Amazing Pointers on the Road to Lifting God Higher

On the subject of lifting God higher, Pliny the Younger, governor of Bithynia wrote a letter about A. D. 110 to the Roman Emperor Trajan. Pliny described what he had learned about the Christians and their worship. “They are accustomed to meet,” he says, “on a fixed day before daylight to sing a hymn of praise to Christ as God.” The troubled governor of Bithynia had tried to explain to the Roman Emperor the reason for the spread of the Christian faith, which was extending so rapidly that it was leaving the pagan altars deserted. Unwittingly he had declared the secret of the power of Christianity and its spread in the world—the Christians worshipped and lifted Jesus Christ as God higher.¹ Amazing pointers on the Road to Lifting God Higher: that’s our focus on this week’s Light on Life.

Listen to the Audio

Click Play to Listen | Right Click to Download | Subscribe in Stitcher Radio

How Not to Be A Minister of Condemnation

[Tweet “‘Talking stars,’ stars that preach that there is a powerful Creator God are on display every night.”]

Read the Notes

You can view a basic transcript of this podcast at the bottom of this section.

Accept the Challenge

Each week’s podcast contains a call to action. The Word of God will not produce in your life unless you put into operation.
This week’s call is:

God’s desire has always been that men know Him. So at creation, God placed into the earth certain signposts to direct men to Him. Have you followed the signs? That is, do you know Jesus as Lord?

Join the Conversation

Each week’s podcast also contains a question designed to encourage testimony. Testimony is vital to a believer’s life. We overcome by it (Rev. 12:11).
This week’s question is:

Question: What other signposts are you aware of that God put into the earth that point directly at Him? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Episode Resources:

You can find additional information on the subject of the Gospel of John in the resources listed below.

About Emery

Emery committed his life to the Lord Jesus Christ over 40 years ago and has served as both a full-time pastor and an itinerant minister. Both he and his wife Sharon of 35 years emphasize personal growth and development through the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is both the focus and the hallmark of their mission. Read more about them here.

Subscribe to the Podcast

If you have enjoyed this podcast, please subscribe.

Stitcher Radio Google Play

iTunes PlayerFM

Share the Love

If you enjoyed the podcast, please rate it on Stitcher Radio and leave a review. If you have a suggestion for a Bible topic you would like to see taught, or if you have a question, please e-mail me at emery@emeryhorvath.com

Podcast Notes

God Pointers: Sign Posts in the Earth

Psalm 19:1 (ESV) — 1 The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

God’s desire has always been that men know Him.
So at creation, God placed into the earth certain signposts to direct men to Him.
One of these signposts is the stars of the atmospheric heaven.
God created the heavens to declare God’s glory.
‘Talking stars,’ stars that preach that there is a powerful Creator God are on display every night so that humankind might know.
You know talk about soul winners and bringing people to Jesus and we almost talk about them like they are notches in a gun.
But, have you ever thought about how many souls the Spirit of God via the stars of heaven have brought to the Kingdom?
This world has an atmosphere that is lifting God higher.
That’s what the next two verses in Psalm nineteen declare.

Day to Day Preaching

Psalm 19:2–3 (ESV) — 2 Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. 3 There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.

One day leads into the next, one 24 hour segment, ‘day to day’ as the scripture states this goes on.
The sun rises, the sun sets, and what happens?
Well, the stars come out preaching.
And, they preach ALL night long.
Paul preached long one evening preaching to midnight, and a gentleman listening to the message got sleepy and fell out of the window to his death.
Paul had to interrupt his message to pray for that young man and God through His mercy, raised that man back to life.
The stars are never interrupted in such ways.
They are always in place preaching long and strong.
You see the signposts that God put into the earth lead to Him everywhere.
He didn’t put these pointers only in creation; He also put them in places you wouldn’t expect.
God put a signpost in one of the Tribes of Israel.

The Name Judah: A Sign Post of Praise

Look, for a moment, at the make-up of the twelve tribes in Israel.
We say ‘The Twelve Tribes of Israel,’ and maybe it doesn’t dawn on us that twelve tribes mean twelve families.
That’s what Israel was, a nation of families.
These families came from the twelve sons of Jacob, one tribe for each of Jacob’s sons.
The book of Genesis gives us a list of these sons.

Genesis 35:22–26 (ESV) — 22 …Now the sons of Jacob were twelve. 23 The sons of Leah: Reuben (Jacob’s firstborn), Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. 24 The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. 25 The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s servant: Dan and Naphtali. 26 The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s servant: Gad and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan-aram.

Reuben was the first son born to Jacob and Leah.
Naturally, you would think that the oldest son, would be first or preeminent in all things Israel.
But, it didn’t turn out that way.
Reuben was not preeminent among the twelve tribes nor in Israel’s history.
Well, if the lot of preeminence wasn’t Reuben’s, you might think that that honor then would fall to the second born son, Simeon but, you know, it didn’t happen that way either.
Well, if it’s not the first and second, surely it has to be the third son, and you would be wrong a third time.
The third born son fared no better than the first two.
It isn’t until you get to the fourth son Judah that you hit the jackpot, the fourth son!?
Judah was the fourth son born to Jacob.
Over and over again, in the Word of God, we see Judah preeminently out in front.

Why Judah Is Preeminent

Now, you have to ask the question why?
It surely wasn’t because of Judah’s exemplary lifestyle.
Judah was known for sleeping around with prostitutes (Genesis 38:15–19) and marrying outside of his heritage.
The latter, Judah’s marriage to a Canaanite woman, put him in direct conflict with his great-grandfather Abraham as well as his grandfather Isaac.

Genesis 24:1–3 (ESV) — 1 Now Abraham was old, well advanced in years. And the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. 2 And Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household, who had charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh, 3 that I may make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell,

Genesis 26:34–35 (ESV) — 34 When Esau was forty years old, he took Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite to be his wife, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite, 35 and they made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.

Judah’s Significance Is Because of Jesus

Judah is significant in the Bible because Jesus descended from that tribe.
Jesus didn’t descend from the firstborn son but the fourth born son.
In the scriptures, Jesus is listed as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.

Revelation 5:5 (ESV) — 5 And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”

So yes, Judah is preeminent because Jesus is preeminent.
But, let’s gaze at the name of Judah from another angle, the meaning of its name.
You see there’s yet another reason why Judah has Bible significance and that’s because ‘praising God’ or lifting God higher is associated with his name.
We have already seen Leah’s crisis and how she settled down and lifted her eyes to the Lord and acknowledged His goodness.

The ‘Praise’ or Lifting God Higher Significance of Judah

The name Judah, by definition, means praise.

Genesis 29:35 (ESV) — 35 And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will praise the LORD.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she ceased bearing.

God did something with that name as a pointer in His Word to highlight the importance of lifting God higher in His Kingdom.

Worship Is at The Throne; Praise Is at the Gates

And, with that thought, here’s the illustration of the day.

Have you ever thought about what lifting God higher or worship will be like in heaven? An evangelist asked all who wanted to go to heaven to raise their hands. Everyone in the audience did so, except one elderly man sitting near the front of the auditorium. The preacher pointed his finger at him and said, ‘Sir, do you mean to tell us that you don’t want to go to heaven?’ ‘Sure I want to go, but the way you put the question, I figured you were getting up a busload for tonight!’² Heaven is the most wonderful place ever and as a believer in Jesus it is your eternal destination. And trust me, you want to go there. The worship there is out of this world.

Worship In Heaven Is at The Throne; Praise Is at the Gates

Psalm 100 (ESV) — A PSALM FOR GIVING THANKS. 1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! 2 Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3 Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! 5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.

To Whom is Psalm 100 Directed?

Who is Psalm 100 referencing?
The answer to this question is in verse one: ‘make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.’2
So, the Psalm is not just to the nation of Israel but to all of the earth.
Psalm 100 is a universal Psalm with a universal message, ‘All the earth should praise the Lord.’
The inhabitants of humanity should enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise.

The Layout of the Tabernacle and Psalm 100

With the universality of Psalm 100 in mind, let’s switch gears and ask this question: have you ever thought of how heaven is laid out?
It probably has a few things in common with the Tabernacle of the Old Testament.
After all, the Tabernacle came from a vision that the Lord showed Moses.

Hebrews 8:5 (ESV) — 5 They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.”

The Tabernacle had front gates through which one could enter.
Those gates lead you into the outer courts.
Behind the courts was the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place.
The inner portion is, of course, the Holy of Holies where the Presence of God sits on the Mercy Seat.
To get to the Presence, you have to first go through the gates and then through the courts.
The Throne of God, located in the city of God, may have a similar layout.
We know that there is a city because Revelation tells us there’s one.

Revelation 21:10 (ESV) — 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God,

When you go through the gates of that city, you won’t be at the Throne.
The Throne is probably at the center of the city.

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates

Revelation 21:10–13 (ESV) — 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates.

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates and the City

Revelation 21:14–16 (ESV) —14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. 15 And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. 16 The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal.

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates, the City, and the Walls

Revelation 21:17–120 (ESV) 17 He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement. 18 The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass. 19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst.

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates, the City, the Walls, and the Glory

21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. 22 And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations.

I was going to highlight the twelve gates and how their creation out of one pearl, but this whole passage is so delightful to read, that I couldn’t just help myself so I included all of it.
My my is it thrillingly fun to read.
Think about the description and then gravitate to what the Psalmist said.
You enter the gates with thanksgiving, and when you get on the other side of the gates into the courts, then praise comes out of your mouth.
Why?
Probably because of what you are seeing when getting inside the city and also because of who you are seeing.

By the Name Judah, God Showed that Praise is First

So, the name Judah means praise.
Now let’s do a scripture walk and look at the preeminence of Judah and see if we can learn anything about the importance of praise.

Numbers 2:9,16 (ESV) — 9 All those listed of the camp of Judah, by their companies, were 186,400. They shall set out first on the march. 16 All those listed of the camp of Reuben, by their companies, were 151,450. They shall set out second.

In Numbers two, the Lord lays out for His people the order that the twelve Tribes should camp and what order they need to use to break camp.
Judah broke camp first.
The operative word here is first.
Judah set out; first, that is the fourth born son, not the firstborn son Reuben.
He set out second.

Judah Held High Status in Israel

Here it is again in Numbers ten.

Numbers 10:11–14 (ESV) — 11 In the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth day of the month, the cloud lifted from over the tabernacle of the testimony, 12 and the people of Israel set out by stages from the wilderness of Sinai. And the cloud settled down in the wilderness of Paran. 13 They set out for the first time at the command of the LORD by Moses. 14 The standard of the camp of the people of Judah set out first by their companies, and over their company was Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

Judah is first.
Jesus, the lion of the Tribe of Judah, should be first.
Shouldn’t praise be the same in our lives?
Don’t you think it should hold preeminence with us?

Numbers 7:10–12 (ESV) — 10 And the chiefs offered offerings for the dedication of the altar on the day it was anointed; and the chiefs offered their offering before the altar. 11 And the LORD said to Moses, “They shall offer their offerings, one chief each day, for the dedication of the altar.” 12 He who offered his offering the first day was Nahshon the son of Amminadab, of the tribe of Judah.

The tribe of Judah offered their offerings first when it came to dedicating the altar.
Again this is a sign of Judah’s elevation in the sight of God.

Does Praise Lead to Abundance?

Genesis 46:28 (ESV) — 28 He had sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph to show the way before him in Goshen, and they came into the land of Goshen.

Judah went ahead of Jacob when they all went into the land of Goshen to escape the famine.
Goshen was a land of abundance.
Genesis describes it as ‘the best of the land’ in two places.

Genesis 47:6 (ESV) — 6 The land of Egypt is before you. Settle your father and your brothers in the best of the land. Let them settle in the land of Goshen, and if you know any able men among them, put them in charge of my livestock.”

Genesis 47:11 (ESV) — 11 Then Joseph settled his father and his brothers and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. 12 And Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his father’s household with food, according to the number of their dependents.

Goshen was the best of the land and Judah, or ‘praise’ led them there first.
Praise leads to abundance.
Did you notice that all of Israel’s needs were met in that land?
They had food for all of their dependents while there was famine all around them.
The Egyptians were in a starved state while Judah and the sons of Israel and their families ate the best of the land.
That’s the power of lifting God higher.
And, that’s two amazing signposts on the road to lifting God higher.

Demonstrating the Glory of God

References:

H. Guy Moore, Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc., 1996), 880. ↩
Source unknown, Galaxie Software, 10,000 Sermon Illustrations (Biblical Studies Press, 2002). ↩

emeryhorvath.com

Equipping people to pursue God's glory

Amazing Pointers on the Road to Lifting God Higher

Podcast: Light on Life Season 6 Episode 23

by Emery Horvath

Listen to the Audio

Click Play to Listen | Right Click to Download | Subscribe in Stitcher Radio

Read the Notes

Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Question: What other signposts are you aware of that God put into the earth that point directly at Him? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Episode Resources:

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Podcast Notes

God Pointers: Sign Posts in the Earth

Day to Day Preaching

The Name Judah: A Sign Post of Praise

Why Judah Is Preeminent

Judah’s Significance Is Because of Jesus

The ‘Praise’ or Lifting God Higher Significance of Judah

Worship Is at The Throne; Praise Is at the Gates

Worship In Heaven Is at The Throne; Praise Is at the Gates

To Whom is Psalm 100 Directed?

The Layout of the Tabernacle and Psalm 100

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates and the City

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates, the City, and the Walls

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates, the City, the Walls, and the Glory

By the Name Judah, God Showed that Praise is First

Judah Held High Status in Israel

Does Praise Lead to Abundance?

Listen to the Audio

Click Play to Listen | Right Click to Download | Subscribe in Stitcher Radio

Read the Notes

Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Question: What other signposts are you aware of that God put into the earth that point directly at Him? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Episode Resources:

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Podcast Notes

God Pointers: Sign Posts in the Earth

Day to Day Preaching

The Name Judah: A Sign Post of Praise

Why Judah Is Preeminent

Judah’s Significance Is Because of Jesus

The ‘Praise’ or Lifting God Higher Significance of Judah

Worship Is at The Throne; Praise Is at the Gates

Worship In Heaven Is at The Throne; Praise Is at the Gates

To Whom is Psalm 100 Directed?

The Layout of the Tabernacle and Psalm 100

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates and the City

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates, the City, and the Walls

The Bible Describes the Twelve Gates, the City, the Walls, and the Glory

By the Name Judah, God Showed that Praise is First

Judah Held High Status in Israel

Does Praise Lead to Abundance?

Related posts: