So, who is responsible for weather you or I are known or not? We are! Most people walk through life with walls around them. People don’t know you until you are willing to open up. Do you want to be known? If you love someone, you want them to know you, but how can someone know you if you won’t let them in? They can’t.
God already knows everything about us, so we don’t have to open up for Him to know us, however, if we want to know God, we have to open up to Him. For me to know God, He must open Himself up to me and I must open myself up to Him. For example, take someone who isn’t saved. They don’t want to face their sins, so, does holy, righteous God open Himself up to someone who refuses to acknowledge and repent of his own sins? No, He doesn’t. When we open our hearts to God, it makes it possible for God to open His heart to us.
God won’t open up to pride and arrogance. When we’re humble He will open up to us; it is in brokenness that we discover things about God that we won’t discover any other way. When we come to God broken and shattered, feeling hopeless and helpless, He comes to us pouring in us His greatness, mercy, kindness and strength so we can learn who He is. One way we learn who God is, is through trials and tribulations, when we are finally so broken that we come to Him humbly, opening ourselves up completely to Him.
Pride will keep us from really knowing God, so what does it take to know God?1. Salvation in Christ
You can’t know God without knowing Jesus as your Savior. John 8:19 - Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also. John 14:6 - Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
2. Godly interests
Ask the Lord what His will is for your life and what He wants you to do, then do it! Love others; I John 4:20 - If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
God is waiting for openness and honesty from us.
So, HOW can we know God?
1. Listen to His Word – when reading His Word listen to the Holy Spirit and apply what you learn to your life.
2. Observe the characteristics and ways of God while reading His Word; Love, justice mercy, care and so on
3. Accept God’s invitations and follow His commands found in His Word, and the ones the Holy Spirit gives you 4. Recognize His love and worship and praise Him
Do you really want to know God? Is there anything else more important than knowing God?
This series is a collection of notes I have taken from "The Privilege of Knowing God" series by Charles Stanley, you can order your own copy of this wonderful message series by clicking here
