The Importance of Knowing God

As you probably know by now, my favourite parable is the one of the two lost sons in Luke 15.

I often spend time just thinking about the main characters in the story and this morning I was thinking about the elder brother, especially in regard to the elders in the church where I was church-sitting for a couple of days.

And in my devotions this morning, the author of the daily thought said, "Without a true and proper knowledge of God, we are doomed to failure and condemnation, being sentenced to the bondage of the traditions and doctrines of men."

So the following thoughts began rolling out .....

The elder brother didn't really know the father at all, even though he had been living with him and working for him for years and years. He was surprised and offended that the father would even take the younger son back at all (give him a second chance) let alone celebrate his return in such an extravagant fashion.

The elders at the church were also offended to hear that this might be the case - people who had ignored or offended God might be eventually received into God's eternal family.  They were so offended that they didn't want their congregation to hear such stuff and so banned me from talking further to them, even though I quoted Jesus, Peter, Paul and John to verify what I was saying.

Without knowing God and his ultimate purpose and plans for his offspring we are indeed "sentenced to the bondage of the traditions and doctrines of men".

I am not saying the elders don't know God .... but they certainly don't know his ultimate purpose, the purpose that his unconditional love, his sovereign power and his extravagant grace will achieve.

The only definition of eternal life (life in the ages) I can find in the Bible is what John records as the words of Jesus in John 17 : 3 - "eternal life (Gk. life in the ages) means to know you, the only true God, and to know Jesus Christ, whom you sent."  [GNB]

Knowing God and Jesus is therefore essential if we wish to have life in the ages, to live and reign with Christ in the 1000 years kingdom age. 

Jesus said that just knowing his name and working for him (an elder brother activity) is not enough.   We need to know him, to be known by him and to be doing what GOD wants us to be doing.  (Matthew 7 : 21 - 23)
 
As my daily devotion author concluded ...THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD IS WORTH MORE THAN ALL THE EARTHLY RICHES THAT ONE COULD ACQUIRE!

Let us determine to know God and Jesus Christ, doing whatever it takes to achieve this, that we might live!  Barry