TOPIC:‌“Getting to Know the Unknown God”

                  by Rev. Dr. Reg Dunlap

 

TEXT:‌Psalms 83:12-18

 

“That men may know that thou, whose name alone is the Lord, art the Most High over all the earth” (Psalms 83:18)

 

‌People down through the years are constantly trying to find answers to these perplexing questions: Who is God? What is God like? Where is God located? How can I know Him? Our concern in this message is to discover some of the answers to these puzzling questions. Let the Holy Spirit be our Guide as we trace out together what we need to know about God.

 

I.

 

‌Consider, to begin with, the DEFINITION of God. In coming to grips with the subject of God I want us to realize that there are many people who have a weak view of God, if the believe in Him at all, because they have left Him out of their plans and concept of life. This is one thing we must never do. We must realize that life is unbearable without God. Only He can satisfy the deep longings of the human heart. Saint Augustine expressed this belief when he wrote: “Thou hast made us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee.”

 

‌Though we cannot completely comprehend God in His inmost Being, or define Him in abstract words, it is my conviction that God can be encountered in the Bible and explained from personal experience. It is in the Bible that God has revealed Himself as the Infinite and Eternal Being. It is through personal experience we come to know that God is a living Person who sees, who feels, who acts, who guides and controls in the affairs of men.

 

‌The Greek word “theos” means God. Theology is the doctrine of God. From a thoughtful and thorough study of the Bible we attempt to define God in these words: “God is the Infinite and Eternal Spirit, the Creator and Preserver of all things, unchangeable in His Being and in His attributes.”

 

II.

 

‌In the second place, think of the DESIGNATIONS of God. There are many names given to God in the Bible which express His nature and His relation to man. David the Psalmist wrote: “O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth” (Psalms 8:1) God has given Himself these divine names so that man could address Him and know Him.

 

‌God was first known to Israel by the personal name of Jehovah. This name is the most sacred of them all. It is God's proper name, His personal name. We read: “That men may know that thou, whose name alone is Jehovah, art the Most High over all the . . .