Do You Know God?
And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ This is the true God and eternal life.
1 John 5:20
How well do we know God and how do we seek to know him? Do we know God’s reaction to our choices? How does He react when we justify our way, when we rebel, or when we are fighting a sinful habit? How about when He leads us somewhere we don’t want to go, or when we give into our will because of fear? How will He react when we say we are too busy to answer His call, or when we think our prayer is not answered? God created us in His image. He fills us with His Spirit, loves us more than we can imagine, and desires to spend all eternity with us. Do you think the Lord wants us to know Him? The driving force of our Christian walk is the desire to know the Lord and to be closer to Him. God is molding us to conform to the image of his Son in order that we can understand Him and know Him.
So, how can we continually increase our knowledge and understanding of our Lord? Obviously we need to read the Word and study the personality of God with the Israelites, as well as, the life of Jesus. Will reading about our Lord enable us to know Him? If we read a book about someone, does that mean we know them? The answer is no. In order to know someone we need to spend time with them. The same is true with God. We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. (1 John 2:3)
Keeping His commands includes reading the Bible, praying, and fellowshipping with our Christian family. The only true way to know and understand the heart of Jesus is to walk as Jesus did, guided by the Holy Spirit. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. (Galatians 5:25) The Spirit will guide us in ministering to the world with God’s love going through us to others. We will not be able to fully know the Lord until our hearts are filled with His love. And this only happens when we reflect His love to the world. Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. (1 John 4:7)
The more we know the Lord, the more Christ-like we become, the more love we have for the Lord and his creation, and the more blessed we are through the Spirit. There is nothing in this world that compares to the Spiritual blessings that come from being close to the Lord. And the greatest blessing is that if we seek the Lord, we can continually grow closer to Him until our last breath. At that point we go home to be with the Father and the Son for all eternity.
Today, seek to grow closer to the Lord through prayer, meditation, and following the Spirit. Note the peace and joy that comes through seeking the Lord. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:13) Today, seek the Lord with all your heart. Don’t seek the Lord with a divided heart, but with one that is solely focused on the Lord.
Let’s pray: Lord, guide me in the Spirit to live this day as Jesus would live this day. Help my heart to identify with Jesus’ heart to understand Him more. Guide me in the Spirit to be closer to You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.