Psalm 139:13-24
13 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. 17 How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them! 18 If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee. 19 Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O God: depart from me therefore, ye bloody men. 20 For they speak against thee wickedly, and thine enemies take thy name in vain. 21 Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee? 22 I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies. 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: 24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
Psalm 139 teaches us about three attributes of God that demonstrate His sufficiency. As the all-sufficient God, God is complete in Himself. He has no need of anything. He lacks nothing. Last week, we discovered that God is both omniscient and omnipresent. He is all-knowing and ever-present. He does not need anyone to teach Him anything nor is there anywhere someone can go and escape His presence. He completely knows and fills all things. In the remainder of Psalm 139, David speaks to God’s omnipotence. The word comes from “omni” and “potent.” Potent means able. God is all-able. He is able to do anything and we describe that more fully as all-powerful. Psalm 115:3 declares, “But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” He is all-powerful and He has demonstrated His awesome power in three ways. God has demonstrated His power in His creation, His rule over all things, and His saving work of redemption.
First, David speaks to the intricate wisdom and power demonstrated in God forming Him with such care and complexity in His mother’s wound. God has a great design and purpose for all of His creation and a unique design and purpose for people. We have been “fearfully and wonderfully made” and our lives are guided by His sovereign hand.
God also, demonstrates His power in His sovereign rule over all things. David speaks to his righteous hatred of those who oppose God and the confidence that God will one day judge the wicked. The words of Psalm 139:19-22 are difficult for us to grasp. We have trouble connecting hate with the child of God. Charles Spurgeon explains, “To love all men with benevolence is our duty; but to love any wicked man with complacency would be a crime.” Further, David is expressing whose side He is on. He is not dismissing his responsibility to teach sinners about God so that they might turn to Him (Psalm 51:13). Instead, is simply saying that he is on God’s side. As judge of the earth He will always do right (Genesis 18:25). Those who oppose Him and reject His grace will be judged. He has the right to do so and He is right in doing so.
God’s power has also been demonstrated in His salvation. David prays for God to search his heart and lead him into “the way everlasting.” David knows that he is far from sufficient within himself to accomplish his own salvation. Instead, he trusts totally in the Lord to lead and guide him in the way he must walk. As the all-powerful God, God has shown His amazing power in accomplishing our salvation. Paul prays that the Ephesians might come to know this power, “And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 1:19-20). The power to change a rebellious heart and bring a person to submit to the gospel of Jesus Christ is an amazing demonstration of God’s power on display. The gospel message “is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth” (Romans 1:16).
God is the all-powerful Creator, Ruler, and Savior. He has demonstrated His power in His works of creation, His sovereign rule over all things, and His redemptive work in reconciling a lost world to Himself through His Son Jesus Christ. We are “fearfully and wonderfully made” and we will ultimately give an account of our lives to God. Apart from God’s saving work we all stand condemned before Him as Judge and Ruler, but God sent His Son Jesus Christ into the world to shed His blood on a cross and, in His great power, He rose again from the dead so that we might have eternal life. Has God’s power changed your life? Have you come to Him through His Son in repentance and faith? Today, He can give you a new heart and new life. How great is our God?