How well do you know God? How important is it to know Him? Jesus answers this question for us.
John 17:3 (ESV)
3 And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
Knowing God is critical to our souls. Eternal life comes only to those who know Him. This is so because it is our knowledge of Him that leads to our obedience to Him. Anyone who truly knows God will obey Him.
1 John 2:3-4 (ESV)
3 And by this we know that we have come to know him if we keep his commandments. 4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him,
Many people say they know God, but they fail to live lives of obedience. John says that makes them liars.
What does it mean to know God? It begins with developing a relationship with Him by obeying the gospel of Christ. At that point, a person enters into a family relationship with God. God becomes his or her father and they immediately establish fellowship with Him. That fellowship continues as long as one walks in the light by living obediently before God.
But knowing God involves more than developing a relationship with Him. It includes learning about His nature. For example, God is love (1 John 4:8). When you learn what love is and how it acts (1 Corinthians 13:4-8), you now know more about God. You know that God is patient and kind, etc.; and, so you know that He will treat you accordingly.
Another example is God’s inability to lie (Hebrews 6:18). Knowing this about God increases our trust in Him and His Word. We know that God’s promises will always come to fruition because we know Him. Thus, when we read something in God’s Word, we believe it without hesitation. Paul knew God, and so he had no problem believing Him when He spoke to him. Remember when Paul was on his way to Rome and got caught in a storm that threatened to destroy the ship he was on? After God spoke to him through an angel, this is what he told the rest of the men on board who believed that they were all going to die.
Acts 27:23-25 (NKJV)
23 For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve, 24 saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must be brought before Caesar; and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you.’ 25 Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me.
Why did Paul believe this message from God? Because he knew God, and that meant knowing that God cannot lie.
To know God is also to know that He is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. This knowledge fills us with godly fear, and godly fear leads to keeping His commandments.
The more you know God, the more you will trust and obey Him. If you do not know God now, it is in your best interest to get to know Him as soon as possible. How do we get to know God? By reading the Bible. Everything you need to know about Him is found there.
As you wind down for the night, think about these things.