Knowing God

I’m sharing this from a FB post I put up. Since it’s so similar to a blog…albeit a mini one…I thought I’d put it here also. And yes, I have a real blog in the works…😉

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Question- Suppose we who call ourselves by His name do not know Him? Rather a self-constructed idea of who we think God is? Or what we want Him to be? Or what our culture has turned Him into? 

I’m reading The Knowledge of The Holy by Tozer for a class. My first thought was, after initially skimming the chapter titles, ‘Oh, I’ve known this stuff for years.’ I lied. I am blown away by what I am learning. 

I challenge you to read this book and not come out changed…and repentant…with the same awe and honor and respect that inspired the worship of God in saying, ‘Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord.’ And all that means. And it means everything. 

There is not a chapter in this book that has not caused me to sit and think deeply about what each attribute of God means in my relationship to Him…just this one chapter on the Transcendence of God, which was my reading for the day, included this…

“Wherever God appeared to men in Bible times the results were the same—an overwhelming sense of terror and dismay, a wrenching sensation of sinfulness and guilt. When God spoke, Abram stretched himself upon the ground to listen. When Moses saw the Lord in the burning bush, he hid his face in fear to look upon God. Isaiah‘s vision of God wrung from him the cry, “Woe is me for I am undone, because I am a man of unclean lips.

These experiences show that a vision of the divine transcendence soon ends all controversy between the man and his God. The fight goes out of the man and he is ready with the conquered Saul to ask, “My Lord what will you have me to do?” Conversely the self assurance of modern Christians, the basic levity presented in so many of our religious gatherings, the shocking disrespect shown for the person of God are evidence enough of deep blindness of heart. Many call themselves by the name of Christ, talk much about God, and pray to Him sometimes, but evidently do not know who He is.” 

After reading this, one of the first things that came to mind was an article that I read the other day by Anne Lamott about how upset she was at a coach praying at the 50 yard line. I’m not going to go into the whole thing, you can read it online, but one of the things she does is use some of the names she has used elsewhere for God…the great universal spirit, the cheeseburger, Gus, Not Me, and a slew of other ones that sound cute but in reality? I wonder if she would actually call God these things in a face-to-face encounter with Him. I’m thinking not. 

Suppose knowing Him is the most important thing we can do? How would it change me? You? The world? Suppose NOT knowing Him has eternal consequences?

We hear all the time that God is Love. And this is true. But His love is demanding and it came at a great price to Him and it costs us something. And He’s so much more than love. He’s also Just. And Love and Justice walk hand-in-hand. Who is this God we profess to follow? To love? Is there any higher calling than to grow in understanding of Him? 

Oh, and those old English quotes at the beginning of each chapter? Nobody said you have to read them. Just saying…😉