If you had an opportunity to have an open conversation with God,
what would you ask him? Would your preconceived notions about God’s
nature keep you from even recognizing him?
If you had an opportunity to have an open conversation with God, what would you ask him? Would your preconceived notions about God’s nature keep you from even recognizing him? Most of us would probably respond like the Old Testament prophet, Elijah, who was once told to go up on a mountain to have a conversation with God. As the prophet climbed the mountain, a hurricane-force wind came up, and because of its fury, Elijah thought God was speaking to him through the wind. He wasn’t. Then came an earthquake which, because of its power, led Elijah to believe God was speaking to him through the trembling earth. He wasn’t. Then came a roaring fire, and because of the fierce heat, Elijah assumed that God was speaking to him through the fire. He wasn’t.
But finally, after the wind, earthquake and fire, came the gentle voice of God, speaking to Elijah as you and I would speak to one another. God discussed a problem the prophet was having that was so severe it had led Elijah to contemplate suicide. He was given some wise counsel and sent forth to resolve the problem. But when Elijah came down off that mountain, he wasn’t thinking about the wind, earthquake or fire. He was thinking, “Wow! The creator and ruler of all the universe knows me! He was interested in my problems… God wants a relationship with me!”
What stunned Elijah is the fact that despite God’s power and holiness and sovereignty and all the rest, at the very core of his being there is a longing to have an intimate relationship with you.
I have a good friend who is convinced that God is way too busy running the universe to pay attention to him, and I can understand his thinking; it’s hard for us to grasp the fact that the God of all creation is interested in establishing an intimate relationship with someone as insignificant as we are. But he is! The Bible is filled with pictures of a God who desires to have a close, loving relationship with each one of us.
I don’t know if you believe that, or if it even matters to you, but it matters to me. In fact, I can divide my entire life into two eras. The first was when I thought of God in non-relational terms. I viewed him as the cold, uncaring ruler of the universe. He was like a cosmic policeman or a stern judge who governed the world with an iron hand. Thinking this way led me to conclude that life was about being obedient to a set of rules passed down from on high. There were severe consequences for breaking the rules and great rewards for obeying them.
This, by the way, is how most of the world’s major religions operate. The essence of these religions comes down to this: obey the rules and you will be okay; disobey them and you will pay. Indeed, there are several camps that identify themselves as Christians that subscribe to this notion. But the Bible teaches that true Christianity is not about keeping rules… its about a God who wants to establish a personal relationship with each and every one of us through Jesus Christ. If you really understand that truth in your heart, it will change forever the way you view God.
Over the coming weeks I hope to paint some fresh pictures of God for you to consider; pictures that I hope will help you to better understand who God is and what he is really like. We desperately need to break free from any false notions we have about the nature of God because they only lead to confusion.
Too many us are like the group of blind men who were asked to describe an elephant. The one who grabbed it by the leg said that an elephant was like a tree trunk; the one who touched its side said that, no, it was more like a wall; the one who held the trunk told the others that they must be very confused because an elephant was obviously shaped more like a snake.
How many of us are guilty of coming to similar hasty conclusions about the nature of God? We speak of what we know, so the key is to get to know God better. Then we will get a true vision of who God really is… and that can change everything!
Henry Harris is Lead Pastor of Rolling Hills Community Church, 330 Tres Pinos Rd, Hollister, CA. If you have questions or comments, please visit the church’s Web site at rhcchollister.com, email he***@***********er.com or phone 831-636-5353.
