In The Presence of Greatness

 

Russell Conwell was noted for his speech, “Acres of Diamonds.” He delivered his speech over 5000 times from 1900-1925. That same speech has been in book form for a number of years and makes interesting reading. In it, he tells of meeting Abraham Lincoln at the White House to plead the case of a young soldier sentenced to death during the Civil War. Conwell tells of the sense of awe and humility that came over him while he was in the presence of the man who is considered to be one of the greatest Presidents in our history. Most of us recognize greatness and are humbled to be around people who have earned our respect. In their presence, we may find ourselves completely awed and maybe even speechless. We may feel awkward and find ourselves fidgeting from a bad case of “nerves” or feel ourselves experiencing a hot flash.

In Scripture, when we read of men in the presence of God, we find that they were awe-struck and humbled. Job was humbled; Isaiah declared himself a man of unclean lips and the Apostle John was compelled to fall down in worship. Those who experience the presence of God were forever changed and showed only the upmost reverence for Him. How different this is from our day and time! It is not unusual to hear God’s name taken in vain and divine things taken lightly. As a result, we often bring that same disrespect into our worship. Do we not realize that as we commune to remember what the Lord has done for us (1 Corinthians 11:23-29), we are in the presence of Him who created all things?

[Psalms 139:14] “I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.” It’s amazing how our Heavenly Father so meticulously created the things around us. Note God’s accuracy and wisdom in the following creations (a minute example of His wondrous creation): * The eggs of the potato bug hatch in 7 days; * The canary in 14 days; * The barnyard hen in 21 days; * The eggs of ducks and geese in 28 days; * Those of the mallard in 35 days; * Parrot and Ostrich eggs in 42 days. (Notice, they are all divisible by seven.) * The largest land mammal (at least in our time) is the elephant. God gave this great beast four legs that all bend forward in the same direction. No other Quadruped is so made – but with four fulcrums it can lift its great weight easily from the ground. * The horse rises from the ground with its two front legs first. * A cow rises from the ground with its two hind legs first.

Further evidence of God’s wisdom and accuracy can be seen in a number of other things found in nature: * Each watermelon has an even number of strips on the rind. * Each orange has an even number of segments. * Each ear of corn has an even number of rows. * Each bunch of bananas has an even number on its lowest row. Each row decreases by one banana making one row an even number, the next row an odd number and so forth. * Waves of the sea roll in on shore, twenty-six to the minute in all kinds of weather. * All grains are found in even numbers on the stalk. Thus, the Lord specified their multiplication of thirty-fold, sixty-fold and one hundred-fold – all even numbers. * Even certain flowers blossom at specific times during the day. Linnaeus, the great botanist, said if he had a conservatory with the proper conditions and planted flowers, he could actually tell time as to which were open and which were closed.

If we recognize God’s greatness, as we should, we will come to Him in awe of His wonderful works and be humbled that He would accept our worship. This will be reflected in our attitude, the attention we give to each item of worship and the earnestness of our efforts. “But the Lord is in His temple, let all the earth keep silence before Him” (Habakkuk 2:20). Worship in spirit and truth.