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El Elyon: God Most High 

Genesis 14.18–20 

Don Ruhl • Savage Street, Grants Pass, Oregon • September 22, In the year of our Lord Christ, 2019 

Prelude: 

  1. Before I started giving you sermons based on my recent trip to the Bible lands, 
    1. I was speaking on the names of God. 
    2. I want to resume doing that until I am ready to speak on Egypt. 
  2. So far, not only have we seen the names of God, but 
    1. we have noticed a connection with Jesus the Christ. 
    2. That should not surprise us since Jesus is the Son of God, 
      1. making Him deity, 
      2. even as we are sons and daughters of our parents, making us human. 
  3. The Scriptures that I use at first, 
    1. I will have on the screen, but 
    2. once we get into Genesis and Daniel, 
      1. you will need to open your Bible and 
      2. follow along and see with your own eyes the great truths of our God. 

Persuasion: 

  1. What It Means that He Is God Most High 
    1. Second Samuel 22.14

      14 “The LORD thundered from heaven,
      And the Most High uttered His voice.

      – 2 Samuel 22.14
      1. His actual location is higher than anything on earth. 
      2. He is even beyond this universe, for 
        1. He created the heavens and the earth. 
        2. How much higher can you go than that? 
    2. Psalm 47.2

      2 For the LORD Most High is awesome;
      He is a great King over all the earth.

      – Psalm 47.2
      1. For this reason the Bible calls him the King of kings. 
        1. He makes kings. 
        2. He takes kings away. 
      2. That makes Him God Most High. 
    3. Psalm 57.2

      2 I will cry out to God Most High,
      To God who performs all things for me.

      – Psalm 57.2
      1. If He could not perform all things, 
      2. He would not be God Most High. 
        1. However, He can do anything. 
        2. Therefore, He is God Most High. 
          1. Who can do more than He can do? 
          2. For one thing, He created everyone else. 
    4. Psalm 78.35

      35 Then they remembered that God was their rock,
      And the Most High God their Redeemer.

      – Psalm 78.35
      1. Israel found deliverance after they remembered 
      2. that their God is above even their strongest enemies. 
    5. Psalm 83.18

      18 That they may know that You, whose name alone is the LORD,
      Are the Most High over all the earth.

      – Psalm 83.18
      1. Do not tie God down in your mind as only being 
        1. over Israel in the Old Testament and 
        2. over the church in the New Testament. 
      2. He is over all the earth at all times. 
        1. Therefore, He is God Most High, the Most High God. 
        2. Otherwise, He would not be God. 
    6. Psalm 97.9

      9 For You, LORD, are Most High above all the earth;
      You are exalted far above all gods.

      – Psalm 97.9
      1. He owns the earth. 
      2. Of course, He is Most High above all the earth. 
        1. He is exalted above all gods, 
        2. that is why He is the God of gods. 
          1. However, it is not enough to say that He is exalted above all gods. 
          2. He is exalted FAR above all gods. 
            1. How high is He above us? 
            2. However, we are alive and we are real. 
              1. Idols are dead and false. 
              2. Therefore, He is even higher above them than He is us. 
    7. Lamentations 3.38

      38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
      That woe and well-being proceed?

      – Lamentations 3.38
      1. Does not this passage say it all? 
      2. Have you read the Lamentations of Jeremiah? 
        1. Look at this gem from his Lamentations. 
        2. Since woe and well-being proceed from Him, 
          1. that automatically makes him the Most High, 
          2. unsurpassable by anything and anyone. 
    8. Luke 6.35 shows that we can imitate Him:

      35 “But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.”

      – Luke 6.35
      1. Jesus always adds so much to our spiritual understanding. 
      2. If we love our enemies, 
        1. we can be sons and daughters of the Most High God. 
        2. We can be like Him. 
    9. Acts 7.48–50

      48 “However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says:

      49 “Heaven is My throne,
      And earth is My footstool.
      What house will you build for Me?” says the LORD,
      “Or what is the place of My rest?
      50 Has My hand not made all these things?”

      – Acts 7.48–50
      1. Stephen knew our God well. 
      2. He does not dwell in man-made structures, or 
        1. He is not restricted to them, because 
        2. He can be in them just as much as anywhere else. 
      3. Stephen quoted from Isaiah and the Psalms to make a great declaration of God’s Most High status: 
        1. Heaven is His throne. 
        2. The earth is His footstool. 
        3. His hand has made all things. 
          1. Does that not say it all? 
          2. No god, and certainly no human, can make such a claim. 
  2. Genesis 14.18–24 • Melchizedek and Abraham

    18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. 19 And he blessed him and said:

    “Blessed be Abram of God Most High,
    Possessor of heaven and earth;
    20 And blessed be God Most High,
    Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.”

    And he gave him a tithe of all. 21 Now the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, and take the goods for yourself.” 22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the LORD, God Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth, 23 that I will take nothing, from a thread to a sandal strap, and that I will not take anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich’— 24 except only what the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men who went with me: Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion.”

    – Genesis 14.18–24
    1. This episode in the life of Abraham shows 
      1. that our God possesses heaven and earth. 
      2. His real estate holdings are more than we can comprehend. 
    2. As God Most High, He has a priest, 
      1. in this case, Melchizedek. 
      2. That means that He has a people. 
    3. Therefore, He favors His people, 
      1. as He did in this story with Abraham, 
      2. delivering him from his enemies, because 
        1. as God Most High He can do such things. 
        2. Would you just think of the fact 
          1. that our God is Most High because 
          2. He possesses heaven and earth! 
            1. Is that awesome or what? 
            2. Is there anyone here who wants to Amen that? 
  3. Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar 
    1. In Daniel 3, Nebuchadnezzar had a demonstration 
      1. of how the God of Israel is the Most High God. 
      2. The king of Babylon set up a huge golden image for people to worship. 
        1. Anyone who refused would find themselves in a fiery furnace. 
        2. Daniel’s friends refused to do it. 
    2. When the king found out, 
      1. he warned them and 
      2. stated what he would do. 
      3. Then he challenged them:

        15 “Now if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?”

        – Daniel 3.15
    3. They still would not do it, 
      1. so he had them thrown into the furnace, 
      2. heated to seven times its normal temperature, but 
        1. something wonderful happened. 
        2. They were not burned. 
          1. Their clothing did not burn. 
          2. They did not even smell like fire. 
      3. Also, the king saw a fourth man in the fire, 
        1. whom he understood as being divine in some way. 
        2. Then he asked them to come out of the fire, and made a confession:

          26 Then Nebuchadnezzar went near the mouth of the burning fiery furnace and spoke, saying, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here.” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego came from the midst of the fire.

          – Daniel 3.26

          28 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God! 29 Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this.”

          – Daniel 3.26–29
    4. Daniel 4 shows that he needed to learn the lesson again:

      1 Nebuchadnezzar the king, To all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you. 2 I thought it good to declare the signs and wonders that the Most High God has worked for me.

      3 How great are His signs,
      And how mighty His wonders!
      His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
      And His dominion is from generation to generation.
      1. He went on to explain a dream that he had and 
        1. that no one but Daniel could give the interpretation. 
        2. It showed a great tree that was cut down by order of heaven 
          1. until the tree, representing the king knew:

            17 “That the Most High rules in the kingdom of men,
            Gives it to whomever He will,
            And sets over it the lowest of men.”
          2. Part of learning that lesson would involve 
            1. the Lord driving Nebuchadnezzar from society and 
            2. making live as an animal for several years. 
              1. A voice from heaven told him how long this would last:

                25 “They shall drive you from men, your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make you eat grass like oxen. They shall wet you with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.
      2. The king continued to explain that Daniel tried to get him to repent. 
        1. However, it was to no avail. 
        2. Daniel 4 continues to show what happened a year later:

          28 All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 At the end of the twelve months he was walking about the royal palace of Babylon. 30 The king spoke, saying, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?”
      3. Since he was very impressed with himself, 
        1. he was driven into the wild to live as it had been prophesied. 
        2. Finally, he came to his senses:

          34 And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever:

          For His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
          And His kingdom is from generation to generation.
          35 All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing;
          He does according to His will in the army of heaven
          And among the inhabitants of the earth.
          No one can restrain His hand
          Or say to Him, “What have You done?”
      4. He became reasonable again like a man. 
        1. His kingdom and glory were restored to him. 
        2. He ended with these beautiful words:

          37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down.
          1. Nebuchadnezzar, one of history’s greatest kings, 
          2. thought that he was the Most High, but 
            1. he learned the hard way 
            2. that the God of Israel is the Most High God. 
  4. The Son of the Most High God 
    1. Then we move into the New Testament and 
      1. someone special came into the world, 
      2. showing his relation to the Most High God, and 
        1. that he also shares in all the qualities 
        2. that made the God of Israel the Most High God. 
    2. Mark 5 shows a man with an unclean spirit, 
      1. running to Jesus, a carpenter from Nazareth, Israel, and 
      2. worshiping Him, then saying:

        7 “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me.”

        – Mark 5.7
        1. The unclean spirit had seen Jesus in the spirit world and 
        2. knew who He was and that He came from the Most High God. 
    3. In Acts 16, Luke wrote of Paul and 
      1. his evangelistic team meeting a girl with a spirit:

        16 Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling. 17 This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” 18 And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And he came out that very hour.

        – Acts 16.16–18
      2. She spoke the truth, 
        1. knowing who God and Jesus are, but 
        2. she did it in an annoying way. 
          1. The spirit in her could not contain itself and 
          2. had to proclaim what those men were preaching, for 
            1. they were preaching Jesus as the Chosen One of God, and 
            2. that made the preachers servants of the Most High God. 

Exhortation: 

  1. Don’t let yourself to the point 
    1. that you have to learn 
    2. that our God is the Most High God, because 
      1. the learning process will be painful. 
      2. Everyone will eventually see who He is. 
  2. Come to that truth now. 
    1. See the life of Jesus Christ 
    2. as a demonstration of the Most High God. 
      1. Become a friend of Christ. 
      2. You will then be a friend of God Most High.