Knowing God|2—The People who Know their God

One sunny day, I was walking with a scholar, and he said something that I have never forgotten. It wasn’t even the main thing he was saying, because he said it as a side remark, but even so, it struck me. This man had clashed with powerful people in his church, because of what he believed about the gospel of grace. He felt they were wrong and had said so. As a result, he had lost their favour and so lost his opportunity to advance in his academic career. That day in the sunshine, after telling me about these things, he said in passing, “but it doesn’t matter, for I’ve known God and they haven’t.” This got me thinking, especially the idea of knowing God.

Most of us would not naturally say that we have known God. It sounds so straightforward and definite. If we are honest, most of us have to admit that we feel more like strangers of God. We may have a testimony or conversion story that we rattle off easily, and at such times, we may say that we ‘know God’—after all evangelicals are supposed to say that, right? But when it comes to our own honest personal experience, how many of us can really say that we have known God?

Also, I don’t think that many of us would look at our past disappointments and present hardships in the light of the knowledge of God and say, “but it doesn’t matter, for I’ve known God.” Because for most of us, these difficulties do matter. We call them our ‘crosses,’ and often, when we think of them, we slip into bitterness, apathy, and gloom. When we talk about these things with our friends, we put on a brave but pitiful front—not at all like the ‘joy unspeakable and full of glory that Peter assumed believers would have (1Pet 1:8)—and our friends pity us and say, “Look, how they have suffered!” And we too feel like that about ourselves.

But this kind of drama has no place in the minds of those who really know God. They do not brood on might-have-been thoughts about the past saying things like: “If only it had happened this way ,” or “If this had not happened, then I would have been better off.” Those who really know God never think of things they have missed but only of what they have gained.

But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him . . . I want to know Christ . . .  (Phil 3:7-10)

When Paul says that he lost garbage, he is not just saying that those things are of no value, but he is also saying that he does not think of those things constantly. Can you think of any normal person constantly dreaming about cow dung? But this is what many of us do when we brood about the past. This shows that we have so little true knowledge of God.

Knowing Vs Knowing About

Maybe you are an orthodox evangelical person. If you are, then you would be able to state the gospel clearly, you would be able to smell wrong doctrine from a mile away, and you would know the correct answer to the question—How can we know God?

In answer to that question, you would say:
We come know God
– through the Lord Jesus Christ
– because of His death on the cross
– because He is the mediator between God and us
– and this is true because He has given us His word of promise,
– and this is made possible by the power of thr Holy Spirit
– and by us exercising our faith.

But very often people from churches and circles, where truth is known better, do not seem to have the brightness, joy, goodness, and freeness of spirit that should mark those who truly know Him.

In fact, those in circles where evangelical truth is known less clearly seem to have more of this joy. Maybe this is a case of those who are last will be first and those who are first will be last.

Maybe a little knowledge OF God is worth more than heaps of knowledge ABOUT God.
1. One can know a great deal about God without much knowledge of Him. Once people get a taste for it, theology becomes very interesting. It is fascinating and intellectually stimulating,  no wonder then that in the 17th century, it was “every gentleman’s hobby”— thought of as fashionable. Once that interest begins, we start reading and enjoying books on theology and Christian apologetics. We also start learning more about Christian history and the Apostle’s Creed. We also become good at opening the pages of the Bible and navigating to passages quickly. These skills are all well regarded by others—people ask for our opinion in public about various questions, we get to lead study groups, we are asked to write articles, we are given responsibilities to teach and decide on important matters and so on—in our Christian circles. Our friends tell us how much they value our contribution, and this makes us explore God’s truth even more to keep up with the demand.

This is all very good, but this is not the same as knowing Him. All this has to do with knowing ABOUT God. John Calvin was someone who both knew God and knew much about God (and he wrote many works including his most-famous ‘The Institutes of the Christian Religion’). Even if we diligently studied all of Calvin’s works and became more knowledgeable about God than even Calvin, yet it is possible that, unlike Calvin, through it all we may hardly know God at all.

2. One can know a great deal about godliness without much knowledge of God. In this day and age, we have no lack of resources—books in the church book shop—sermons from the pulpits on every conceivable subject that believers are supposed to know:

• How to pray
• How to witness
• How to read our Bibles
• How to tithe our money
• How to be a young Christian
• How to be an old Christian
• How to be a happy Christian
• How to lead people to Christ
• How to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit—or how to avoid receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit
• How to speak in tongues—or how to explain away Pentecostal manifestations
• And how to do anything else that is expected of a Christian believer

To this list, we might add

• the large number of biographies of Christians from the past, who seem, in contrast to us, to have had remarkable experiences.

Whether this kind of availability is good or not, this much is clear that we can learn secondhand—without actually knowing firsthand as true believers—about the practice of Christianity.

If we have common sense, we can even be able to help struggling Christians in their Christian walk, and we may even become known for our pastoral abilities. And yet, it is possible to have all of this knowledge and yet hardly know God at all.

It does not matter whether we are good in theology or not. It does not matter whether we can deal nicely with problems related to Christian living.

What matters is whether or not we can say—not because as evangelicals we need to—but whether or not we can in all honesty say:
– That we have known God
– That because we have known God, the unpleasantness we have had (crosses) does not matter
– That because we have known God, the pleasantness we have not had (losses) does not matter either.

If we have really known God, we should be able to say these things. So if we are not able to say these things, then we need to look more closely at the difference between knowing OF God and knowing ABOUT God.

Evidence of Knowing God

We have looked at one evidence that shows us that someone KNOWS God, which is that losses and crosses do not matter to them. What other effects of knowing God can we see? The Bible answers this in different ways. Let’s look at a very clear and striking answer given in the book of Daniel. This comprehensive answer can be studied under four headings.

1. Those who know God have great energy for God. In one of the passages in Daniel, we read this:

the people that know their God shall be strong, and do exploits Dan 11:32

In that passage, we see that God’s people do these exploits as a reaction to the anti-God trends around them. When they see that their God is being insulted or ignored, they cannot rest and they feel that they have to do something. The honour of God’s name drives them to act.

In the book of Daniel in the Bible, we see this very thing happening in the account of the exploits of Daniel and his friends. These four men knew God—and because of this, they would stand up actively and openly against the king’s orders when they were against God. When faced with a situation like this, they did not take the option of letting the matter slide but instead challenged it.
– Daniel insisted on a vegetarian diet for his friends and himself, rather than risk being defiled by palace food. The head eunuch was not impressed.
– Daniel continued praying as usual, and that too in front of an open window to be seen, when king Darius had banned prayers for one month. The punishment for disobedience was death, but that did not deter Daniel.

This reminds one of how Bishop Ryle leaned forward in his stall, when he was at St Paul’s Cathedral, just so everyone would notice that he did not turn towards the altar leaned did not turn towards the East—towards the altar—when the Creed was recited. [Turning towards the East was the way it was done traditionally, but Ryle with his Calvinist leanings  would have felt that it was extra-biblical.

It is easy to misunderstand the intent of Daniel or Ryle and suggest that these men are the kind who are only happy when they have displayed their rebellion to authority. But that would not be true. These are men who know God and are sensitive to situations where God’s truth and honour are directly or indirectly being undermined. In such situations, even if it is risky, instead of letting the matter go unnoticed, they attract attention to the issue, with the hope that it may make people reconsider the matter.

This energy for God is not just seen in outward gestures—that is not where it starts. People who know God are people who pray. It is in their prayers that their energy and zeal starts. In Daniel 9:2, we see how when Israel’s captivity was coming to an end, and when Daniel noticed that the nation’s sin was such that it would provoke God to judge them even more rather than show mercy, he fasted and put on sackcloth and ashes and sought God with prayers and petitions. Most of us are strangers to the kind of force of agony and passion with which Daniel prayed for the restoring of Jerusalem.

But this kind of energy to pray for God’s cause is a fruit of true knowledge of God. The only suitable outlet for this kind of energy is prayer. The more the knowledge the more the energy. We can use this to test ourselves to know if we truly know God. Maybe we are unable to express ourselves publicly against ungodliness and forsaking the truth—because we are old or ill or for some other reason—but we can all pray, can’t we? But if we find little energy for such prayer and as a result pray very little, then we can be sure that we know God very little.

2. Those who know God have great thoughts of God. Perhaps more than any other part of the Bible, the book of Daniel vividly and powerfully presents the reality of God’s sovereignty by telling us about:
– God’s wisdom, might, and truth
– How God rules history
– God’s sovereignty over individuals and nations and how He deals with some in judgement and some in mercy, according to His own pleasure

The Babylonians had completely swallowed up their Palestine, and Daniel knew that other great empires would come after Babylon. By every standard of human calculation, Israel had been dwarfed. At such a time, the book of Daniel reminds us with these drama-filled accounts that:
– The God of Israel is King of kings and Lord of lords
– God’s hand is on history at every point
– History is actually His story – the unfolding of God’s eternal plan
– In the end, it is God’s kingdom that will win

Do you know what the truth is that:
Daniel taught Nebuchadnezzar (Dan 2,4)
Daniel reminded Belshazzar (Dan5:18-23)
Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged (Dan 4:34-37)
Darius confessed (Dan 6:25-27)
Is the basis of Daniel’s prayers (Dan 2,9)
Is the basis of Daniel’s confidence when he defied authority (Dan 3)
Is the content of what God revealed to Daniel (Dan 2,4,7,8,10,11-12)

That truth is that ‘the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men.

that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. (Dan 4:25)

He was driven from among the children of mankind, and his mind was made like that of a beast, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. He was fed grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the Most High God rules the kingdom of mankind and sets over it whom he will. (Dan 5:21)

Here below are the thoughts that filled Daniel’s mind:

• Our God knows and foreknows all things
• His foreknowledge is foreordination
• So God will have the last word in world history
• And He will have the last word in the destiny of every man
• God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness will triumph in the end
• Neither angels nor men will be able to thwart Him

We know that Daniel’s mind was filled with these thoughts because we can see them in his prayers. What we say in our prayers is indicative of our view of God.

Daniel answered and said:
20 “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
to whom belong wisdom and might.
21 He changes times and seasons;
he removes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding;
22 he reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what is in the darkness,
and the light dwells with him.
(Dan 2:20-22)

4 I prayed to the Lord my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments,
7 To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you.
9 To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him
14 Therefore the Lord has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and we have not obeyed his voice.
(Dan 9:4,7,9,14)

Is this how we think of God? Do our prayers express these ideas? Knowing God—HIs holy majesty, His perfection, and His gracious faithfulness—made Daniel humble, dependent, awed, and obedient.
Is it this way with us who profess to know God?

3. Those who know God show great boldness for God. Daniel and his friends stuck their necks out, not because they wanted to take foolish risks. They knew what would happen if God did not intervene miraculously, and they were prepared. In fact, God did intervene and save them, but Daniel and his friends were not counting on that.

Once they were convinced that their stand was the right thing to do, and that God would want them to take that stand, then they—using the words of Oswald Chambers— “smilingly washed their hands of the consequences”.

But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. (Acts 5:29)

But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. (Paul, Acts 20:24)

This was exactly what Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego thought in their spirits. This is how it is with all those who know God. They may find it very difficult to decide which is the right course of action, but once they are clear about it, they embrace it boldly and without hesitating.

They are not worried whether or not other believers take that same stand. When Daniel’s three friends refused to worship Nebuchadnezzar’s image, were there other Jews present? From the Biblical account, it does not seem as if the friends cared about knowing what other Jews had decided to do in this situation. They knew what they had to do personally, and that was enough. A

4. Those who know God have great contentment in God. Nothing can match the peace that those who know God have. Such people have the full assurance that:

• They have known God
• God has known them
• This relationship guarantees God’s favour to them
  • In life
  • Through death
  • And for ever

This is the kind of peace that Paul writes about in his letter to the Roman church.

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Rom 5:1)

Paul then explains the reason for this peace.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Rom 8:1)

The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God . . . heirs of God . . . (Rom 8:16-17)

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good . . . (Rom 8:28)

. . . those whom he justified he also glorified. (Rom 8:30)

. . . If God is for us, who can be against us? (Rom 8:31)

Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? . . . (Rom 8:33)

Who shall separate us from . . . the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Rom 8:35,38,39)

This is the kind of calm contentment that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had when they stood against Nebuchadnezzar.

Nebuchadnezzar gave his ultimatum:

“But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?” (Dan 3:15)

To this the friends replied:

“O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.” (Dan 3:16-18)

It did not matter to the friends whether God would save them from the fire or not. Live or die—they are content.

Lord, it belongs not to my care
Whether I die or live;
To love and serve Thee is my share,
And this Thy grace must give.

If life be long, I will be glad,
That I may long obey;
If short—then why should I be sad
To soar to endless day?

This too is a test of whether we really know God—our calm contentment

First Steps

If we want this kind of knowledge of God, we need to do two things.

First, we must recognise how much we lack this knowledge of God. We have to learn to measure ourselves:
Not by:
– how much we know about God
– our gifts and responsibilities in the church
But by:
– how much we pray
– what goes on in our hearts

Most of us probably do not know how poor we are at this level, and we must ask God to show us.

Second, we must seek the Saviour. When Jesus was on earth, He welcomed people to accompany Him, and when they were with Him, they came to know Him and through knowing Jesus, they came to know the Father.

In the Old Testament too, we see the pre-incarnate Jesus—as the Angel of the Lord—in the company of people, so that they might know Him. In the book of Daniel, we see two such instances.

• The fourth Man in the fire who looked ‘like a son of the gods’ (Dan 3:25)
• The angel who God sent to shut the moth of the lions when Daniel was thrown into their den. (Dan 6:22))

Today, the Lord Jesus is absent from us in body, but it makes no difference. We can still find God and know Him by seeking out Jesus’ company. If we search for Him, we will find Him.

The promise is this:

You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. (Jer 29:13)

It is only those who have searched for Jesus—and have found Him—who can stand before the world and testify that they have known God.