Attending to know God on a extra private, deeper degree is actually THE FUNNEST factor you are able to do!
The extra I get to know Him, the extra I grow to be obsessive about understanding extra. It’s like giving a mouse a cookie. 😊
I get so obsessed that I can’t put my Bible down. I can’t cease listening to sermons. I can’t cease. I don’t wanna cease. I simply need to know the whole lot I probably can in regards to the God that I serve.
As this yr is about to shut, these are the most important takeaways for me in my quest of understanding God extra. I’m making this listing for me, so I don’t overlook, and for you, so you may study and know Him extra too! ❤️
Understanding God
Whereas a few of these issues I already knew about God, I had the chance to SEE them in motion, with my very own eyes. To expertise them first hand, and it’s been superb!
Understanding ABOUT God isn’t sufficient. We should expertise Him and His vastness to study and develop as believers.
1) He’s NOT quiet
Generally I feel as a result of WE can’t hear Him on a regular basis, we simply assume He’s quiet.
I’m within the Bible not less than 10-20 occasions all through the day. I doubt there’s even an hour that passes (whereas I’m residence), that I don’t open His holy Phrase. He needs to be identified. He’s not enjoying conceal and search. He’s telling us again and again.
He repeats Himself in Scripture SO a lot. Have you ever ever acknowledged that?
What number of occasions does He inform us even one factor all through the Bible? It’s essential. He needs us to get it.
It’s like He’s taking out a megaphone and we simply aren’t listening. We are able to’t hear as a result of OUR sin separates us from God. Subsequently, be holy. The much less we sin, the extra we hear Him!!! The nearer we’re to Him. So make it your purpose to sin much less and be holy.
Take simply that assertion to be holy. What number of occasions does He inform us to be holy in Scripture?
- Leviticus 19:2
- Leviticus 20:7
- Leviticus 20:26
- Leviticus 21:8
- Exodus 19:6
- 1 Peter 1:16
- 1 Thessalonians 4:7
- 2 Corinthians 7:1
- …
I’ll cease there, though I’m certain there’s extra!
In Hebrews 12:14, it tells us that if we’re not holy, we gained’t see God.
If God tells us to be holy at LEAST 9 occasions, do you assume it’s essential? Do you assume we should always take note of it and obey it?
The reality is that there are LOTS of these examples in Scripture. Scripture repeats itself a LOT. God is continually telling us the identical issues again and again.
If you start to deep dive into the Bible, you’ll begin to see patterns like this far and wide.
God isn’t quiet. He’s taking the time to inform us one thing a number of occasions.
Why?
It’s not as a result of He’s not stated it clearly sufficient. It’s as a result of WE usually are not listening!
We MUST worth the Phrase of God greater than we do. In Bible occasions, they didn’t have the Bible like we do right now. Godly males would learn issues just like the Torah. Bits and items of the Bible (as a result of the Bible was nonetheless being written at the moment), in accordance with what they’d.
What they did have, they shared it. One doc went round the entire metropolis.
Think about sharing one Bible. Your complete household solely getting it for just one week out of all the yr. That’s precisely what was occurring again then. Think about the way you’d treasure it, put all of your give attention to it and studying it throughout that week. The way you’d saturate your thoughts with it, the way you’d memorize it.
Now, as a result of now we have Bibles so generally, we take them as a right. We don’t search God like we should always. We take Him and His Phrase as a right.
That’s not respecting God. That’s not reverencing Him, once we simply flippantly throw His phrases round, tossed apart and never taken critically. Possibly we open the Bible as soon as per week, what, throughout church?
We fail God by not loving Him sufficient, reverencing Him sufficient, by taking Him and His Phrase as a right, and but He loves us. He cares for us. He needs a relationship with us, He needs to be identified. He’s not quiet.
What number of occasions do you learn the Bible every week? Actually give it some thought?
It’s not about hitting a set quantity to make your self really feel good, however take into consideration the guts angle BEHIND why you’re not.
Is life choking out your time? Why do you enable it to?
All of us get the identical variety of hours in a day. All of us get 24 hours. But, many godly persons are spending quite a few hours a day immersed within the Phrase of God.
It’s about our priorities. Is God essential to you? Is He to me? Are we valuing the Bible like we should always?
“However”, you say, “I’m so drained and busy on a regular basis. I work two jobs, I come residence, the youngsters are at my toes, I’m doing all I can to make it by means of the day.”
How far more do you have to be within the Phrase of God then?!
It satisfies your soul, nourishes you, feeds you, provides you peace, understanding, knowledge. You wouldn’t really feel so wired in case you WERE within the Phrase of God extra and I work two full-time jobs proper now too and don’t have any assist as a single girl. If *I* can do it, certainly there isn’t a excuse for anybody else.
As a tradition, I feel we fail God usually and we have to acknowledge that, repent, and alter our conduct day by day so that we please God and grow to be extra Christ-like.
2) He loves us, however…
He loves us a lot. He died for us. He IS love (1 John 4:8), that’s how sturdy it’s that He loves us, that His very essence, His character, His attribute IS love, however…He has limits.
He hates sin. Received’t look on sin. He’ll actual vengeance, particularly to those that hurt His youngsters.
- He’s made an enormous fish swallow his prophet when He wasn’t listening and obeying (Jonah)
- He allowed Jesus, His personal son, go to the cross to tackle OUR punishment (Luke 23:1-46)
- He opened the entire floor and swallowed males up complete once they sinned (Numbers 16:32)
- He’s struck folks useless on the spot, immediately for mendacity (Acts 5:1-10)
- He allowed nearly all of the Israelites to die, due to their sin of disobedience within the wilderness and it was the following technology who entered the promised land (Numbers 32:13)
He loves us, however there are limits. Sin remains to be sin. He is not going to excuse sin simply because He loves us. It’s BECAUSE He loves us He DOESN’T excuse sin. It’s the loving Father that chastises and corrects His son to not disobey. As dad and mom, we get that. We perceive that whereas not nice on the time, the rod of punishment was for our good, to maintain us from doing mistaken.
For a very long time, I by no means understood that. It wasn’t till I noticed youngsters develop up with out the rod. As adults, the issues they do, the vile and depraved and unlawful behaviors they commit are proof that the rod of punishment IS for our good. It makes us higher folks than those that don’t have it.
3) He hates delight
Satisfaction is such a bitterness to Him and He warns us that He’ll care for delight in our hearts (Proverbs 16:18).
He provides us an opportunity to repent and switch from our depraved methods. Once we don’t, He punishes and roots it out of us.
He’s near the standard, near those that are mourning, near those that are bereaved and grieved, and much from those that are prideful (Psalms 34:18, James 4:6).
4) He works exhausting
He’s not simply “upstairs”, indifferent and watching us all by means of a telescope. God is sort of a playwright, writing the play. I’ve watched His will unfold step-by-step. He is aware of the ending solutions, the tip of the story and but, He brings us by means of the play, scene by scene, act by act.
Generally, I ponder why He doesn’t simply quick ahead us, nevertheless it’s THROUGH these scenes, the day by day residing of life, that we study the teachings.
It’s by means of the play because it have been, that we develop, are conformed extra to His picture, and are sanctified. We fail, and He permits us to fail, as a result of we study, we develop, we don’t make the identical mistake once more. We get higher. It’s not sufficient simply at hand us the prize, we should earn it. We now have to do the work. It might be like Him giving us solutions to a math take a look at. We now have to work out the issues and options ourselves so we study math, in any other case, we don’t study it.
Identical factor right here with life. It’s all about rising us, refining us.
At every step of the play, the author is there on the sidelines, watching, teaching, serving to us to say our strains proper, to do what we’re alleged to do. He helps us, shapes us, molds us, helps us. He encourages us once we do effectively and trains us once we don’t do effectively.
It’s actually a stupendous image of who God is. He’s not afar off someplace. He’s there, watching, serving to, interacting, sovereignly controlling the whole lot (He wrote the play, in fact), whereas, on the similar time, letting human will happen. It really works in excellent and delightful concord.
Human will and God’s sovereignty work hand in hand, facet by facet, in unity with each other. They aren’t separate from each other. They work collectively.
5) Angels are a really current assist to us
They work on His behalf. He’s the chief, the boss, He exhibits them what to do, provides them instruction and cost over a mission after which, they full it and once they do, they return to Him. If they’ve questions, they discuss to Him and ask Him and He provides the ruling.
Consider it like a CEO of an organization. He delegates sure duties to folks.
You see this all all through Scripture, God utilizing angels to do work on His behalf.
Listed here are some examples…
God has given them cost to assist us (Daniel 6:22), shield us, (Psalm 91:11), minister to believers (Hebrews 1:14), and lead us (Acts 8:26-40; Acts 10:3-8), and sure, even have the ability to kill enemies (Acts 12:21–23).
6) Generally He doesn’t care like we wish Him to
The issues which might be essential to us, regardless of how small and insignificant they’re, God cares about. However after some time, particularly if He’s informed you to not fear about one thing, He tries to get our focus to STOP being on these smaller points.
The right instance of that is cash.
I say to Him, “However Lord, I’m homeless. I don’t manage to pay for to discover a good, secure place to reside.” He says to me, “However do you not know who I’m? Have I not educated you? Do you have to not belief me extra by now? Understanding that I take care of you. Understanding all the guarantees within the Bible that speak about Me not letting my youngsters fall. How I take care of the birds of the air, how far more so that you, my youngster (Matthew 6:26-27). Why is that this nonetheless in your thoughts? Why do you continue to even take into consideration cash? Why is it nonetheless a priority for you?”
Or Paul. He’s praying 3 times that the thorn in his facet be faraway from him and God’s response is, My grace is enough (2 Corinthians 12:9). It’s not the reply we wish, nevertheless it’s the reply He provides.
As we go, He’s coaching us, GROWING US to be extra Christ-like, to not fear in regards to the issues of this world, to not be involved with the smaller issues, to study to belief Him extra.
He’s shifting our perspective, altering it, serving to us see previous the littler issues and serving to us hold our give attention to the larger issues, the issues He cares about. The issues He says are essential.
Over time, He’ll prepare you to assume this fashion, to give attention to the issues which might be essential and to cease worrying in regards to the earthly issues that all of us get so caught up in now and again.
7) The quickest solution to see His wrath is…
The quickest solution to see His wrath is to mess with His youngsters. Wanna see it even quicker? Mess with an orphan or a widow, somebody who has no safety. I occur to be each a widow and orphan. Mess with me and also you’re certain to see punishment REAL fast.
I’ve personally seen soooo many individuals assault me this yr due to my religion and good works, after which a month later I search for them and see they have been totally destroyed! 😮
- One girl gossiped about me and obtained me kicked out of a Fb group. Her son ended up in jail, having no earlier document or unhealthy marks in any respect with the regulation and she or he misplaced her residence on account of her son’s motion.
- One other girl gossiped about me, stated unfaithful issues, she misplaced her residence and needed to transfer to a different metropolis.
- One girl was spreading rumors about me, all issues unfaithful and twisting phrases purposely even after being confronted on it, in a really public means, and she or he has been below the wrath of God a lot she publicly says Devil is out to get her and crying the sufferer card. In her unbelief of the gospel, she doesn’t notice, it’s really GOD who’s punishing her for attempting to destroy my good works, the works that God has despatched me to do. She has misplaced lots due to her unhealthy conduct towards me, together with prestigious awards that have been going to be hers however have been taken away.
- Some folks weren’t appreciating me. God noticed it, made me conscious of it (I didn’t notice), and He protected me. He kicked all these folks out of my life, a superb 150 folks! Not would He enable me to serve them. Their “meals” was lower off by the hand of the Lord, not to be blessed in abundance.
Whether or not large issues or small issues that they’ve finished towards a toddler of God, I’ve seen God’s hand shield me and punish the evil round me in main methods, constantly, all yr lengthy!
In case you are a real believer, that very same safety is upon you! God cares about you. He loves you. He protects His youngsters!
👉 All of the extra purpose to be variety to others. You by no means know that stranger who’s a Christian that you simply misaligned and so they pray towards you after which God punishes you since you harmed them! Be variety anyway, however that is further incentive. 😊
8) One of the simplest ways to get God’s consideration…
Be pure. 💯
You’ve heard it stated within the Bible that God is near the brokenhearted (Psalm 34:18).
Ze ‘Akah, which is my favourite phrase of all time. It signifies that time whenever you cry out in utter despair and anguish.
Jesus, when He was asking God to take the cup away from Him earlier than going to the cross, cried a Ze ‘Akah prayer. It’s whenever you lose management over your tears and you may’t cease crying. You are feeling your life is over otherwise you simply can’t get previous one thing. It’s deep, deep ache and damage. God is INSTANTLY there for you in these occasions of ache, 100% of the time!
Effectively I say to you, you may have God ALWAYS close to you, if you’re pure, which is best than getting Him nearer to you whenever you’re in deep despair!!!
The purer and extra holy we’re, the nearer He walks with us on a continuing foundation. Need His presence all the time? Be pure. Be holy. Stroll every day in an upright means.
9) He loves us all the identical
God isn’t on the market enjoying favorites. “Oh, I feel I’ll be good to Sarah right now. Nope, it’s Susie’s flip.” He loves us all the identical. He cares for every one in every of His youngsters the identical. There ARE no favorites, due to this fact, we’d like not compete with one another over our dad’s consideration!
He’ll spend ample time with all of us, loving us all the identical, not upsetting us to compete with one another.
The truth is, He doesn’t prefer it when Christians battle. He is aware of it would occur, is aware of we’re human however doesn’t prefer it.
He doesn’t prefer it when believers are attacking, belittling, disregarding, or in any other case impairing His like to our brothers and sisters in Christ.
He calls us to reside in unity with one another, to reside in peace (Romans 12:18).
10) He needs ALL of us
He doesn’t simply desire a portion of our day, a bit of our life, or a small providing of our week. He needs us to abide in him (John 15:4), reside with Him, discuss to Him all day (1 Thessalonians 5:17), day by day.
He needs to be our compass, the individual we treasure essentially the most (Matthew 6:33), our the whole lot. He’s a jealous God (Exodus 20:5). Any idols now we have in our life, in the end, He’s going to do away with them, the straightforward means, or by means of nice trial, loss, and grief. Higher to do away with all idols in your life by yourself and be totally dedicated to God, then to have His hand take them away by means of ache and struggling.
11) He expects us to obey
For the Christian, obeying God isn’t elective (John 14:15). That’s what we signed up for once we gave our life to Him: complete devotion and allegiance.
Whereas He totally understands our place on a degree, He listens to our emotions, and takes nice take care of them, He finally is aware of what’s greatest for us as He can see the WHOLE image and our imaginative and prescient is marred.
Subsequently, we undergo Him and His will, understanding and understanding that it’s HIS will that’s greatest, regardless of how we could really feel about one thing.
On the finish of the day, whether or not we perceive His will or not, we’re accountable to observe it. That’s His expectation of us.
12) If we make a promise and don’t hold it, we’re in serious trouble
If we make a covenant to God and don’t obey it, it’s like issuing our personal demise warrant. God will completely maintain us accountable to any covenants we make with Him.
He’ll orchestrate our life for us to make good on these covenants, but when we utterly reject that covenant after we willingly made it, we can not count on to maintain our bodily life. Covenants are SERIOUS enterprise.
Will He for SURE take our life? No. However He takes it very critically and it’s not one thing to fiddle with. I’ve seen males who will die a bodily demise as a result of they made a covenant and refuse to maintain it.
By no means promise God one thing you can’t, for certain, hold.
13) We’re so fast to overlook Him
The very first thing we’re tempted to do after He saves us from a trial is to overlook Him. “Effectively, I don’t want Him anymore” or “Lord, I obtained it from right here. I can deal with it now.” However we are able to’t.
Have a look at what occurred to the Israelites. They stroll within the wilderness 40 years, nearly everybody dies (Hebrews 3:17), the following technology enters into the promised land and what occurs? They overlook God, even after they’re warned to not (Deuteronomy 8:1-18).
The temptation for the Christian isn’t whenever you’re struggling. For when you find yourself struggling, are you not crying out to the Lord your God day and evening, near Him like a weaning child?
The temptation for the Christian is when the whole lot goes GOOD. We overlook Him. We are saying, “I’ve finished this in my very own energy”, and He has to take all of it away with a view to present us that it WASN’T in our energy that the whole lot was going good, however His and His alone. Whereas sure, we play our human half in issues, we can not even play our human half with out Him. 💯
I bear in mind years in the past, talking to a Pastor. I used to be doing extremely effectively on the time on this website, tremendous profitable, numerous visitors, and doing extremely effectively financially and he stated to me how superior it was that I used to be doing so effectively. “You’ve labored so exhausting, you’ve finished effectively”, he stated. Appears harmless sufficient. Nevertheless it’s not. It’s the phrases of Devil creeping by means of essentially the most unlikely of locations, by means of the mouth of a real believer, a Pastor no much less.
I replied, “Every little thing I’ve comes from God.”
Rejecting my phrases, he went on to answer, “You probably did it. Should you didn’t do it, it wouldn’t have occurred”.
In our humanness, we are going to all the time attempt to shortchange God of the glory HE so rightly deserves. This should not be the case within the lifetime of a believer. Every little thing now we have, whether or not information, success, cash, fame, exhausting work, or the like, ALL comes from the Lord.
I can not have information within the Lord, if I wouldn’t have a mind, which He created. If I all of the sudden get amnesia. If in previous age, we all of the sudden overlook issues. Even information is a piece of the Lord and the whole lot comes from Him (James 1:17). We should do effectively to always remember that, lest we grow to be prideful.
14) He’s very beneficiant
Whether or not He’s giving us knowledge (James 1:5), lavishing His love on us, or offering us with a peaceable life (that so many occasions we take as a right), He’s the final word gift-giver. You possibly can by no means outgive God! Luke 6:38.
Every little thing He does is stuffed with generosity and love for us. It’s superb to see that in motion.
15) He’s the one one worthy of our adoration
There’s none like Him.
Considered one of my favourite Christian songs is a Spanish tune by Julissa. It’s known as El Gran Yo Soy, which translated actually means, “How nice you’re.” It’s an ideal tune to depart on repeat and you recognize you’re worshipping and glorifying God together with your coronary heart.
And in case you study even just some easy phrases of Spanish, you’ll perceive the tune and it is among the most stunning songs ever sung.
Right here’s a couple of to get you began:
- Santo: holy
- Otro: different
- Digno: dignified
- Escuchar: hear
Right here’s the complete translation of the tune:
Did you discover there the place it says, “No hay outro”, which suggests, “there isn’t a different”.
There’s no different God, no different deity to worship, there’s nobody else. We worship the ONE, the true and residing God.
No different is worthy to be praised, to be adored, to be worshipped and this songwriter will get it.
Nobody else deserves our consideration like He does. He alone is worthy of our adoration. He alone is the Lord Jesus Christ. Dignified, honored, revered, worthy of our respect.
16) We translate the Bible mistaken many, many occasions
“We must always deal with others like we need to be handled, deal with others as we do ourselves”, somebody may say.
I feel so usually we expect the verse is saying we’re to think about others the identical as ourselves. Look out for others. Serve them.
However that’s not what the Bible is saying. The Bible is saying we’re to think about others as BETTER than ourselves (Philippians 2:3).
That doesn’t imply that others needs come earlier than our wants, however we have to get good at differentiating the 2, in order that we are able to prioritize issues.
In case your youngster needs to eat and you need to repair it however you need to go to the toilet, what will get taken care of first?
Will they starve if they’ve to attend 2 minutes to eat?
No. Your have to go to the toilet comes first and we perceive that.
Care for you and your loved ones’s wants first, for certain, then different’s wants, then your needs, then different’s needs. In that order. 😊
We now have to essentially, CAREFULLY, take the Phrase of God extra critically and READ extra fastidiously. As a result of even that one phrase in Philippians 2:3, the phrase “extra” is so very important to the entire sentence.
I’ll provide you with one other instance…
A really distinguished (and godly) web site talks about how Jesus sweat drops of blood when He prayed within the Backyard of Gethsemane.
At first look, that’s what we expect once we are studying the verses.
Luke 22:44 – “And being in agony he prayed extra earnestly; and his sweat grew to become like nice drops of blood falling right down to the bottom.” (ESV)
In studying the article, they acknowledge that some contemplate the drops of blood could also be sweat that’s LIKE blood. However ultimately conclusion, they state, “Finally, then, we’re those accountable for the blood that dripped from our Savior as He prayed within the backyard.”
Their conclusion is obvious. They’re educating folks that Jesus sweat blood.
That is fallacy.
In our tradition, the whole lot is so fast-paced. We now have to study to sluggish issues down and actually READ!
It doesn’t say wherever that Jesus sweat blood and if He did sweat blood, the author wouldn’t have stated “grew to become like”. He would have stated, and his sweat grew to become blood or his sweat was blood or he sweat blood.
The phrase in that sentence, “like” is so very important. It adjustments the entire verse from which means one factor to a different.
Jesus didn’t sweat blood. It was LIKE blood. It wasn’t blood.
Whereas this isn’t one thing to argue about, you’re free to imagine no matter you want about what the verse means, the purpose is extra in order that we begin to take the Phrase of God extra critically.
We, in our hurried and rushed tradition, are inclined to run round and rush by means of issues, even when studying Scripture. We, oftentimes, don’t take the time to review it out. To meditate on one verse at a time. To consider what the writer is meaning to say.
I heard one individual say, “I don’t care what the writer is saying, THIS is what the Bible means to me.”
It’s unbelievable! 🤯
Think about standing earlier than God and saying, “I don’t care what YOUR guidelines are, that is what the principles are to me.” Or for that matter, standing in entrance of a police officer. You rob a financial institution and it’s okay since you didn’t perceive what the regulation was? How’s that going to fly in court docket?
It’s ludacris and but, Christians, Bible-believing Christians all over the world have this philosophy that we are able to simply learn the Bible nonetheless we wish. So long as it speaks to me, who cares. I’m fed. I obtained what I would like.
That is blatant disregard of our Maker. It’s slapping God within the face. It’s at least blasphemy.
We MUST take the Phrase of God extra critically!!!!
Should you take nothing else away from this text, it must be this. God (and God alone) is worthy of our reward, our time, our allegiance, and our respect. Something in need of that is sin, regardless of the way you slice the bread.
If you wish to study extra about God, here’s a GREAT resource for you!
