The love of God

Recently I felt God convicted me of something. I'll mention that in a little bit. But first, I want to talk about the names of God. During these strange and troubling times, it is important to keep our eyes on God because "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." (Isaiah 26:3) 

For those who are sick (or afraid they will get sick), claim this promise: "Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's." (Psalm 103:2-5)

Recently, I came across the photo below which lists 17 names of God. Of course, the term "recently" doesn't mean much right now. I feel like I'm in a time warp. It may have been last year, actually. 

Names are very important to God. How many times did he dictate what His people should name something or someone? I don't know, but it's a lot. And those names say a lot about those people or places. Likewise, the names of God tell us so much. 

God is the most fascinating person I've ever known. Until the day I die, I will continue to learn and grow in Him. There is no end of God. What we see is "through a glass darkly," just a small part, an aspect, the tip of the iceberg. 

Recently, a local pastor gave me a couple DVDs, one of which is called "How Big Is God?" My son is fascinated by it. So am I. God's creation is unfathomably huge, which is what the DVD dwells on. It talks about how big the universe is, starting from something we know — the size of Texas, which is one of the largest states in the U.S. But God is still bigger than the universe, which He created. 

All of those names above are aspects of God. They are a facet. If you turn a prism a few degrees, it shines differently. God is like that. We'll never see Him in totality until we die. Even then, I believe it will be an incremental, gradual understanding. Moses was a man God chose to talk to face to face, but Moses prepared himself for that. He fasted 40 days and nights three times. Read that again. That's a whole lot of humbling oneself, which is something one must do to talk to God. But that closeness had a price. After Moses came down from talking to God face to face, his face was so bright the people couldn't look at him. So he had to wear a veil. Closeness with God often separates us from people. 

Recently (truly recently), I came upon more names for God (below) in the back of my study Bible. It appears the bottom names are Greek and the rest Hebrew. I don't know much about either language, but I do know the Old Testament is Hebrew and the New Testament is Greek. 

Needless to say, the Hebrew names expound more on the nature of God. If someone doesn't say "God," most often I hear the name "Yahweh," which is fine. I'm a dumb American who barely speaks my native English, so I don't use names that are foreign to me often. As long as I know someone is talking about God, that's fine. 

We all know God differently. We all see just a part of God. When we hear others talk about Him, we see flashes of a God we don't know. It's like looking at a mountain from one place and then moving to another place and seeing something different. You get the point. 

When I read my Bible, every single line says God loves me. Even the verses that don't look like that on the surface such as when God was dealing with the rebellious Israelites in the desert are about God's love. He had to use a heavy hand to make sure His purposes were fulfilled, which was (in part) bringing me into His kingdom. Nothing could get in the way of that. If you knew something was going to taint a beautiful gift you intended to give someone, would you do anything to preserve it? Of course. The Bible equates discipline with love. Why would we discipline someone unless we love them? It's hard. But that is what God does with His people. Even that is love. God's love is something He will never take away, even though it sometimes seems as though He has when we sin. My explanation for that is sin separates us from God. He still loves us. We just can't feel it when we're in a sinful situation.

Many are talking about the unprecedented thing that is happening in our world right now. Living with infectious diseases is not unprecedented; we have lived like this since time began. Humanity has always suffered under the weight of war, pestilence, and famine. We've just forgotten that because it's been a long time since we've endured that in the United States. We are a forgetful and ungrateful lot. Hopefully, this pandemic is a wakeup call for God's people. We were mightily blessed by Him because we stayed close to Him. Periodically in our nation's history, we experienced revivals that cleansed the land and brought the hearts of the people back to Him. We have not experienced one of those in a long time. Maybe this is the beginning of one? 

When I discipline my son, it is because I love him and want him to avoid dangerous situations. It is in his best interest to obey. Unfortunately, if he resists, it makes his life harder. Still, recently God convicted me of the need for gentleness. Jesus was gentle. Yes, there were times when He acted in anger (Like the good shepherd He was, He had no patience for those taking advantage of His flock), but above all, He was gentle with His people. God spoke to me that often I am too harsh and too hard with others, especially my son. So, I pray God gives me a gentle spirit. After all, He has been exceedingly gentle and patient with me. 

Gentleness is not weakness. Jesus was never weak. But gentleness is an overlooked aspect of Jesus' ministry. There is incredible strength in gentleness. It does not overlook sin or disobedience. Instead of me trying to explain something I know little about, I'll let this article expound on gentleness. As I sat in my car and heard a preacher speak on the radio, I was convicted that gentleness is something I lack. Somewhere along the line, I became hard. God doesn't want me to be hard. I have work to do. With God's help, gentleness will grow in me, just as I have seen patience and obedience grow. I may be slow to change course like a big ocean liner, but once I get going in the right direction, I'm hard to stop. Perhaps that is what God wants to change.

Jesus' gentleness is synonymous with meekness, which means easily controlled (as a rider may comment about a horse being easily controlled). His form of gentleness is the opposite of stubbornness, which is synonymous with hardness. Being easily controlled by God is an aspect of gentleness. At the end of the day, that process is up to me. God is a gentleman. He knocks. He calls out. He never invades our lives. We have to invite Him in. We have to agree to walk with Him. It is a friendship (modeled after Abraham, who was called a friend of God), even though He is the master.

At no point do I foresee stalling in my search for things of God. I have an unquenchable thirst. But I have a long way to go. Gentleness is something I'm lacking. It's time to rectify that. With God's help, I can change. As a dear friend told me recently, it is our job to point people to Christ. Being a hard person won't point people to Christ. So, again, I ask you to pray I am faithful to do what God has directed. 

Thank you for reading, and God bless.