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How Can We Know God?

God is Three in One.

The Person of Christ

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Who is God?

By Mark E. Larson

 Who is God? This is perhaps the most profound question ever to be asked by anyone at any time. Like God, the question is a gigantic and awesome one to ponder. It is a subject so vast that one could easily become overwhelmed by it at its enormous complexity. The question is certainly a humbling one and it can lead to great blessings in our lives if we will seek the truth with the right attitude. We ought not to seek the answer just because it is fascinating to us or challenges us academically. We may gain knowledge in our study of this question, only to become arrogant and not be blessed at all. Instead, let us seek to know who God is because we truly want to know Him as a Person with whom we can have a wonderful and meaningful relationship. Let us seek not just to know about God, but draw near to God Himself.

Can We Know God?

General Revelation: By our observation of this world, we can gain at least some knowledge of God. We can learn, for example, of the great power, intelligence, and wisdom that were required by God to create and design this world and this wonderful universe. Romans 1:19-20 says: “Because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.” (cf. Ps 19:1-3; Acts 14:17; 17:24-28). How did this universe come into existence? “The Law of Cause and Effect” states that every material effect must have an adequate cause that existed before the effect. Only an infinitely powerful Being could have created this universe: “'Ah Lord GOD! Behold, Thou hast made the heavens and the earth by Thy great power and by Thine outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for Thee” (Jeremiah 32:17). And only an Eternal God is an adequate cause for the world. The universe needed a cause, needed a beginning. God, who has always been existence and is not an effect of any cause, is the One who brought this universe into existence through His spoken word (Ps. 33:6, 9). Only God could be that great first cause of the universe who is qualified in every way to have brought it into existence.

Special Revelation: Beyond the Creation however, many people doubt we can know who God truly is, that the greatness of God is a mystery beyond our comprehension. While it is true we cannot attain perfect knowledge of God (while on earth) (Job 11:7; 21:14; 36:26; Ps. 77:19; Rom. 11:33), we can most certainly obtain the knowledge we need to draw near to God! By His word, we may seek and find God: “How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, who seek Him with all their heart.” (Ps 119:2). The Scriptures give us sufficient knowledge of Him and through this knowledge we can gain everlasting life: “And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent” (John 17:3).

The Names of God

We learn a lot about God simply by examining the names He is given in Scripture. In the Old Testament Scriptures, the two most common names of God are ELOHIM translated “God” and JEHOVAH (or YAHWEH) translated “the Lord.”

ELOHIM emphasizes His absolute and complete power as when “God made the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). So powerful is God that the words He spoke brought the world into existence (Ps. 33:6, 9). God is that great first cause that brought into effect the existence of this grand universe!

JEHOVAH declares the self-existence or eternal nature of God. “And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" And God, furthermore, said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.' This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations” (Ex. 3:14-15). The Lord is an infinite and eternal being. This is difficult for us, who live in a time and space continuum, to grasp with our finite minds. We are so used to measuring time with clocks and days by the calendar. The thought of an eternal God who has always been in existence and will always be in existence is truly an incredible and amazing concept.

The One and Only True God

Coming to know who God is begs the question: Is there only one God to know? Some say that the many world religions all point to the same God, but do they? Others assert that there are many gods and that each god in the world religions should be respected as legitimate. Yet, such a notion does not harmonize with the teaching of the Bible.

God Frequently States in Scripture That He Alone is God: “See now that I, I am He, and there is no god besides Me…” (Deut. 32:39a; cf. Isa. 43:10-13; 44:6, 8b; 45:5-6, 18b, 21-22; 46:9). Prophets, priests, kings, and apostles frequently stated the same thing (2 Sam. 7:22; 1 Kings 8:60; Isa. 37:16; 45:14; Jer. 10:6-7; 1 Cor. 8:4-6; 1 Tim. 2:5). Even demons understand this truth! (James 2:19).

God is Described as the One True God:  In contrast to the false gods of the pagans or heathen, “The Lord is the true God” (Jer 10:10; cf. Jn 17:3; 1 Thes 1:9; 1 John 5:20-21). This teaches us that such “gods” as Allah, Vahiguru, Ahura Mazda, Ra, Baal, Molech, Siva, Zeus, etc. are not to be recognized as gods at all! They come from the imaginations of men. The character of these “gods” does not harmonize with who the Lord is nor do they agree with His word found in the Scriptures of the Bible.

The Only Eternal God: The fact that God alone is eternal is further proof that He is the only God. All the gods created by man’s imagination have a beginning and will have an end (they are limited to time and space). The true God is not restricted by time and not confined to space; God is infinite in power, wisdom, and understanding (Isa. 40:28; Ps. 139:17-18; 147:5; 40:5; Rom. 11:33). The true God has continuous, perpetual existence; He is everlasting in every way (Gen. 21:33; Deut. 33:26-27; Jer. 10:10).

The Only Living God: Unlike the lifeless idols made with human hands (Acts 19:26), God is an actual living Being who has “life in Himself” (John 5:26). God does not depend on man (Ps. 50:12). His ability to live is continual, for He is self-existent and self-sufficient. It is for this reason that the Lord is frequently called the “living God” in Scripture (Ps. 42:2; 84:2; Dan. 6:26; Acts 14:12-15; 1 Tim. 3:15; 4:10). “Take care, brethren, lest there should be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart, in falling away from the living God.” (Heb. 3:12; cf. Heb. 9:14; 10:31; 12:22).

By Nature, the Only God There is!  The pagans allowed themselves to be enslaved to “gods” which by nature were not gods at all (Gal. 4:8). They did not have Divine qualities or characteristics. Their existence depended solely on the people’s imagination and the worship they offered them. Yet, in so doing, this did not make them true gods: “Can man make gods for himself? Yet they are not gods!” (Jer. 16:20). Ultimately, these so called “gods” are not divine, but demonic in nature or from the devil (1 Cor. 10:19-21). "They sacrificed to demons who were not God, to gods whom they have not known, new gods who came lately, whom your fathers did not dread” (Deut 32:17).

God is Three Persons in One

Never in Scripture is God referred as being absolutely alone as only one person. God is God because of His Divine nature, such a nature that is comprised of three persons, otherwise known as the “Godhead” (Acts 17:29, KJV). There is only one God (Deut. 6:4), yet there is a “unified oneness” about Him. God is One, yet composed of three persons: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. All three persons are referred to as God in the Scriptures because each one is God by nature (Jn 6:27; Col. 2:8-9; Acts 5:3-4). God would not be God to exclude any one of the three persons that make up the divine nature.(For a complete study on this subject, please read: “God is Three in One.”).

God is a Spirit

God is not a man or a woman (Num. 23:19a). According to Jesus, “God is Spirit” (John 4:24) and “a spirit does not have flesh and bones” (Luke 24:39). Though the Scriptures sometimes use for our understanding anthropomorphisms to describe God (“human in form”) (e.g., Deut. 33:27), the Lord does not have a physical body or material form that can be measured. Therefore, God is invisible (1 Tim. 1:17). Though God (Jesus the Son of God) did take on a human form (Col. 2:9; cf. John 1:14), His divine essence remains invisible to us (John 1:18; cf. Ex. 33:18). Yet by coming to know who Jesus is who “is the image of the invisible God” (Col. 1:15), we can come to know who God is. (cf. “In the Steps of the Savior: The Person of Christ”).

The Attributes of God

Since God is invisible, only by the Scriptures can we know with certainty who God is: “Make Thy face shine upon Thy servant, and teach me Thy statutes” (Ps. 119:135). God’s statutes or Word can reveal to us God’s “face”! God’s goodness is identified with His face: “The LORD make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace’” (Num. 6:25-26).

Certainly true to God’s character, it is interesting to note that the English word God is equivalent to the Anglo-Saxon word for “good.” God does indeed stand for perfect goodness: “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!” (Ps. 34:14, NKJV). Indeed, the more we come to know who God is, the more we will recognize how truly good the Lord is! Everything about God is good. He is the complete opposite of evil. Everything He is, stands for or represents is good.

To be continued...

Drawing Near to God