“Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.”
I Timothy 1:17
When we see Him in His Majesty, we shall then worship Him in humility.
“High and lifted up.”
That’s how Isaiah saw the Lord that day “in the year that King Uzziah died” (Is. 6:1a). And, in this vision he “saw the Lord sitting upon a Throne, high and lifted up, and his (robe’s) train filled the Temple” (v.1b).
As he gazed at this wondrous sight, the six-winged creatures called seraphims flew through the air, “crying one to another, ‘Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts. The whole earth is full of His Glory’” (vv.2-3).
Should we be surprised then that this consciousness of God’s Greatness led Isaiah to an overwhelming conviction of his utter sinfulness (v.5)? No, and neither should we be surprised that Paul’s words in today’s Manna are rooted in this same sense of Who God is:
“Eternal”—no beginning or end, Infinity all rolled into One; “Immortal”—nothing temporal here or that which is subject to corruption or decay; “Invisible”—no eye has ever seen Him, just as no one has ever laid eyes upon the wind; yet, we see and feel its “effects,” even as we do God’s creative handiworks and moving of His Spirit in our midst (Jn. 3:8).
Unless we see the God of the universe this way, we do not see Him “high and lifted up.” And, it’s only then that we see Him as “the King” and not some impersonal “Force” or abstract “Unmoved Mover” (as some have called Him in the past).
Although our finite minds cannot even begin to comprehend a God, Who could create everything (except man) by speaking. . .and the ins-and-outs of Someone Who is “eternal, immortal and invisible”. . .we still must ascribe unto Him “honor (Grk. ‘time’—‘value, esteem of the highest degree, dignity, etc.’) and glory (Grk. ‘doxa’—‘worthy of praise and worship, supreme reputation or exaltation, etc.’) forever and ever.”
No wonder in John’s vision of the Revelation he saw “the four and twenty elders fall down before Him that sat on the Throne and worship Him as they cast down their crowns before Him, crying ‘You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power—for You have created all things and for Your pleasure they are and were created’” (4:11).
Why not take some time today to literally “stop and smell the roses”? As you do, smell their fragrance and whisper, “Thou art worthy, O Lord.” If you see a bee nearby, going from flower-to-flower collecting its pollen, recall how the same God Who created the crimson petals is the same One Who placed the pollen-gatherers on the bee’s legs; then, close your eyes and quietly sing, “Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee, How great Thou art, how great Thou art!” Glory!!
By Tom Smith Morning Manna Dated August 25, 2010
