Knowing God Intimately # 1a
We’re going to pick up where we left off last week on our new series entitled Knowing our God, having an intimate relationship with Him. Knowing God, who He is and what pleases Him, is the longing of every true believer. It started when God first created man. Adam and Eve would walk in the garden with God in the cool of the day. They came together for fellowship daily. It started back in the garden and it still continues today. Many have an emptiness and a void on the inside, which they try to fill with different things such as drugs, money, drinking, entertainment and the list goes on. But that void on the inside can only be filled by fellowship with God.
Throughout the Word of God, the people who truly know God captivate us and inspire us. People like Moses, Joshua, Elijah, David, and Abraham. The miracles that were done in their lives were a direct result of their intimate relationship with God.
I) We need to purpose in our hearts to know God, with a relationship that puts Him as the supreme and rightful place AS LORD over our lives.
A) God and man long for an intimate relationship together.
1) God is reaching out to us, but we also need to be reaching out (or up) to Him.
2) Look with me to HOSEA 4:1.
a) God clearly states here what their problem was.
(i) Their main problem was they lacked a knowledge of God.
(ii) God longs for you to know Him.
3) Notice what happens when a believer lacks the knowledge of God. HOSEA 4:6.
a) Isaiah said about the same thing. In (ISA 5:13) he said “My people are gone into captivity, because {they have} no knowledge.”
b) People are destroyed and brought into bondage because of a FAILURE to deeply KNOW GOD and what He will respond to.
(i) Israel turned away from knowing God. And because of that they reaped calamities. It was a harvest of their disobedience.
B) Many Christians are in the same situation today because they lack truly knowing our God.
1) But when we begin to set aside time to know God and who he is we’ll be lifted out of our problems and bondages, and into the abundant life that Jesus came to give us.
II) God has given us specific instructions how to prevent calamities, destruction, and bondage.
A) Look at JOB 22:21–28.
1) Notice that He said, “Acquaint now yourself with Him.” That’s the key, Getting to know Him, then you’ll be blessed in every area.
a) Part of the definition of the word “ACQUAINT” from the Strong’s concordance is, “SHOW HARMONY WITH, BE FAMILIAR WITH, and KNOW INTIMATELY.”
b) One translation says, “Acquaint now your self with Him, AND ENJOY PEACE.”
(i) The only true way that you’re going to have peace on the inside is to have intimate fellowship with Him.
c) The NIV translation goes on to say at the end of (Verse 22), “In this way.” (In what way? Intimate fellowship). “In this way prosperity will come to you.”
d) In verse 25 it says, “The Almighty shall be your defense.”
(i) God will be your protection and even do battle for you.
(ii) He goes on to say in the same verse that you’ll have plenty of silver. Again that’s prosperity.
e) (Verse 27) says that when you pray God will hear you.
f) In (verse 28) it says, “Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee.”
(i) When you speak forth something or declare something, God will make it come to pass.
(ii) He goes on to say, “And the light shall shine upon thy ways.”
(iii) You’ll walk in God’s light and even in his glory, and the paths that you are to go down will be illuminated to you.
g) How can all these things happen? Simply by getting to know our God, having that close and intimate fellowship with Him.
2) (HOSEA 6:3) Says, “Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord: his going forth is prepared as the morning....”
a) That might not be real clear to us but it means…
(i) When you press in to truly know God and His character, you will discover that God can be relied on and trusted. (Not with just head knowledge.)
b) He’s more faithful and unchangeable than the rising of the sun every morning.
(i) When you get to know someone, it’s easy to have faith in them.
(ii) As your relationship grows with the Lord you will begin to know His likes and dislikes. You’ll begin to know how he thinks and what he feels.
(iii) But only happen as you spend time together.
3) (PRO 3:6 from the AMP.) Says, “In all your ways KNOW, recognize and acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.”
a) As you seek to know Him, you will find the direction you need.
b) The Living Bible puts it this way, “In everything you do, put God first, and He will direct you and crown your efforts with success.”
(i) God will crown you with the abundant life when you put SEEKING Him 1st.
c) When I say that we need to get to know our heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, I don’t mean to just get to know about Him. We have to have fellowship with Him to get to know Him personally.
(i) Do you really know God’s heart, or do you just know about Him and His actions?
4) PSA 103:7.
a) Here we see the same thing that was just talking about. Israel saw the miracles of God, yet they still rebelled against God and Moses.
b) Moses also saw the miracles, but something made him different.
(i) He knew God.
5) ¿What was it that made Moses so different?
a) ¿How did Moses get to know God?
b) We see the answer to that in one of Moses’ prayers.
(i) (EXODUS 33:13 from the AMP. says), “Now therefore, I pray You, if I have found favor in Your sight, show me now Your way, THAT I MAY KNOW YOU [progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with you, perceiving and recognizing and understanding more strongly and clearly] that I may find favor in Your sight.”
(ii) Moses had that true longing to know God. He sought such a closeness between himself and God.
(iii) He wanted to understand the desires of God’s heart and know what brought Him joy.
III) The Apostle Paul was very similar to Moses in this regard.
A) He longed to have that intimate relationship with God so that he could be used by Him.
1) Look at PHIL. 3:10.
2) The AMP translation even makes it clearer.
a) “[For my determined purpose is] THAT I MAY KNOW HIM — that I may progressively become more deeply and INTIMATELY ACQUAINTED WITH HIM, perceiving and recognizing and understanding [the wonders of His person] more strongly and more clearly and that I may in that same way come to know the power outflowing from His resurrection [which it exerts over believers], and that I may so share His sufferings as to be continually transformed [in spirit into His likeness even] to His death, [in the hope].”
b) When Paul prayed this, he was not a novice, or a babe in Christ. He said this in the latter years of ministry.
(i) After all the miracles he saw, after all the manifestations he witnessed, after the visions he had, after all the missionary trips he went on, he still had the desire that he might know Him. (To know Him better.)
B) (JER 9:23-24 NIV) This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, (24) but let him who boasts boast about this: THAT HE UNDERSTANDS AND KNOWS ME, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the Lord.
1) Many times people want to talk about the things that they have done, but let’s be slow to speak and talk on your relationship with God.
C) Let’s end with this last scripture DANIEL 11:32.
1) I want to do exploits for the kingdom of God.
a) The word “KNOW” here literally means, “TO KNOW BY EXPERIENCE.”
2) ¿Why should we want to do these exploits?
a) So others will come to know Him.
WOLCC SUN AM 3/15/92 and Sunday, April 25, 1999, Sunday, May 2, 1999.