:1-3 ESV) 

When you fall… arise!

“Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.” (Micah 7:8 ESV) 

It is your task… arise!

“Arise, for it is your task, and we are with you; be strong and do it.” (Ezra 10:4 ESV)

Shake yourself from the dust… arise! 

“Shake yourself from the dust and arise; be seated, O Jerusalem; loose the bonds from your neck, O captive daughter of Zion.” (Isa. 52:2 ESV)

Even if you fall again and again… arise!

“For the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.” (Prov. 24:16 ESV)

Therefore

“But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you…” (Acts 26:16 ESV)

“He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.” (Psalm 40:2 NIV)

Quotes

“Little minds are tamed and subdued by misfortune; but great minds rise above them.” - Washington Irving

“Families, friends and communities often find a source of courage rising up from within. Indeed, sadly, it seems that it is tragedy that often draws out the most and the best from the human spirit.” - Queen Elizabeth II

“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

“And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” (Matt. 16:17 ESV)

Revelation: The act of revealing or disclosing, especially a dramatic disclosure of something not previously known or realized; an epiphany, usually an experience of sudden and striking spiritual realization.

God gives us revelation in many ways

God has revealed Himself throughout history through what He has made, by His prophets, by His angelic messengers and by those led to speak by the Holy Spirit. No matter how the message is carried, however, it must always agree with and never contradict what is written in the Bible.   

Revelation comes when God enlightens the eyes of your heart 

“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might.” (Eph. 1:17-19 ESV) 

Revelation comes through God’s Word 

“The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” (Psalm 119:130 ESV)

Revelation comes through what He’s created

“For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” (Rom. 1:20 ESV)

Revelation comes by the Holy Spirit

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” (John 14:26 ESV) 

“For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.” (Rom. 1:19 ESV) 

Therefore

“Making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.” (Proverbs 2:2-5 ESV)

“Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.” (1 Cor. 2:12 ESV) 

Quote 

“A God whom we could understand exhaustively, and whose revelation of Himself confronted us with no mysteries whatsoever, would be a God in man's image, and therefore an imaginary God, not the God of the Bible at all.” - J.I. Packer

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” (Isa. 43:2 NIV) 

As long as you live in this world you will face challenges, everyone does! “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; ⁹ persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” (2 Cor 4:8-9)

The Lord your God goes with you 

Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid or terrified of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Deut. 31:6)

The Lord goes before you

“The LORD Himself goes before you; He will be with you. He will never leave you or forsake you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.” (Deut. 31:8)

Fear no evil

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4)

Therefore

“Therefore let all the godly pray to You while You may be found. Surely when great waters rise, they will not come near.” (Psalm 32:6) 

Quote

“God knows our situation; He will not judge us as if we had no difficulties to overcome. What matters is the sincerity and perseverance of our will to overcome them.” -  C.S. Lewis

“‘I have the right to do anything,’ you say—but not everything is beneficial. ‘I have the right to do anything’—but not everything is constructive.’” (1 Cor. 10:23 NIV)

Rights: Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory.

Defend the rights of the poor, needy, afflicted and the destitute

“Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.” (Prov. 31:8-9 ESV)

“Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.” (Psalm 82:3 ESV)

Jesus didn’t cling to his rights but humbled Himself as a servant – you must have the same mindset toward others

“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature a God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!” (Phil. 2:5-8 NIV)

Therefore

“Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:9-11 NIV)

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” (Gal. 5:13)

Quotes

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” - Jesus

“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me’.” - Jesus

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” (Prov. 19:21 ESV)

You are a mist

“Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.” (James 14:6 ESV)

God’s plans for you

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” ((Jer. 29:11 ESV)

Therefore 

“Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” (Prov. 16:3 ESV)

Quote 

“The best thing about the future is that it comes only one day at a time.” - Abraham Lincoln

“Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding.” (2 Cor. 10:12 ESV)

Comparing yourself with others is a fast way to get trapped by the sin of envy! God has a specific plan for you, and you discover and accomplish it by looking only to Him and not looking at others.

“Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load.” (Gal. 6:4-5 NIV)

Seek God’s approval and be a servant of Christ

“For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” (Gal. 1:10 ESV)

“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” (Phil. 2:3 ESV)

Therefore

“For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.” (Rom. 12:3 ESV)

Quotes

“Comparison is the death of joy.” – Mark Twain

“When the Lord makes it clear you're to follow Him in this new direction, focus fully on Him and refuse to be distracted by comparisons with others.” – Charles Swindoll

“Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” (Rom. 2:4 ESV) 

Repentance: Sincere remorse for a past sin, wrongdoing, or the like, and turning away from it and towards God.

Jesus preached repentance

“From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matt. 4:17 ESV)

God wants all to repent and none to perish

“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9 ESV) 

Therefore

“The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.” (Acts 17:30-31 ESV)

“And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38 ESV)

“Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.” (Matt. 3:8 ESV)

 Quote

“We must correctly distinguish regret, remorse, and true repentance. Regret is an activity of the mind; whenever we remember what we’ve done, we ask ourselves, “Why did I do that?” Remorse includes both the heart and the mind, and we feel disgust and pain, but we don’t change our ways. But true repentance includes the mind, the heart, and the will. We change our minds about our sins and agree with what God says about them; we abhor ourselves because of what we have done; and we deliberately turn from our sin and turn to the Lord for His mercy.” - Warren Wiersbe

“So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.”  (Rom. 14:12 ESV)

Nothing is hidden from God who sees all and we must give account

 “And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” (Heb. 4:13 ESV)

People will give an account for every careless word spoken

“I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matt. 12:36-37 ESV)

Therefore

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.” (2 Cor. 5:10 NIV)

Quote

“Although we have responsibilities to others, we are primarily accountable to God. It is before him that we stand, and to him that one day we must give an account. We should not therefore rate human opinion too highly, becoming depressed when criticized and elated when flattered.” – John Stott