Why is it important to know God as He really is?
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. Prov. 3:5-KJV
These are chaotic times when evil seems to be rising up everywhere.
More and more we realize that only God can bring a lasting shift and
salvation. We have to trust Him to do more than man can do. Trust can only
come from a source that has proven to be solid, good, and with the
knowledge that it is really for you not against you.
Many of us say they know God, but do we really know him as he is or do we
place our trust in a God that fits our understanding. God says in his word that
in our day he will shake everything that can be shaken so that which
cannot be shaken will remain. These times of shaking test us and cut away
those things that hinder us from being all he created us to be. I call them
"proving times" because in them he proves to us that he is our strong tower that can stand against evil.
The Lord brought to mind one of his "proving" sessions early in my walk with
him in mission. I was working in the St. Louis, Missouri area trying to build
mission vision in churches. I hadn't done well in raising support so my
ministry was running on a shoe string. It had been five years since I had
been able to venture into another nation and, based on my financial situation,
another opportunity would not be coming in the near future. Then an
opportunity to visit both India and the Philippines presented itself. I sent out
letters and shared with churches about this opportunity, but nothing seemed
to materialize. I had heard him clearly, but all I could do was to pray and
"trust" he would make away. Within a short period one of the churches gave
an unexpected donation that allowed me to buy the tickets and commit a
month of time.
There are many stories that come from this time where the Lord showed me
the futility of my understanding and his faithfulness, but I will only share one.
We arrived in India and, after a long train ride had gotten settled in to a small
town on the coast of the Bay of Bengal. The next morning we traveled out to
a fishing village where we were to show the Jesus film in the local language.
The film team had already headed out in a truck to set up the projector, and
screen, and our evangelism team followed in a hired car. Our host gave the
driver money for gas and instructed him to come back for us late in the
evening after the ministry time.
It was late when the driver arrived to pick us up and we were all tired. About
20 minutes down the road, the car ran out of gas and we were stranded in
the dark and in the middle of nowhere. Our host had given the driver money
for gas and told him to fill up the car for the return trip. The driver had instead
bought liquor with the money he had and forgot to fill the car. That meant we
had a two and a half hour walk in the middle of the night back to our quarters.
The road was empty desolate and we had to walk through a Muslim village
that was not hospitable to strangers, especially white Americans. I had to
trust that the Lord had brought me there and he would be with me no matter
what was ahead.
The Muslim village was dark and quiet as we walked through on the main
road. I thanked the Lord for his incredible peace as we walked. We had
been on the road about an hour when I heard the put put of a tractor coming
behind us. The tractor stopped beside us and our driver was sitting next the
man who was driving the tractor. Our team climbed into the trailer he was
hauling and we were off toward town. The trailer did not have springs and
the only way I was comfortable was laying on my back and looking up at the
stars. Ps 19 says " The heavens declare the Glory of God and their expanse
proclaim the work of His hands. Ps 19:1 As I looked up at the stars, I heard
the Lord declare " You are mine, you can "trust" me." His work that night
proclaimed to me, "No matter what it looks like, I am with you and for you."
He was "proving" to me that He was faithful to keep me.
I couldn't have trusted in the Lord unless I knew him and believed that
he was for me and faithful to be my strong tower.
I knew about God and had studied what he was like in his word, however, it
was through this "proving" episode that he brought the reality of who he
was a little closer and gave me great comfort.
"When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven." Mark 16:13-17-NIV
Many people today are like that. Some say "He exists and has some good teachings, but not for me." Others say he is a historic figure, he is not God, he is just one of many gods, he is just like me only bigger or he isn't powerful enough to handle the evil I see around me.
Christians often say that I follow my religious tradition so I am good. Jesus said to the Pharisees, "You know the scriptures, but what you don't realize is they testify of me."
The thought I leave with you is "Who do you say Jesus is?" Do you know him enough to trust him when everything around you seems chaotic and evil seems to be winning? Ask him to show you who he really is and not what man or religions say he is. Knowing him and who he really is will determine you eternity and make the difference of life or death today.
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