The eternity of God.
"Thou art from everlasting." There are truths self-evident, yet incomprehensible. We can neither doubt nor grasp them. Light, which reveals all things else, dazzles, even blinds, if we gaze on it. So these truths, in whose light reason sees all things, baffle and confound our reason. One of these is the eternity of God. We speak of time sometimes as "flying," as though we ourselves stood still. Sometimes of ourselves as "travelling on." Either way, we feel that eternity is behind us, not increased by our past years; eternity is before us, undiminished as the future becomes present. God fills eternity (Isaiah 57:15). Human language is employed in the Scriptures (Revelation 1:4; Revelation 4:8). But with God, reason assures us, can be no past, present, future, as with creatures. He is (Psalms 90:2). The eternity of God, as taught in the Scriptures, is—
I. A PROOF OF DIVINE INSPIRATION. The wonder of God's works is never so clearly seen as when we compare with man's (e.g. in the microscope). Heathen mythologies and philosophies utterly fail here. Painful, pitiable, to see the struggles of the ancient Greek mind to grapple with this problem, in the monstrous fables of the origin of the gods, or in its ever-shifting theories and guesses of philosophers. The Oriental mind, mystic, subtle, contemplative, lost itself in labyrinths of speculation. The Hindus distinguish the original fountain of being from the Creator, and even to the Creator no temples are built, nor worship offered. "Gods many and lords many" come between him and the worshipper. The Bible only shows us the eternal Creator as the Father of spirits. Its whole purpose is to teach us how near God is to us, and bring us near to him. This could never be man's invention; it is God's own voice.
II. Yet this is A CONTEMPLATION FULL OF AWE. One of the strongest motives to worship. Our cold Northern temperament, commercial hardness, keen pursuit of knowledge we can prove and analyze, frigid intellectualism, indispose us to worship. An Englishman may have "an idol in his heart"—something he puts in place of God; but he cannot comprehend why a Hindu falls down before an image. Yet worship is a real, deep need of the human heart. God's eternity is presented in the Scriptures, not as mere doctrine to be believed, but in the language of worship (see texts quoted above).
III. A BEAUTIFUL, REASSURING CONSIDERATION.
1. Rest for our thought, our heart, our love. Let all else change, God abides. "God is love."
2. Light on the mystery of God's dealings. If at such a moment, or critical turn, we could see good emerging from evil, the perplexity caused by the long continuance of sin and misery would be almost removed (Psalms 94:3). But God is working for eternity, in eternity (2 Peter 3:8, 2 Peter 3:9).
IV. This glorious attribute IS ASCRIBED TO THE LORD JESUS, and CLAIMED BY HIM. (Hebrews 13:8; Revelation 1:8, Revelation 1:11; Revelation 22:13, Revelation 22:16.)
CONCLUSION. Show the bearing of this doctrine on sin; on salvation; on Christian work.
HOMILIES BY S. CONWAY