Knowing God

The bible tells us in many forms that God is high and exalted, that He is unchanging – the same yesterday, today and tomorrow, that His ways are not our ways, that He is powerful and more. It almost seems illogical to know the Lord or seek Him. Yet, that is precisely what we are called to do as believers: seeking the Lord knowing that He will be found (Jeremiah 29:13). We are exhorted to know the Lord, to pay attention to what He requires, to obey Him. Jesus even prayed that his disciples would know the Lord because knowing the Lord meant to have Eternal life (John 17:3). Colossians tells us that Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation (Colossians 1:15), despite all this, he sought God while on earth. There is nothing Jesus did that was not warranted by his heavenly Father, and there is nothing Jesus would do without seeking his Father’s will. The same should be true of us believers, we ought to follow Jesus’ example and seek our Lord in every circumstance we are put in. Often, we fail to do this because we do not think God should be concerned with our ‘small’ problems. Other times, it is simply because we do not know who He is or what He is like. In order to remediate this situation, I would like to elicit three characteristics of God that I saw this week alone displayed in the book of Ezekiel. There were more but I have kept them to three. My hope is that, knowing these will increase your desire to know your God even more and stimulate your zeal for Him.

1. Caring

One characteristic of God that is displayed in Ezekiel is that He is caring. He cares more than we think and see. When you read how the Lord identified with his people, giving them his Name, you understand how everything about his people concerned Him. In Ezekiel 35, God prophesies against Edom, a nation that did evil to Israel. He speaks judgement upon her because she was prideful, delivered Israel to her enemies, was full of hatred and jealousy towards her (Ezekiel 35:12). What Edom did to Israel concerned the Lord so much that she became an enemy of God directly, unbeknownst to her. Indeed, her actions were directed to God himself and that is no small thing. You see, that’s the extent to which God identifies with his people. Did not Jesus often speak in a similar manner during his ministry? He said in Matthew 25 “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” referring to the parable of the sheep and goats (Matthew 25:40). In this parable, Jesus clearly shows that whatever is done to his brothers and sisters, it is done to him, whether good or bad. The point is clear, Jesus cares and becomes one with those that are his. To push this point even further, you are a child of God, the Holy Spirit lives in you, therefore God lives in you. Do you not think He would be concerned about you? You are his prized possession, anyone that touches you, touches Him; anyone that insults you, insults Him, therefore rest in that truth and approach Him knowing that He cares.

2. Detail oriented

The other characteristic of God displayed in Ezekiel is that God is detail oriented. Paying attention to detail is a skill that is required in many jobs today. Paradoxically, in those same jobs, details are often overlooked and not cared by the very people that should care for them in the first place (higher management) often because they do not have time for it; they only want to know the big picture, the overview, the main gist. But that is not the same with God. The book of Ezekiel shows us that God is very concerned about details. In Ezekiel 40 until the end, Ezekiel has a vision of the Temple of God which is described at length. He uses eight chapters to describe what he saw in the Temple including the setting, the architecture, the structure, the service, and the worship. The details about the Temple are impressive, no wonder it can be replicated today if needed. God is so particular with how things ought to be in his Temple; the way the priest should dress to approach him, the type of offering that is allowed, the type of sacrifice that is allowed, the manner in which priests and people should conduct themselves, the place of worshippers in the Temple, etc. all these are very important to God and He details very well what He means. With such details, it is easy to infer that God does not do anything casually, He does not do anything without prior thought, and everything He does has a reason. Because God is God and we are not, we ought to remember that nothing escapes his purview, therefore, we must obey and approach Him the way He wants to be approached, He dictates everything not us. This also made me understand that we should not be quick to dismiss details, to be bored by them, because details have their place and in them, often you find answers.

3. Salvific

The final characteristic about God that I saw in the book of Ezekiel is that God is salvific. He is the author and carrier of salvation. Indeed, salvation belongs to the Lord. In chapters 36 and 37, it is evident that salvation comes from the Lord, and man has nothing to do with it. It is God’s conception, God’s design, and God’s enactment. God will himself bring Israel out of subjugation, He himself will restore her – a nation once great, rendered to nothing and brought back to a glory better than the former. Yes, this indeed can only be done by the Lord. The same idea is displayed in the valley of dry bones; God is the one that sends His spirit and regenerates flesh and life from the dry bones. Dry bones could not do anything to bring themselves to life, only God could do that. Again, only God can think of such a way to restore and save. The book of Ephesians brings this same idea to life and teaches us that we were dead in our sins and only God could bring us back to life through Jesus Christ. This is humbling and it makes you realize that you owe everything that you are to the Lord because, if it were not for Him, you would not know Him nor would you even seek Him.  

These are only a few characteristics and they are certainly not new to most, but I hope they help you draw near to God, seek Him, approach Him, and include Him in your daily life.