A God That Can Be Known

I was reading through 1 John this morning and came to the very end. It made me smile. It gave me joy. It reminded me of a miracle, a supernatural happening, that I only deemed to be a lofty thought at one time.

Let's just go straight to the source, shall we? "We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true - even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life" (1 John 5:20) (My emphasis added.) Really read it a few times. Receive it very personally from God.

Now let's chew on it a little. "We know also that the Son of God has come..." To know God we must know that the Son of God has come. We must believe. Deep down inside. And I did. But I found there was more for me: "...and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true." I needed understanding. This was not something I could come up with on my own! It was a supernatural gift of grace given by God through Jesus Christ. But let me tell you, I was so excited to know I could understand more about Christ. So I dug in the Word. I prayed for understanding. But then it got better!

As I prayed for understanding, God gave it. And I began to really know Him. I began to enjoy close fellowship with Him. He called me near so that I could know Him who is true.

I lived as a Christian with Jesus as my Savior for many years. But He came alongside me one day, interrupted my life, and revealed to me He wanted a close relationship with me. And it just changed everything for me! Because when we get to really know Jesus, He transforms our way of thinking. He allows us to see Him as He really is in all of His goodness, kindness and faithfulness. Contrary to popular belief, He is a God who can be known. Yes, I'll say it again. He is a God who can be known. I'll go further to say He wants to be known by us. It still blows my mind. And it should. This is a miracle, a supernatural happening: to know God.

Don't keep Jesus at a distance. He wants you to know Him. He knows everything about you, so anything you've done doesn't shock Him. He takes us just as we are. But then, He begins changing us from the inside out through His extravagant love. It's all about grace. And love.

I am proof of this! I never thought Jesus could really be known! But He can! And when we begin to really know Him in an intimate way, we find He is not harsh, condemning, unreasonable or cruel. He is kind, loving, correctional and encouraging.

Jesus can be known! Psalm 139 says that He knows everything about you. Why don't you let Him show you all He is? He can be trusted. Did He not give His all for you? Entrust the depths of your heart to Him, and watch your life be transformed before your very eyes. You will fall head over heels in love, because you will discover His great love for you, because He showed you and spoke to you.

Bend your knee. Pray for understanding. And come to know your God in a deeper way. It's not a lofty thought. He can be known. I'm right there with you on my knees, desiring to know Him more, and thankful that I am known and loved unconditionally.

Do you need some guidance? Purchase a Bible study online or from your local Christian bookstore. This was paramount in my path to knowing God. Read His Word. Pray. "He is near to those who call on Him, to all who call upon Him in truth." Psalm 145:18

What Is In Your Hand?

I used to hang out with my dad and watch him as he gardened. He was a master gardener! I remember watching him sow the seeds of tomatoes, corn, beans, and so much more. He did not know if each seed would produce a plant and if that plant would produce any fruit, but still, he sowed with hope.

This morning I read Matthew 13:1-23, the parable of the sower. There are times that God just keeps putting something into our hearts to meditate on. This time is no different.

Think of a seed. It holds so much potential life. In that little seed is the possibility of a harvest. In this parable, the seed is the Word of God. Matthew 13:3 says, “The farmer went out to sow his seed…” It doesn’t say the farmer thought about sowing his seed, but did nothing. Or that the farmer wondered if his seed had any potential. Or that the farmer compared his small amount of seed to others’ larger amounts of seed. Or that he felt inexperienced because others knew so much more than He. Yes, this is a parable, a teaching Jesus used to illustrate something important to His kingdom. And there were different kinds of ground, which represented people's hearts. Read it for yourself. But notice Jesus did not tell us how the farmer felt—so that was not as important as the fact that the farmer simply sowed his seed. He sowed in faith. He sowed in hope.

What have been our experiences with God and His Word? This is what we hold in our hands as seed. Hebrews 4:12 says the Word is God is living and active and sharper than any two edged sword. It is pure power. So we must cast our seed upon others’ hearts, no matter if their hearts are hard or soft. It’s up to the Holy Spirit to work that Word out in their hearts. And it’s also up to them to respond. We are simply the farmers that cast the seed onto their hearts in faith and hope.

Remember the day or season when others did the same for you? Aren’t you grateful they did? I am. Don’t look at your inexperience; look at what you do know. If it’s John 3:16, that’s the gospel! Don’t let anything keep you from casting the powerful seed of God’s Word into lives. James 1:21 says the Word planted in us can save us. Save us from hell, save us from fear, save us from strongholds, save us from condemnation, save us from our own flesh. It is powerful.

Humbly sow your seed. Pray. Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Sow it in love. Believe in God and the power of His Word. God’s looking for a harvest from our seed. What God’s done in our lives is to be sown into others, no matter their response. We can be sure God’s doing something on the inside; we simply may not ever see it for ourselves while living here on planet Earth. It may be that we are a part of the process that God uses to draw them to Him. We are called to sow. God can’t bring an increase in the soil of human hearts if the seed is still in our hands.

Afterthought: I can still picture the tall rows of corn and healthy tomato plants in my childhood yard, all from those tiny seeds planted by my dad. There’s just nothing like fresh corn on the cob and garden tomatoes, is there? Wonder if he realized he knew the real power of a seed…Missing him right about now.

Back to the Basics of Grace

Today, I’m reminded once again of that beautiful word “grace.” It just seems too small of a word to hold so much meaning. Its Greek word is “charis” (Χάρις). (I’m attempting to learn Greek and it’s fun for me  to use what little I know and show you how it looks, so humor me!) Grace is simply a gift extended that we cannot earn. It is a benevolent kindness to the needy. Biblically, the needy have nothing to give. The needy are beggars: blind, crippled, hungry, thirsty, undone.

Many of you know I’ve written a Bible study regarding our worth and identity in Jesus Christ. It is something God has imprinted over and over again on my heart. And He continues… Obviously it's something I struggle with, maybe not as bad as I used to, but still do, nonetheless.

Living in this western culture which focuses on performance, image, materialism and status, no wonder we get off track. My husband and I don’t watch the main television channels often, but last night we saw some previews for shows that blew our minds. Our culture is rapidly changing, for the worse. It was a shock to see the messages the media are sending to America and who knows where else? I hate to be bleak, but the demoralization of our nation is swiftly spiraling out of control. The question we must ask ourselves is: what voice am I listening to? Is it truth? Is it a voice that changes with the times, or a constant voice, steady and resolved?

You see, the voices around us tell us we must look a certain way, earn a certain amount of money, have the nicest houses, drive the coolest cars and the list goes on and on. And we believe these are the things that bring us value and recognition. These things take a tremendous amount of energy and money to maintain, and yet they still leave us feeling cheap and worthless at the end of the day. Because the message that we are believing is that we are not enough in ourselves. And we are enough, yet we’re not. Let me elaborate.

Without Christ, we’re beggars. With Christ, we’re sons and daughters of the most high God. But for some reason, we get wrapped up in this world over and over again and live according to its values, or lack thereof. Jesus told the church in Laodicea, “Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy and have need of nothing—and do not know that you are wretched, poor, blind, and naked…” (Rev. 3:17) This church was looking at materialistic wealth as bringing them importance—they had need of nothing. But in reality, because they did not need God as they were supposed to--they were wretched, poor, blind, naked. Strong words, aren’t they? They had lost their identity and value in Jesus Christ.

Sisters, without Christ, we cannot bring anything to God's table which earns us His approval; we are in debt. Why are we seeking the world's approval? Why do we listen to the loud voices of the media? Paul said in Galatians 1:10, "Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ." Our lives show who we are aiming to please. And when we aim to please people, we are placing Christ lower than people. If we are aiming to please God, we must remember to live by what He values. Thankfully, we don't have to strive to please God. We simply must have faith (Hebrews 11:6)--faith that His grace is enough. We came to Jesus empty-handed. He has given us all we have. We have not earned one thing we have. Even if we worked for it. He gave us the energy and ability to earn that money. He gave us the job. Our giftedness is also a result of His grace; we could not manufacture it. Every good gift comes from the Father (James 1:17). We must get back to the basics of grace. Job 1:21 says, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I shall return there.” God, through Jesus Christ, accepted us naked (spiritually speaking) with nothing to offer. When we leave this earth to our eternal home, we will not be able to take our image, positions or materialistic goods. By grace through faith in the power of the blood of Jesus' sacrifice, we came to Jesus. By that same grace and faith we will go to Jesus. Let’s live in that grace today. He says that we are enough in Him. The Father is satisfied with Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf. Let’s shift our gaze off of the world and its vices and look heavenward, where our Father sits enthroned on high and says with a steady, constant resolve, “You are enough in Christ. You’ve been made complete through His blood. Rest from your striving—it is finished. You are accepted, beautiful, valuable, gifted, loved greatly, cherished. Now live in that place, and thrive.” 

He made us accepted in the Beloved. Ephesians 1:6

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9