Editor’s note: This blog originally appeared on preachleadlove.com
Sometimes the best thing we can do is to remember who God is.
This is particularly true when we find ourselves in the pit of darkness and despair. When we are hurting. When things are blurry, fuzzy, or unclear in our minds and in our lives. When strange, scary, untrue thoughts begin to make far more sense to us than they ever should.
In these times we need to remember who God is.
To remember who He really is. Not who the world says He is. Not who your frightened and confused mind may be saying God is. Who He actually is.
In case you are wondering if it is possible to actually know God in this way, it is. He has not left us to guess. He hasn’t put us on this earth to try and figure out all on our own who He is and what He is like. No, thankfully, He has told us and shown us. He has revealed Himself. And what a wonderful gift His self-revelation is to those of us trying to figure out life, one day at a time.
You see, our Creator wants us to know Him and love Him and fellowship with Him and worship Him for who He actually is, not who we imagine Him to be. God is not someone for us to simply “make up” or “create,” though many have tried to do just that. He is the potter and we are the clay, not the other way around. We mustn’t forget this. He makes us into who He wants us to be, we don’t get to make Him into what we want Him to be.
And this is really good news for us. Incredible news, in fact.
In His love and grace, the Lord has told us and shown us, as those created in His image, who He really is. And He has done this primarily through Holy Scripture, the person and work of Jesus Christ, and His works in creation.
This is why theology is so important. Simply put, theology is the study of God for who He actually is. For who He has revealed Himself to be. In studying theology, we are seeking to know two primary aspects of God. First of all, we are seeking to know “God’s being.” We want to know the right stuff about Him – who He really is. What is the nature of God? What are His attributes? Theology helps us understand these questions and many more like them.
But theology is not only trying to come up with a group of abstract facts about God. It also is concerned with “God’s acting.” In other words, the goal of theology is also to know the living God. To really know Him! To know what He has done, what He is doing, and what He will one day do, in such a way that these truths fuel a real, intimate, personal relationship between us and Him.
This is why good, solid, biblical theology is so important for us to remember in our times of pain.
Sometimes the best thing we can do in our suffering is to remember who God is. Who He really is. Who He has revealed Himself to be. A “god” of our own making will not hold us fast in the day of trouble.
We need the one true and living God.
I want to share with you a list of truths about God. Truths about who He is and how He acts. This is a list I have been compiling over the past several months as my son has been battling cancer. These are truths I find myself needing to remind myself of on a day-by-day, at times moment-by-moment basis. These also are truths I am seeking to remind my son and my family of regularly as well.
I want to remind you of them too.
I want to encourage you to spend some time remembering who God is. Who He really is. These are all truths God has revealed about himself through His Word, through Holy Scripture. Therefore, we know these to be perfectly true, without error. You can bank your life and eternity on them.
Sit and soak in these glorious realities. May these revealed truths of God lift your eyes from the pit and onto your Maker, your Savior, your Redeemer, your Shield, your King:
Our great and mighty God has the power to create anything from nothing (Ps. 33:6-9).
He speaks and things happen (Ps. 29:3-9).
His creation reflects His power (Ps. 19:1-4).
His powerful word sustains everything (Heb. 1:3).
He has power over death (Rev. 1:18).
No one can challenge what He does (Dan. 4:35).
All creation is dependent upon His presence (Col. 1:17).
He is everywhere and no one can escape Him (Ps. 139:7-12).
No task is too large or too difficult for Him (Jer. 32:17, 27).
He controls time and seasons (Dan. 2:21).
He controls nature for His purposes (Job 37:2-13).
He chose His people to become like Christ (Rom. 8:28-30).
His eternal purpose is to make His wisdom known (Eph. 3:10-11).
He has a plan for His people and will carry it out (Eph. 1:5, 11).
He is the only Sovereign (1 Tim. 1:17; 6:15).
He looks after His creation (Ps. 104:3-32).
His holiness demands exclusive worship (Josh. 24:19).
No one else is holy like He is (1 Sam. 2:2).
As the most holy One, He deserves constant honor (Rev. 4:8).
He is the Truth (John 14:6).
He follows through on His promises (Num. 11:22-23; 31-34).
He doesn’t lie but keeps His word (Num. 23:19).
He is full of grace and truth (John 1:14).
His Spirit guides believers into all truth (John 16:13).
True freedom comes from abiding in God’s truth (John 8:31-32).
He is righteous in everything He does (Ps. 145:17).
All God’s ways are righteous and deserve praise (Rev. 15:3).
He is just in all His ways (Deut. 32:4).
The righteous God justifies those who believe in Jesus (Rom. 3:25-26).
He loves and preserves His people (Ps. 37:28).
He loves His people, even when they are faithless (Hos. 3:1).
Nothing can separate the believer from His love (Rom. 8:38-39).
He will never relent from showing mercy to His children (Ps. 23:6).
He will listen to our pleas for mercy (Ps. 30:8).
Because of His mercy, God washes away our transgressions (Ps. 51:1).
Because God is merciful, He has not hidden Himself from us (Ps. 69:16).
God shows mercy to those who fear His name (Luke 1:50).
His faithfulness endures forever (Ps. 119:90).
He never changes (Mal. 3:6).
His love is never-ending (Lam. 3:22-23).
In the words of Rich Mullins: “Our God is an awesome God, He reigns from heaven above. With wisdom, power, and love, our God is an awesome God.”
Help us to take great comfort and peace in who You are, in who You have revealed Yourself to be, Oh Lord. Amen.,
Published June 7, 2019
