Draw Near To God--2

     James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” As was stated in the previous post, if one would draw near to God one must know where to look for Him. Not only can God be found in His creation, He can also be found in the scriptures. While we can draw near to God by being receptive to what creation informs us about Him, we can draw nearer by means of the knowledge God reveals about Himself in His word. It is as if creation is merely a preface or introduction to the infinitely more detailed content contained within the bible.

     If one would know God, if one would really and truly draw near to God, the bible is where He can be found. In order to really draw near to God one must get into His word wherein He reveals Himself. In the bible God tells us who He is, who we are, and where we stand in relation to Him. Not only does God describe Himself in His book, He also tells us what He has done and why He did it. In addition He tells us what He will do in the future. He doesn’t stop there; He informs us what He likes and what He does not like. He makes clear what pleases Him and what displeases Him. He shares His promises, gives warnings, and provides ample evidence that His promises can be relied upon without fail. In the remainder of this article we can only begin to mine the depths of the scriptures to extract the vast treasures contained therein. Even though space is limited, we can establish the profound truth that if we will draw near to God by going to the scriptures God will draw near to us.

   Let’s draw near to God through the following scriptures:

   God is eternal and infinite. “Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end.” (Ps 102:25-27)

   God is sovereign. “Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,' calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it.” (Isaiah 46:9-11)

   God has done great and wonderful things. “In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.  And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” (Col. 2:11-16)

   God’s power works to our best interests. “He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:29-31)

   The bible is all about God. It contains God’s revelation about Himself. Just think about that fact: God, the Creator, has not left us, the creation, in the dark about Him, but has fully enlightened us so that we might know Him. There is no better way to draw near to God than to make His word a vital part of our lives.     

Draw Near To God--1

    James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” Can you think of a statement more precious and wonderful than that? What a marvelous blessing it is to know that if one will move towards God, then God in turn will move towards the one who wants to be near Him. Drawing near to God means coming closer to Him, approaching His presence, coming under His influence. Drawing near to God opens up the possibility of being in His presence and experiencing safety, peace, happiness, and intimacy with deity, contentment and so many other spiritual blessings.

     For good reason we sing “There is a place of quiet rest, near to the heart of God, a place where sin cannot molest, near to the heart of God. There is a place of comfort sweet, near to the heart of God, a place where we our Savior meet, near to the heart of God. There is a place of full release, near to the heart of God, a place where all is joy and peace, near to the heart of God.”

    But where is God? Where is He to be found? If one is to draw near to Him one must know where he can be located. This is the first of four articles about drawing near to God where He is. This first article is about finding God in His creation. The articles to follow will be about finding God in His word; finding God in the Church, i.e. His people; and finding God in heaven, His dwelling place.

    God can be found in His creation. Romans 1:20 says, “For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.” One who observes the physical world and fails to find God misses one of the fundamental, essential truths of the universe. This world is not the result of some accidental, cataclysmic phenomenon. The beauty, the combination of simplicity and complexity working hand in hand, the order, the variety, the connectedness, the resources, the richness, and even the sometimes devastating power displayed in the forces of nature all speak to the working of a divine presence. How can one miss this truth?

    “This is my Father’s world, and to my listening ears, all nature sings, and round me rings the music of the spheres.” Is this what happens within you when you consider the world in which you live? We draw near to God when we attend our ears to what the creation is telling us about the Creator. “This is my Father’s world, I rest me in the thought of rocks, of skies and seas-His hand the wonders wrought. This is my Father’s world, the birds their carols raise, the morning light, the lily white, declare their Maker’s praise. This is my Father’s world, He shines in all that’s fair; in the rustling grass I hear Him pass, He speaks to me ev’ry where.” Look around you. Everywhere you look you will find a message from God. He is saying that He is real, He is powerful, He is kind and thoughtful, and He wants you to draw near to Him.

   God can be found in His creation. One draws near to Him by listening to and acknowledging what the very creation itself openly asserts about the one who spoke it all into existence. Truly “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” (Psalm 19:1)