Who God REALLY Is

Scripture: "I had only heard about You before, but now I have seen You with my own eyes." Job 42:5

The Wrong Impression

Have you ever had the totally wrong idea about someone? Maybe you heard a rumor or had a weird first impression. Or worse, have you ever felt completely misunderstood? It’s awful to be on the receiving end. I think that God feels that way more than anybody. People think He is mean, absent, cold-hearted, and generally out to get them. But nothing could be further from the truth!

Knowing God

Here is a little test: Do you think that God is far away and only concerned with your “good deeds?” Do you think He loves people who grew up in a Christian home more than people who didn’t? Do you think that you have done things SO bad that He can’t possibly truly forgive you? Then you are the person God wants to speak to. He wants you to know who He really is, so that you will trust Him and experience eternal life--both now and forever! Jesus said, "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent" John 17:3. 

God's Personality

One day, Moses asked God to show him His real personality. He said, “Please show me Your glory” Exodus 33:18. Glory means "weight" or what something is when everything else is boiled down. Now, God could have caused the sky to flash or said something really intimidating, but instead, He said this:

"The LORD! The LORD! A God who is compassionate and merciful, very patient,
full of great loyalty and faithfulness, showing great loyalty to a thousand generations, forgiving every kind of sin and rebellion, yet by no means clearing the guilty, punishing for their parents’ sins their children and their grandchildren, as well as the third and the fourth generation" Exodus 34:6-7

Compassionate. Merciful. Patient. Loyal. Faithful. Forgiving. Just. This is the God who is asking you to trust Him. You may have grown up thinking He is someone totally different, but now is the time God wants that to change. We are going to look at the way God described Himself to Moses over the next few weeks. My prayer is that we all (me included!) would get a new, clear understanding of who God really is.