God Is Beautiful
For many years (a phrase which seems to introduce almost everything I say or write these days), I have thought about and preached on the subject of the beauty of God. I have never heard anyone teach on the subject, but I did through the decades come across two written sermons on the topic, “The Beauty of the Lord” by J. D. Jones and “Are There Shortcuts to the Beauty of Holiness?” (the short answer is “No!”) by A. W. Tozer. More recently, I read a review of a scholarly article about the American preacher Jonathan Edwards (of “sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” fame) that mentioned in passing that the beauty of God was one of the great themes in his preaching. I was thus encouraged that I have not headed off on an unprofitable tangent. In simple terms, beauty is that which attracts, causes a favorable interest, and creates an affinity. Such real, eternal beauty is found in our God. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
David, the prince of praise, loved to worship God. In Psalm 48:1-2, he sings, “Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.” High on Abraham and Isaac’s Mount Moriah (Genesis 22) the city of Jerusalem was located on prime real estate; the physical beauty was (and is) considerable. However, what is emphasized here is “His holiness”; this is the real beauty of the place. Psalm 29:2 and Psalm 27:4, both of which we studied last week, point to the holy presence of God as the apex of attraction. The holiness of God was so precious to David that he yearns to actually see God. However, Exodus 33:20b affirms, “There shall no man see Me, and live.” David did not have a death wish; thus, there must be more to the story. The New Testament provides the Gospel message of God the Son, Jesus Christ. We are attracted by God’s holiness, but we remain sinners and cannot approach Him. Thus, He approaches us in human form – and instead of us dying as we behold His face, He dies for us. Jesus, perfect in all ways and beautiful beyond words, places Himself in the midst of sinners, is crucified by sinners, and bears in His body the sins of sinners. Yes, we see Jesus and live – live eternally if we simply trust in Him for salvation. Remember, He died on a cross at Jerusalem, on Mount Zion, in that place that is “beautiful for situation.” From His tomb there, He rose from the dead, demonstrating that He is God and has the power to transform death into life. May each one of us be certain this Savior is our Savior.