Our God Is Awesome

By: Ryan Nelson

 Psalm 147:5

Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure. 

A.W. Tozer says, “Because God knows all things perfectly, he knows no thing better than any other thing, but all things equally well. He never discovers anything, he is never surprised, never amazed.” (click to tweet).

“Beyond measure” is a tough concept to grasp. In The Heavens: Intimate Moments with Your Majestic God, Kevin Hartnett grapples with what understanding beyond measure looks like:

“Indeed, through His own gracious revelation of Himself, we can understand God in part, but we can never fully comprehend Him, or even a single one of His qualities. There will always be more of His wisdom to understand, more of His power, more of His holiness, more of His love. We will never fathom Him, and we will never tire of Him. Through all eternity, we will look upon Him and marvel at the endlessly creative, wonderfully gracious, uniquely righteous, timelessly beautiful, unsearchably glorious, infinitely loving Maker and Ruler of all.”

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you. And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations. (see whole passage).

The FSB has a lot to say on this one verse. In the second layer of notes on “before you were born” it remarks:

“The Apostle Paul seems to have applied this aspect of Jeremiah’s ministry to himself in Galatians 1:14–16. Paul’s rationale in doing so appears to be based on Jeremiah’s reputation as a prophet ‘to the nations’ and reflected in his calling ‘from the womb.’ Paul makes an implicit comparison between himself and Jeremiah as a means to legitimize his own qualifications as an apostle to the Gentiles.”

God had a purpose and a plan for Jeremiah before he was even born. But that doesn’t mean Jeremiah knew his purpose—he tried to convince God he had the wrong guy (Jeremiah 1:6).

Don’t be discouraged when you don’t know God’s plan. God knows where you’re going, and he knows what you need to get there (Jeremiah 1:7–9).