You know your name.
You know your address.
You know your birthday.
You know your social security number.
I could go on. There's a finite list of things that we know. And the things we know are facts. They are unchangeable. There is no arguing with it because it just....is.
I was singing to myself on the way home from work and a song I used to sing as a kid took on a whole new meaning. I used to listen to tapes growing up that put bible verses to song called GT and the Halo Express. These songs still live in my heart and I love that at any moment 20-25 years after hearing them, I STILL remember the songs.
Today, the verse I sang was Deuteronomy 7:9. It reads:
Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is a faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.Something struck me as I sang (probably out of tune): We are called to "Know therefore that the Lord your God is God." Know. Know he is God. What does that mean? It doesn't say believe. It doesn't say trust. It says KNOW. Remember, our list from before? We know facts. Things that are unchangeable.
So what does it mean?
This verse has been my favorite of all the GT verses since I was little. It's one of the first verses that pops into my head, probably a couple times a week. Sadly, it took me until now to really dissect its meaning.
This isn't the only time "knowing" God is mentioned in the bible. Here are a few more:
- Jeremiah 9:23-34: Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.”
- Phillippians 3:10: I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death
- Exodus 29:46: They will know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them out of Egypt so that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God
- Psalm 46:10: Be still, and know that I am God.
Knowing God seems to be something that is important to him and our relationship with him. But do I? Do I really know God? I believe in him certainly. I trust him, most of the time. But know him? Sadly, I'm not sure.
Google the phrase "God is" and you get 3,100,000,000 results. But, ironically, I'm not interested in an excel spreadsheet list of attributes. It's meaningless. They're just words. My question is do I KNOW him? Not can I list adjectives found in the bible.
Here are things I KNOW:
- Someone bigger than me is in control. I've seen and experienced too many "coincidences" in my 30 years to have them be just that.
- The world and all creation, including the human body, is amazing. Intricate, perfectly orchestrated to work together, and awe-inspiring. There is NO way things could have happened by accident and not on purpose by grand design.
- I'm a sinner living in a sinful, self-destructive world.
- Forgiveness and love exist. I've experienced both.
I'm sure I could go on, but to be honest, does anything else matter? I can draw conclusions from those statements that lead me to a God who loves me so much he would give up the only child he has just to forgive me and keep me as his own. Somehow, that's something I can understand given my own circumstances.
"Now my heart's desire is to know you more
To be found in you and known as yours
To possess by faith what I could not earn
All-surpassing gift of righteousness"
- "Knowing You" by Passion
