Temple Baptist Church - 3-16-2025
Genesis 1:1, 26-28, 31
II. The Attributes of God
“The Omniscience of God”
Introduction: This morning, I want to examine the attribute of God’s omniscience, a concept beyond our comprehension. While humanity is always learning and, hopefully, moving toward the knowledge of truth, God never learns as He is all-knowing. Thus, the old saying attributed to Dr. B. R. Lakin: “Has it ever occurred to you that nothing has ever occurred to God?”
A. The Omniscience of God – In Latin, omnis means "all," and science means "knowing." Omniscience refers to the capacity to know everything infinitely, including thoughts, feelings, life, and the universe; it literally means "all-knowing," and understanding God's knowledge to be exhaustive of the past, present, and future.
1. Our text finds God's omniscience in two verses! God created the heavens and the earth, and the Master Designer observed His work, found in verse 31, in the word “behold,” which is present tense. Lo! See! Surprise! To appear!
2. The word "behold" appears 1,336 times in the King James Bible! The word “beheld,” which is the past tense of “behold,” is found 53 times in the Bible. The last mention of “behold” appears in Revelation, chapter 22:
Revelation 22:12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
In an instant, the twinkling of an eye, surprise, the sudden appearance of our wonderful, inexpressible Lord Jesus Christ!
3. In the word “behold,” I find another great surprise observed at the moment of salvation. God’s infinite love manifested and our instant change of nature.
1 John 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. (To be saved and suddenly a child of God. Oh, what beauty!)
4. Not what God did surprised Him, but His creation was one of great beauty and absolute perfection. His only critique of His creation was: “It was very good!”
B. The relative truth of God’s infinite knowledge and wisdom is found in His creation of the heavens, the earth, and man. Evolution is the Fool’s Folly, as no series of accidents could have made up the perfection of these things!
1. God’s Omniscience is found in His creation in His Creation of the Heavens. There are three “heavens” found in Scripture. Although Genesis 1:1 refers to heaven in the singular, the subsequent verses address the second heaven, our universe, and the third heaven, where God resides.
Isaiah 40:22-26 It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in: (23) That bringeth the princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity. (24) Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown: yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth: and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble. (25) To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. (26) Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.
a. The First Heaven - the magnificence of our breathable air.
1) Its reliability and stability are amazing. Our heaven always remains consistent, protecting us from the sun's rays and providing the elements necessary for life.
2) The makeup is a work of divine genius! Precisely right for the life and generation of plant and animal life.
2 Peter 3:7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
From largest to smallest, the composition of Earth’s atmosphere includes nitrogen, oxygen, argon, CO2, and trace gases. Nitrogen (78.1%), oxygen (20.9%), argon (0.93%), and carbon dioxide (0.04%) are the primary components. Carbon is the most important element for building molecules essential for living organisms. The remaining portion of the atmosphere consists of trace gases. Neon, helium, methane, and krypton (no, Superman did not bring it from the planet Krypton!) are some of the major trace gases that comprise a small part of the atmosphere. These gases make up the breathable air necessary for life.
Almost all these elements are volatile in the right mixtures and circumstances. In the wisdom of God, they are set to both give life and destroy.
3) Our breathable atmosphere is perfectly renewable! Renewing itself through photosynthesis, where we breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. Plants use carbon dioxide along with water and sunlight to reproduce breathable oxygen.
b. The Second Heaven, our Universe. Disclaimer: The following list of information may or may not be factual but is the astronomers' observation.
Psalms 19:1a To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God …
1) The universe is estimated to be about 92 billion light-years in diameter. A light-year is the distance that light can travel at 186,000 miles per second in one year, approximately six trillion miles.
2) A modern spacecraft would take 450 million light years to reach the center of our galaxy alone.
3) Some statistics concerning our universe. The number of:
Superclusters in the visible universe – 10 million
Galaxy groups in the visible universe – 25 billion
Large galaxy groups in the visible universe – 350 billion
Dwarf galaxies in the visible universe 7 trillion
Stars in the visible universe – 30 billion trillion
Psalms 147:4-5 He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names. (5) Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.
Job 37:16 Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?
2. God’s Omniscience is found in His creation of the Earth.
a) The Hydrological Cycle of water, so essential to life and reproduction. The seas and oceans act as a "septic tank” where all dirty water flows. The salt in the seas serves as a cleansing agent, while the continual motion of the waters acts as the agitator. The sun evaporates the clean water, delivers it as rain to nourish the earth, and then rivers return it to the seas and oceans for re-cleansing.
b) The Life that Earth contains.
73,000 discovered species of trees with app. 9,000 yet to discover.
8,750,000 species of plant and fungi with app. 80% of these being hypothetical.
7,770,000 species of animal and insect.
11,032 species of fowl.
34,000 species of fish.
Everything contains the seed to bring about each one's particular self. “whose seed was in itself, after his kind!”
3. God’s Omniscience is found in His creation of the human body; the LORD God used the elements of the earth. God made man in His image and after His likeness.
a. Our body is fearfully and wonderfully made, and it takes a foolish person to believe that this complex body is simply a series of accidents that made a perfect whole.
The human body contains nearly 100 trillion cells.
There are at least 10 times as many bacteria in the human body as cells.
The average adult takes over 20,000 breaths a day.
The kidneys process about 200 quarts (50 gallons) of blood each day to filter out about 2 quarts of waste and water.
Infants are born with approximately 300 bones, but as they grow some of these bones fuse together leaving 205 bones per adult.
More than half of your bones are in the hands, wrists, feet, and ankles.
Every second, your body produces 25 million new cells.
The largest bone in the human body is the femur, also known as the thigh bone.
The human heart is a multifaceted pump that circulates the blood to every cell in the body and is good for app. one billion beats in a lifetime.
The list could go on. Our Creator fearfully and wonderfully makes us. God’s omniscience is found in not only our body, but also in our soul and spirit. Our minds.
Psalms 139:13-16 For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. (14) I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. (15) My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. (16) Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.
b. Our minds are fearfully and wonderfully made. Not just gray matter with electrical impulses, but a mind that can think, explore, dream, reason, invent, and remember.
1) The human brain is often considered the most complex and powerful organ in the body. This roughly three-pound organ, comprised of billions of neurons, orchestrates everything we think, feel, and do, from controlling bodily functions to allowing us to dream, learn, and solve complex problems.
2) A large portion of brain activity happens outside our conscious awareness. Some studies suggest that 95% of brain activity occurs unconsciously, handling tasks like regulating our heartbeat, digestion, and breathing, as well as influencing emotions, memories, and decision-making. This unconscious processing helps the brain manage essential functions automatically, allowing us to focus on more complex, conscious thought processes.
3) The brain’s processing speed is staggering, with estimates suggesting it can perform one quintillion calculations per second when integrating sensory input, decision-making, and memory.
c) The omniscience and foreknowledge of God are evident in humans' DNA. Like snowflakes, each human is unique, yet God foreknew, designed, and created the DNA of every individual.
C. God’s perfect knowledge of all things.
Job 37:16 Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?
1 John 3:19-20 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. (20) For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
Matthew 10:29-30 Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. (30) But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
He knows every bird or anything else that falls to the ground; every head on every person has numbered hair. Not just the sum total of our hairs but each hair is numbered.
Psalms 139:1-2 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. (2) Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
God not only created and sees us but also understands our hearts, desires, and thoughts before we think them.
D. God knows the past, present, and future as nothing is hid from Him. God alone is omniscient as He is eternal and knows all things in eternity.
Isaiah 48:5 I have even from the beginning declared it to thee; before it came to pass I shewed it thee: lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them.
Prophecy belongs only to the all-knowing One! What a thrill to understand that God knows each step, valley, and mountain top that we will tread and has prepared for the outcome.
Isaiah 46:9-10 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, (10) Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
Because of His omniscience, His counsel (God’s Word) is unerring in its wisdom and guidance.
Romans 11:33-36 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! (34) For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? (35) Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? (36) For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.
We cannot perceive the mind or ways of God, but we can learn to trust in His wisdom, will, and work.
1 John 3:19-20 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. (20) For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
Matthew 10:29-30 Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. (30) But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
He knows every bird or anything else that falls to the ground; every head on every person has numbered hair. Not just the sum total of our hairs but each hair is numbered.
Isaiah 48:5 I have even from the beginning declared it to thee; before it came to pass I shewed it thee: lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them.
Prophecy belongs only to the all-knowing One! What a thrill to understand that God knows each step, valley, and mountain top that we will tread and has prepared for the outcome.
Isaiah 46:9-10 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, (10) Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
Because of His omniscience, His counsel (God’s Word) is unerring in its wisdom and guidance.
Conclusion: We cannot perceive God's mind or ways, but we can learn to trust in His wisdom, will, and work.
Romans 11:33-36 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! (34) For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? (35) Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? (36) For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.
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