That God Be Known

When I go on road trips, I like to take some good preaching along that I can listen to on the drive. Last week afforded me such an opportunity, and I was quite taken with a message by Paul Washer called The True Gospel (part 4). So taken, as a matter of fact, that I transcribed a portion of it below. Have fun trying to wrap your mind around the magnitude of what he says here:



So many people have always asked me, “What is the main reason for existence, the world, creation – everything?” That’s a pretty big question. But I know the answer. “He has raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. So that, in the ages to come he might show the surpassing riches of his grace and kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. So that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known, through the church and the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.”

One thing all theologians are in agreement about is that God is a God of revelation – not the book of Revelation, but the thing of revelation. God is the God who desires to reveal himself.

Look at the world: God could have done better than this, don’t you think? He could’ve made something far greater than this. It’s almost as though the greatest act of creation is still a humbling on the part of God. Why would he make a heaven, and then make a ball of dirt? Why would he make angels, whose glory is so superb that if they were to walk into the room right now, I dare say we would all die. And then, make a man out of dirt.

Why is it that Satan fell, and no promise of salvation was given to him? Why is it that he was given perfect justice, and that everyone cried out, “Holy, holy, holy!”? And why is it that that little ball of dirt fell?

Why would God not only sustain this world physically? Why would he not sustain it spiritually? He could’ve sustained Adam by his grace and Adam would have never fallen. One of the greatest philosophical problems in all of scripture is this: if Adam was created good – and he was – then how did he fall? Because good cannot be tempted. There was nothing in him to attract him to evil. The fact is that God did not sustain him – in his (God’s) goodness. He fell, but God could have done other.

Here is something you need to see: the most important thing that there is in everything is that God be known. And whatever has to happen needs to happen, and it’s worth happening if God can be known through it.

Here’s a problem that you need to realize: the greatest things that we sing about in the church are not wrath, or judgment, or condemnation, but unconditional love, and mercy, and grace. And here’s the problem: you can’t know unconditional love when everybody meets the conditions. You can’t know mercy where no one deserves judgment. You can’t understand grace in a place where everybody deserves everything good.

There is a sense in which people say that Jesus Christ, because of the fall, it was necessary that Jesus die. But it would be more appropriate to say that is was necessary that there be a fall so that Jesus could die so that we could know God.

There is a great purpose, farther and deeper than even our own salvation going on in all this, because here’s what’s going to happen: principalities and powers, and mights and dominion all set themselves in array to know this God, but how can he be known? God takes it upon himself to reveal himself in all his glory. From their own history, they most expect that when this little ball of dirt rebels – clenches its fist in the face of God and says, “I will not!” that the thing would befall him that befell Satan – that he would be judged and be put away, and that all of creation would cry out “Holy and just is he who sits upon the throne!”

The fact of the matter is that when Adam fell, he did not die, but a promise came. And all of heaven stood in awe: “Who is this God?” And then there is mercy and grace poured out on men – common grace, and special grace, and God doing works through men who never live up to the bargain.

And then there’s you: a sinner, born in sin, a covenant breaker, a law breaker, a God hater. All of creation looks at you; every principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and they realize you should die.

But then, one day, someone preached the gospel to you. And you heard a voice within a voice – an irresistible draw. A change happened, a re-creation in the very core of your being. For the first time in your life your eyes were opened up and you looked upon Christ, and you believed, and all of heaven watched in awe and fell down on its face and worshipped God.

And then, throughout all your life, you will work and you will struggle and you will fall. And you will do good things and you will do bad things, and for the most part be at some odds and fear because of all your failures. But all of creation will look on and say, “This God always completely and eternally loves this man or this woman.”

Then one day a trumpet will blow and you will be raised and you will be with him, and you will be in glory. And every day of glory – if you can say such a thing – God will pour more and more and more blessing and heap it upon your head. He’ll give you the choicest place at his table, exalt you to his right hand in Christ.

And all of heaven, when it is done, will look upon that and fall down and worship God because of the goodness he gave to you.

That’s the purpose of everything you are. Every day he will heap greater and greater and greater blessing upon your head, so that all the world will look at what you were, and see what you are, and what he’s done, and fall down and worship God.

And the greater blessing of each passing day will cause greater praise from each principality, might, and dominion, that God could be the God that is this way.

That’s something to live for. That’s something to die for.

This is all about him. And he has chosen you: the most ignoble; the most base; the most nothing, to exalt you to his own right hand in Christ and heap upon you things that angels have never seen. And demonstrate his goodness so that all will worship him.