Unknowing God: Toward a Post-Abusive Theology

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Psalm 37:4 (NLT) says, “Take delight in the Lord and He will give you your heart’s desires.” This verse does not mean you will get what you want in every situation. But if your ultimate desire is a closer relationship with God, you will always get that desire when you genuinely seek His will. The precise words you use to commit yourself to God are not important. He knows the intentions of your heart. If you are unsure of what to pray, this might help you put it into words:

Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you each day (Eph. 5:18); seek to walk in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16) and manifest the fruit of His presence in your life (Gal. 5:22–24). It is impossible to draw near to God or to live the Christian life without the Spirit’s help. He reveals Christ to us; He opens our eyes to the Scriptures; He leads us in praying aright; He enlivens our worship; He guides and empowers us for joyful, obedient living and service, and much more. As we walk in the Spirit, we will not fulfill the desires of the flesh (Gal. 5:16). What you can do: Take time to observe and learn about our natural world. As you do, ask yourself, ‘What do the amazing designs manifest in nature reveal about God?’ a Of course, there are many things that nature cannot tell us about our Creator. That is why he gave us the Bible. For now, it can be difficult to distinguish these two types of people. Though false professions abound and unbelievers demonstrate remarkable virtue in society, at the bottom of our shared humanity lies one great difference: whether we truly know God himself, through Jesus, or not. Given enough time, the tree will bear fruit, or not. The truth will become plain as to whether we truly have supernatural life in our soul, or not. Corinthians 1:21 ESV For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. This was final proof that everything Jesus said about himself was true. To know him was to know God; to love him was to love God. “I and the Father are one.” 6It’s also important to apply your reason with God’s values rather than using the values of our culture. In our culture, doing the thing that will be the most successful or prestigious is logical. But God does not value success and prestige for their own sake the way we do, although He sometimes puts us in positions of influence. Take time away to be alone with God when you sense the need. A one-day or weekend retreat devoted to seeking God more earnestly about specific concerns can be a source of great blessing—or a prayer retreat with one or two friends. Making big decisions can cause a lot of anxiety and worry, but you can turn to God with all your fears and uncertainties. The Bible tells us, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all He has done” (Philippians 4:6, NLT). The Bible says, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” 9 Idols will pull at our hearts’ strings and obstruct us from wanting to know and follow God 100%. When we don’t give up our idols, we only have room to give the Holy Spirit part-time residence in our hearts. Idolatry stops us from yearning to know God 100%.

Like any relationship, getting to know God like this takes effort and time. Most importantly, it takes a humble, childlike heart that wants God to reign over 100% of our lives. This is how we can experience God personally teaching us all about Himself.But (lest we fall into law and self-generated-works righteousness) we must note well, and always remember, that this “straining and pressing on” is not merely unaided human willpower. Rather, it is rooted in the deep work of God in our hearts, arousing hunger and desire and drawing us to engage our wills and strength to seek Him, as Paul had earlier said when he urged the Philippians to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:12–13). Doing this, of course, is utterly dependent upon our being filled with the Holy Spirit daily, for He alone can supply the power we need (which Paul emphasizes in Romans 8, Galatians 5, and Ephesians 5). And the rewards of our Spirit-empowered efforts far transcend the greatest earthly pleasures! Why then, out of all those billions of people, are there so few who really have any interest inknowing God? Is it because those who truly want to know God must give up their ownthoughts and ideas about how their life should go? They must have a living interest in searchingout the things in their nature that are not in harmony with Him, and they must suffer in the flesh(say “no” to their sinful nature, taking up their cross daily) to overcome. But in return they willcome to know their Creator as a loving Father and an almighty God who is always there tostrengthen them and lead them to joy, peace and righteousness, regardless of what comes theirway that day. must also understand that knowing God is not an optional part of the Christian life; it is the Christian life. Jesus said, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:3). The English word know in this verse is a translation of the Greek word ginosko, which, in this context, means an experiential knowing, not simply an intellectual understanding of facts about God or Jesus or the Bible. In other words, it refers to an “I-Thou” relationship. Talk with your pastor or an elder when you need guidance in your spiritual life. An older, spiritually mature man or woman in the congregation, recommended by the pastor or elders, may also be able to help. This assumes that such a person is well grounded in Scripture, is humble, manifests the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22–23), and is wise, godly, and prayerful.

Meaning: Jehovah is close to those who show their love for him by doing their best to obey his commandments. Some aspects of God’s will are very clearly spelled out in the Bible. Instructions are clear about giving thanks (1 Thessalonians 5:18), avoiding sexual immorality (1 Thessalonians 4:3) and doing good (1 Peter 2:15) for example.If, after going through the six principles, there is no clear pattern and you are still confused, you may need to wait before making a decision and continue thinking through these guidelines.