How Well Do You Know God

Who Is God? The subject of God is so vast and awesome and so far beyond human understanding that the human mind finds itself unable to comprehend, much less describe Almighty God, our Creator, who through Jesus created the entire universe.

How well do you know your God? What is your relationship to Him? In our present life we are pressed in by so many problems and stresses, we are engaged in so many pursuits and activities that such a question rarely enters our mind and heart. We have been satisfied to leave God and religion to the clergy and have gone our way, unmindful of God and what He really ought to mean to us. Going to church on Sundays and contributing to its support soothes our conscience and leads us to the false conclusion that by so doing we are fulfilling our moral responsibility to our God. But is this really so? Often we arrive at a false and dangerous assumption that God can be bribed, or appeased. We go our way without a care about Him or what He stands for, and what control He desires and should exercise in our personal lives.

This false concept has kept millions from discovering for them-selves the joy of knowing who God is - why we were created - what He requires of us - what His plans are for our lives - and what we should do to live in peace, joy and harmony with our God. The purpose of this booklet is to teach each sincere person the way to attain such knowledge, understanding, wisdom, peace of mind, and true contentment, by coming to a close personal relationship with God as our Father as well as our Creator.

God Revealed In Nature - Have you noticed how in nature everything moves in order like clock-work? The seasons, months, days, hours, sunrises, and sunsets each follow one another in orderly fashion without change. Winter, for instance, is a season of rest or sleep and symbolic of death. Spring is the season of awakening new life and symbolic of the Resurrection. Summer brings a time of strength and abundance with life at its best. Autumn is the season of harvesting, symbolic of maturity and the golden years, preparatory to the sleep of winter, or death.Thus, the four seasons are really symbolic of life itself. They never change because they have been ordered and ruled by a divine, immutable, supernatural law (Genesis 8:22).

The cycle of human life is the same. There is conception, birth, infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, middle age, old age, and death. This is also the unchangeable cycle of life at present. Everything on this earth follows this universal pattern -- this immutable law, set in motion, not by impersonal, haphazard nature, but by God, the Creator of nature, and no man, authority, or power (except God Himself) can change it. Call it divine law or natural law, it doesn’t matter. The cycle of life cannot be changed by man. It will continue the same until, in due time, God, who set it in motion at the beginning, changes it to bring it into harmony with His purposed plan for mankind. Thus God is revealed in nature.

Besides order in nature, God is revealed in the beauty of nature. Consider the beauty of a sunrise or sunset; no two are alike. They reveal God as the Supreme Artist. Consider the infinite varieties of flowers in all their sizes, shapes, fragrance and colors, the sight of which makes the heart glad. God is indeed awesome!

From the highest peaks of the Himalayas to the deepest abyss of oceans, man explores and ponders the various wonders of God and His creation. Mountains, hills, valleys, plains and deserts; trees, shrubs and bushes; grains and vegetables; fruits, nuts and berries to feed mankind and all living creatures; springs, brooks, streams, rivers, seas and oceans which provide life-sustaining water; fish, reptiles, birds and mammals; all originally created for man’s benefit and enjoyment, and all pointing to a Great, All-Wise, All-Powerful and All-Loving Creator. Then, if we look above us, we see infinite stretch of blue 

which we call sky. Clouds float by driven by wind currents to supply us with rain and snow. In the daytime we see the sun ruling in all its glory and providing man with nature’s heat, energy and sustaining life itself. As night falls we view the moon, the planets and myriad stars brilliantly thronging the Milky Way in the dark firmament above, all moving at incredible speed in their orbit -- incontestable proof of the Supreme power, majesty and wisdom of our Great God. Read Psalm 19.

Our search for God does not end there. If it did, we still would not know Him in any intimate way or His character and His plans for humanity and all creation. Where do we go for answers to tell us all about our Almighty God? Can theologians, scientists, politicians, statesmen, industrialists, educators, business men, physicians or any other professional men tell us? No! It is impossible for the finite mind to understand, much less explain and describe the Infinite God. No man, however well-educated or wise, could tell us what we need to know about God.

God revealed in His Word - There is only one source that can reveal the Creator to us further and that is God’s Holy Word. In the Bible, God reveals Himself to man and offers him true knowledge, wisdom, and understanding through His Holy Spirit.

Just what is this Holy Book? Briefly, it is a collection of 66 books encompassing 7,000 years of human history and experience. This period of time stretches from the creation of the first man, Adam, to the end of the Millennium. It begins with the first book, Genesis, and ends with the last book, 

Revelation.

Who were the inspired writers of the Holy Bible? They were men of diverse background, experience, education, and faith. They lived in different ages and at different periods in history, yet their writings are harmonious because they wrote “as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21). The true Author of these books is God Himself, and for this reason this collection of books is correctly called “The Word of God” or “The Sacred Scriptures.”

It is this very Book that our Lord declared to be TRUTH (John 17:17). In it we find God’s revelation of His works, His laws, His dealings with men, His promised blessings and punishments, His plan for all mankind, His divine characteristics and the revelation of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, as the Savior, Messiah, Redeemer, and coming Lord and King of the whole world. The whole of God’s Word centers around our Lord Jesus Christ, concealed in the Old Testament and revealed in the New.

The Bible reveals much about God so that we may know Him better and appreciate, love, worship, serve, and obey Him as we were created to do. Going through its pages, we read of the many things God says about Himself which help us to this end. For thousands of years a bitter battle has been fought on earth between the forces of good and evil, with the forces of evil seeming to have the upper hand most of the time. However, the prophetic Word discloses that eventually the forces of Light and Life will overcome evil and darkness. The final triumphant victory will be God’s! In all of this, God has been permitting evil in order to give mankind a painful but eternal lesson in the “exceeding sinfulness of sin” and the consequences of disobedience.

“Come near, you nations, to hear, and hearken...let the earth hear and all therein: the world and all things that come forth of it. For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies; he will utterly destroy them, he will deliver them to the slaughter.... And all the host of heaven (demons, evil spirits, fallen angels) shall be dissolved, and (Satan’s) heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falls off from the vine, as a falling fig from the fig tree” (Isaiah 34:1-4). Thus will come the end and the destruction of all evil.

God’s Revealed Purpose - The Bible reveals why God created man; why man fell into sin and was condemned to death; and why to this time God has not exercised His mighty power to free man from his awful condition and restore him to life, health and happiness. This power He plans to use in His due time for the destruction of all evil and for the universal benefit of His obedient human creation. This was guaranteed by the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

This important truth should penetrate and take firm root in every heart. God must be recognized by man as the Fountain of life. Every creature of sound mind, even in nature, loves the gift of life. 

Therefore, it is of greatest importance for all to know God, who alone grants eternal life through the means He has provided, Christ, to all who will love, worship and obey Him. 

The Spirit of Prophecy, like a golden thread, runs through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. It reveals to the earnest seeker who God is, and His grand Plan of Redemption for the eventual blessing of all the families of the earth (Gen. 22:15-18).

Has God ever, in His exalted position, communicated with men? Yes! He has done so many times through the past centuries. Here are a few instances: God spoke to Adam - Genesis 2:15-17; 3:8-19. 

God spoke to Noah - Genesis 6:13-21; 9:1-17. God spoke to Abraham - Genesis 12:1-3; 15:1-16; 22:15- 18. God spoke to Isaac - Genesis 26:1-5. God spoke to Jacob - Genesis 28:10-15. God spoke to Moses - Ex. 3:1-22; and to all the prophets. Today, though His voice is not heard with the ears, God speaks to us by His Holy Spirit through His written Word.

God’s Longevity - Considering the shortness of life, man may wonder how long God has existed and how long He will yet live. Thousands of years? Millions or billions of years? Moses, the man of God and great leader of Israel, wrote the first five books of the Bible. These also are his words from Psalm 90:2: “Before the mountains were created, before you made the earth and the world, you are God, without beginning or end.”

Here, then, we have God’s revelation of His own existence. He has been living forever and will continue to do so. There was no beginning to His existence, and there shall be no end. God has always been immortal. He has life within Himself. He is not depen-dent on such things as food, drink, or air to sustain His life as we are. He is not subject to death and cannot die.

God’s Name and Character - Having thus established God’s eternity because of His immortality, the next question might be: What is the Name of this great, all-powerful, immortal God? Again the Bible provides us with the answer. In Psalm 83:18 (NLT) we read: “Until they learn that you alone are called the LORD (Jehovah), that you alone are the Most High, supreme over all the earth.” This is the sacred Name of God - Jehovah. Use it with reverence. Jehovah means “self-existing one.”

The Bible tells us that God is Holy. Isaiah had a vision in which he said, “I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple. Hovering around him were mighty seraphim, each with six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with the remaining two they flew. In a great chorus they sang, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD 

Almighty! The whole earth is filled with his glory!’” (Isa. 6:1-4). See also Isaiah 57:15.God’s Majesty also extends throughout all the ages. In Matthew 5:35, our Lord Jesus calls God “The Great King.” His sublime majesty inspired the prophet Jeremiah to write: “Who would not revere Thee, O King of nations? For to Thee belongs the kingdom; for among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like Thee” (Jeremiah 10:7 - Lamsa).

God is known as The Most High. This means that He is supreme and superior to all. He holds the destinies of nations as well as individuals in His Mighty, Majestic, and Holy Hands. The depth of His riches of wisdom and intelligence, the height of His power and of His love are beyond human understanding.

God’s Four Main Attributes - The Bible reveals that God’s character, besides being Majestic, High and Holy, has four distinct attributes, all perfectly in balance with one another, making His a truly perfect and glorious character. They are:

Justice - “Your throne is founded on two strong pillars—righteousness and justice...” Psalms 89:14. Deut. 32:4 tells us, “He is the Rock; His work is perfect. Everything He does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright He is!” David declares, “For the LORD is righteous, and He loves justice” (Psalms 11:7), and Rev. 15:3 declares, “...just and true are Your ways, O King of the nations.” We can depend on God’s perfect justice to reward those who do good and punish the evildoers.

Wisdom - Another of God’s attributes is wonderfully evident in all His creation throughout the universe. In Isa. 40:12-15 we read, “Who else has held the oceans in His hand? Who has measured off the heavens with His fingers? Who else knows the weight of the earth or has weighed out the mountains and the hills? Who is able to advise the Spirit of the LORD? Who knows enough to be His teacher or counselor? Has the LORD ever needed anyone’s advice? Does He need instruction about what is good or what is best? No, for all the nations of the world are nothing in comparison with Him. They are but a drop in the bucket, dust on the scales. He picks up the islands as though they had no weight at all.” 

Acts 15:18 tells us, Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world.” The Apostle Paul wrote of “the wisdom of God in a mystery, a hidden wisdom” (1 Cor. 2:7) and of the manifold wisdom of God, for in Ephesians 3:10 (NLT), he says, “God’s purpose was to show his wisdom in all its rich variety to all the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms...This was his plan from all eternity, and it has now been carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.”

This same Apostle also bursts out in an exclamation of praise to God and His wisdom in Romans 11:33: “Oh, what a wonderful God we have! How great are His riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand His decisions and His methods! For who can know what the Lord is thinking? Who knows enough to be His counselor? And who could ever give Him so much that He would have to pay it back? For everything comes from Him; everything exists by His power and is intended for His glory. To Him be glory evermore. Amen.”

Power - All authority and power proceeds from God. He called light out of darkness...cosmos out of chaos...order out of confusion. All nations, governments, and authorities on this earth are considered as nothing by God.

God rules the whole universe by His Almighty power. Everything moves in full obedience and harmony to His supreme will, according to His perfect and immutable laws laid down at the beginning of creation, including the planet earth and all living creatures. God’s power is absolute, unlimited and eternal. Nothing can oppose, impede, or block it without His allowing it for mankind’s eternal good. The prophet wrote in Isaiah 66:1 (NLT) - “This is what the LORD says: ‘Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. Could you ever build Me a temple as good as that? Could you build a dwelling place for Me? My hands have made both heaven and earth and they are Mine. I, the LORD, have spoken!’” In Psalm 103:19 we read, “The LORD has made the heavens His throne; from there He rules over everything.” Please read Psalm 103 in its entirety.

The Bible tells us of His wonders which are the visible manifestations of His Almighty power. In Genesis - read the story of creation; the Great Flood; the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah; in Exodus - the miracle of the ten plagues; the parting and crossing of the Red Sea; and in Joshua - the fall of Jericho’s walls. These are a few examples of God’s mighty power.

In 1 Chronicles 29:10-13 (NLT), we read of David’s paean of praise to God’s greatness: “O LORD, the God of our ancestor Israel, may You be praised forever and ever! Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is Yours, O LORD, and this is Your kingdom. We adore You as the One who is over all things. Riches and honor come from You alone...Power and might are in Your hand, and it is at Your discretion that people are made great and given strength. O our God, we thank You and praise Your glorious Name!“ 

At determined intervals or periods of time, God has been revealed to His creation by a grand manifestation of His mighty power, by which He has demonstrated that whenever He chooses to exercise His power against man or Satan, either one or the other is helpless against Him. Please read about God’s power in Psalms 8, 19, 65, 66, 104, 148; Job 37:23; Job 38 and 39.

Love - “God IS Love,” says the Apostle John. Love here is from the Greek Agape. God is Love personified. He loves His erring creatures and wants to help and give them eternal life. This kind of love is self-disinterested. It is the most unselfish giving, and it could be exemplified in no greater degree than in God’s giving the greatest gift that could be given...His One and Only Begotten Son! The dearest treasure of His heart was sent into this world ... “He left the realms of Light...to enter the depths of night!” This Son, who was “daily His delight,” He sent to be our Savior and Sin-Bearer! Yes, “For God SO LOVED the world that He GAVE...His only begotten Son, that whoever should believe in him, should not perish but have everlasting life. God did not send His Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it through him” (John 3:16,17). God reached down from heaven, stretching His mighty arm – Jesus -- to pluck the sinking sinner from the grasping waves of death.

The Apostle Paul further emphasizes God’s great love by stating that “God is so rich in mercy and He loved us so very much that even while we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead” (Eph. 2:4). Again in Titus 3:4-7 (NLT), he writes, “But God our Savior showed us His kindness and love. He saved us, not because of the good things we did, but because of His mercy. He washed away our sins and gave us a new life through the Holy Spirit...declaring us ‘not guilty’ because of His great kindness.”

The Apostle John points out how God’s love works on our behalf: “We know what real love is because Christ gave up His life for us, and so we also ought to give up our lives for our brethren” (1 John 3:16). And in 1 John 4:9, 10 and 19 (NLT) he says, “God showed how much He loved us by sending His only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins...We love each other as a result of his loving us first.”

God’s four attributes of Justice, Wisdom, Power and Love all work harmoniously in the whole universe and specially for the benefit of mankind. Oh, if men only would turn to God and live in harmony with His laws, they would know true peace, joy, and love. There are few that find this way now -- only those who choose to become disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ and who, if faithful unto death, will be “joint-heirs” with Jesus, their Bridegroom, in the Kingdom of God, to raise up and bless all who have gone down into death. “When thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants WILL learn righteousness” (Isaiah 26:9).

“In that day the wolf and the lamb will live together...Calves and yearlings will be safe among lions and a little child will lead them all...lions will eat grass as the livestock. Babies will crawl safely among poisonous snakes. Yes, a little child will put its hand in a nest of deadly snakes and pull it out unharmed. Nothing will hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain. And as the waters fill the sea, so the earth will be filled with people who know the LORD” (Isa. 11:6-9 NLT).

God’s Invitation - It has been claimed that only a few men can appreciate the Holy Bible. This is not true. The Bible has been given by God to all mankind so it can be read and studied, thereby helping and comforting all those who love righteousness and earnestly seek to do God’s will. In Psalm 25:14 we read, “Friendship with the LORD is reserved for those who fear Him. With them He shares the secrets of His covenant.”

From heaven the Almighty reaches down to earth and invites man to come and reason with His Creator (Isaiah 1:18-20) and learn His ways. Once his sin is forgiven in the blood of the Lamb, anyone can learn to know and obey their God and have eternal life. Only the Bible is the true source of all knowledge and wisdom, sufficient to satisfy the hunger and thirst of the seeker after Truth, providing him with relief and rest (Matt. 11:28-30). It is the only Book pointing out The Way to abundant life through the One who said, “I AM the way, the truth and the life” (Jn 14:6).

Those who diligently seek for God will learn the way of life (Deut. 4:29; Acts 17:17; Heb. 11:6). In due time even God’s adversaries will come to admit He is the One, Almighty, and True God. Thus, the study of the Holy Bible is the most fascinating and most rewarding of all studies. He who reaches an understanding of it acquires a priceless treasure much greater and more precious than all the silver and gold of this world. It enlightens the mind and renews the heart of man, leading him, through the Lord Jesus Christ, to eternal life. The earnest seeker will soon find that the Bible is an inexhaustible well of wisdom, because it reveals God in all His power and glory. Read and prayerfully study this Book and you will receive blessings untold.

In Proverbs 1:7 we are told that “The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.” What does it mean to fear God? Fear, in the Bible, means to respect, to revere and be obedient to the Creator. It is the highest form of appreciation for blessings received through the lovingkindness of the Almighty, and our deep concern for transgressing His righteous laws. It does not mean to be in terror of impending catastrophe, or to have a morbid fear of our Creator. While we need the proper reverential fear of Jehovah, we should never have fear of man, for this only leads to a trap. 

The humble and meek are those who are teachable. The wise man is the one who desires to be taught and guided by truth. In Psalm 25:9 we read, “He will guide the meek in judgment and He will teach the meek His way.” The Psalmist also knew that “The meek shall inherit the earth and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace” (Psa. 37:11). See also Matt. 11:28, 29. To obtain eternal life, man must come to a knowledge of God’s Truth. The foundation truth of Christianity was told us in John 17:3: “And this is the way to have eternal life--to know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one You sent to earth.”

God’s treasured Son - We have mentioned in the foregoing something of who Jesus is. To amplify further, He was the One who, above all else, revealed God to men while He was on earth. He was God’s instrument in the creation of all things (Col. 1:15-17). He it was who dwelled with God until He came down to earth to give His life as a ransom for Adam and all who were lost through him. Following Jesus’ resurrection, He returned to heaven where He still sits at the right hand of God. No one was ever better qualified to reveal God to us than His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is said to be “the express image of the Father’s person” (Col. 1:15). See also Revelation 3:14; John 8:42; Luke 1:26-38; John 17:5; Matt. 20:28; Acts 1:6-11; 7:55.

What did our Lord Jesus say concerning His God and Father to people in general and to His disciples in particular? The following is a brief list of some of what Jesus told us.

Jesus taught that:

God is One - Mark 12:29

God is immortal - John 5:26

God is the greatest of all - John 10:29

God is merciful - Luke 6:32-36

God is Love - John 3:16; 16:27

God is good to the just and unjust - Matt. 5:45

God is worthy to be loved above all - Matt. 22:36-40

A Song of Praise to God

Psalm 145

I will praise You, my God and King,
and bless Your name forever and ever.
I will bless You every day,
and I will praise You forever.
Great is the LORD!
He is most worthy of praise!
His greatness is beyond discovery!
Let each generation tell its children
of Your mighty acts.
I will meditate on Your majestic,
glorious splendor
and Your wonderful miracles.
your awe-inspiring deeds
will be on every tongue;

I will proclaim Your greatness.
Everyone will share the story
of Your wonderful goodness.
They will sing with joy of
Your righteousness.
The LORD is kind and merciful,
slow to be angry, and full of unfailing love.
The LORD is good to all,
showering compassion on all His creation.
All of Your works will praise You, LORD,
and Your faithful followers will bless You.
They will talk together of the glory of Your kingdom;
they will celebrate examples of Your power.
They will tell of Your mighty deeds
and of the majesty and glory of Your reign.

Amen.

Psalm 148

Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the LORD from the heavens: praise him in the heights. Praise ye Him, all his angels: praise ye Him, all His hosts. Praise ye Him, sun and moon: praise Him, all ye stars of light. Praise Him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the LORD: for He commanded, and they were created. He hath also stablished them for ever and ever: He hath made a decree which shall not pass. Praise the LORD from the earth, ye dragons, and all deeps; fire, and hail; snow, and vapor; stormy wind fulfilling his word; mountains, and all hills; fruitful trees, and all cedars; beasts, and all cattle; creeping things, and flying fowl; kings of the earth, and all people; princes, and all judges of the earth; both young men, and maidens; old men, and children; let them praise the Name of the LORD: for His Name alone is excellent; His glory is above the earth and heaven. He also exalteth the horn of His people, the praise of all His saints; even of the children of Israel, a people near unto Him. Praise ye the LORD.

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