As Christians, we serve a real, personal, and loving God. Most children in our society today know the tune and lyrics to “Jesus loves me”, and even know that He died on cross in place of us for the salvation of our sins. But, do Christians really know God? Who is God, really? They may ask: “Who is God to me?” or “What is God really like?”
To begin to understand God, one must first study and reflect on His Word. The Bible speaks of our relationship with God as knowing and being known (Galatians 4:9; 1 Corinthians 13:12). But knowing God is more than just knowing about Him; it is a matter of interacting with Him as He reveals Himself to you, as you simultaneously experience Him working on you throughout your day to day life. Timothy Keller, author of Prayer, states that “we must not lose sight of the fact that knowing God is an emotional relationship, as well as an intellectual and volitional one. He also begs the question: “Is it possible that a man or woman can come to love God for Himself alone so that there is a fundamental contentment in life regardless of circumstances (Job 1:9). The answer: Yes!
But before we can have a close, personal, and intimate relationship with God, we first need to ask ourselves: “Who is God, really? Who is God to me?” You can’t begin to have a relationship with someone if you don’t have an idea of who they are; the same goes for our relationship with God. We will never know all there is to know about God – it’s impossible; but, through His Word, we can gain insight and understanding of His attributes, His power, and – most importantly – His love.
By studying and reflecting on scripture, Christians have the opportunity to see how God has already operated and moved in people’s lives and to read and believe in His promises. Timothy Keller states that “God’s words are identical with His actions…what God’s voice does, God does…God’s words…cannot fail their purposes because, for God, speaking and acting are the same thing…God acts through speaking.” The Bible says in Isaiah 55:11, “My Word that goes out from my mouth, it will not return to Me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” This proves that by reading the Word and knowing the Word, we know God.
Christian researchers and scholars have identified six personality traits of God to help Christians get a better understanding of who He is and how He operates. Those six personality traits are:
- God is Knowable (Jeremiah 9: 23-24)
- God is Honest (Psalms 119: 130, 105)
- God is Capable (Psalms 25:3)
- God is Forgiving (Romans 3:22, 25)
- God is Welcoming (Psalms 145:18)
- God is Creative (Psalms 147:5)
God exists as a Person who created us, loves us, offers salvation to us, is concerned for our being, and desires to provide for us.
God is an all holy God, and can having nothing to do with sin as the Bible says in Habakkuk 1:13. This does not mean that God cannot have a relationship with someone who has been redeemed and forgiven by the blood of the Lamb, the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ. God cannot sin; He is perfect.
God is a trinity which means that God exists in three persons, not three gods. This three-person existence is called the Trinity and is made up of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Each is not the same person as the other, yet they are not three gods – only one. The reason the word “person” is used to describe the Trinity is because each of the persons exhibits attributes and characteristics of personality found in human beings; attributes such as having a will, loves others, speaks, cognizant of others, communicates with others, etc. That is a major point to remember when asking ourselves: “Who is God, really? Who is God to me?”
God has many, many names. (Find a complete list of God’s names and correlating scripture here: http://www.godisreal.today/names-of-god/) The Word of God says: “If the wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed and observes all My statutes and practices justice and righteousness, he shall surely live; he shall not die.
All his transgressions which he has committed will not be remembered against him; because of his righteousness which he has practice, he will live. ‘Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked’, declares the Lord God, ‘rather than that he should turn from his ways and live?…I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies’, declares the Lord God. ‘Therefore, repent and live.’”
According to www.allaboutgod.com, “we have all sinned and deserve God’s judgment. God, the Father, sent His only Son to satisfy that judgment for those who believe in Him. Jesus, the creator and eternal Son of God, who lived a sinless life, loves us so much that He died for our sins, taking the punishment that we deserve, was buried, and rose from the dead according to the Bible. If you truly believe and trust this in your heart, receiving Jesus alone as your Savior, declaring, “Jesus is Lord,” you will be saved from judgment and spend eternity with God in heaven.”
