Knowing God    

----Know God, Know Man----   

  Because we are created in His image and likeness.

Because God is a being that far surpasses man's understanding, we have to apply "human terms" to describe and understand Him.

      We will see that Knowing and loving / God and man are all mixed in together. And this is the number two reason that so many people have told me "I just don't know if I hear God when he talks to me."

 An analogy: If you are walking down the street and I called to you, you wouldn't know if I was talking to you or someone else. But if a loved one called to you, you would know he was talking directly to you because you know him and love him. in John 10:27 Jesus says this plainly: “My sheep hear My voice.'

Another analogy: My girlfriend and I have known each other only a few months. But in those few months, we have spent almost every waking moment together. And because of that we know each other better than people we have known for years. It is just the innate laws of relationships, and it's the same way with God. The reason that I know much more about God than some who have spent their whole lives in "church" is because for 2 years I spent every waking moment with Him- constantly filled with His Spirit in prayer and meditating on His Word.

The best way to explain Who and What God is, is by comparing God with man. It is in this way that we can get a better understanding of what it means to be created in the image of God. We will learn Who God is and who we are. Both are fundamental to having a relationship, which is what this whole "Christianity thing" is all about- having a relationship with God.

The first thing we learn about God in the Bible is that he is the Creator. The next thing we learn is that out of all His creation, only man was made in His image. Does that mean that we look like God? Of course not. God is invisible. Here is what it means.>

Man is in a sense, three parts... Soul, body and spirit.

God, too, is "three parts". That is why we say "Trinity".

Saying that The Trinity means three Gods is like saying your body and soul are two different people. It just isn't true. It is almost as if God has a soul, body and Spirit just like we do. But of course there is no real comparison. God is too great, so we use human terms to explain God.

God's Essence                    Man's Essence

Your Body does the will of your soul the same way the Son does the will of the Father (See Jn 5:30). Each part of you is responsible for different things about you. But that does not mean that they are not part of the same thing. Here is a Paint© drawing to help you visualize it.

                God's Essence                             Man's Essence

You can see from the drawing how three parts, can be part of the same thing (or person). And this is how we are created in God's image. This is how we are like God. But there are many ways that we are NOT like God. They are His attributes.

God's Attributes

    Although God and man share a similar Essence, God's attributes are not shared by man. In many cases we are just the opposite (there are some shared but different attributes, and many are imputed, which means Gods shares them with us in order for us to communicate with Him and receive other things like the Holy Spirit and salvation, but for now, simple is good).

God is... Perfect    Eternal    Immutable   Self-existence    One   Spirit    Omnipresent   Omniscient   Omnipotent   Love    Holy   Truth    Righteousness   Good   Sovereign   Freedom  Infinite   Transcendent   Life   Incomprehensible    Incomparable   Wisdom    Wrath

If you have at least partially grasped the Essence and attributes here, please move on to part 2