The God Who Can Be Known (Part 1)
Tim Keller | November 28, 2010
Overview
In the book of John, we see Jesus becoming human and making a way for us to have deep and personal fellowship with God the Father. God is not an unknowable, undefinable force, but a God you can have fellowship with. This sermon will show us: 1) What is fellowship with God? 2) What does it actually look like? 3) How can it be ours?
Outline
1 John 1:1–2:2
John, one of Jesus’ closest followers, shares his personal experiences with Jesus, who he calls the Word of Life. He emphasizes that Jesus is both God and man. The main job of Jesus’ followers was to tell others about the everlasting life found in knowing God. They wanted to help others have a real, joyful relationship with God. This piece explores what it means to have a relationship with God and how to develop one.
1. What does a relationship with God mean?
John uses the word “walk” to show that knowing God is about having a deep, personal connection with Him, not just following religious rules. But this connection should be based on the real truth about God that the followers of Jesus have shared, to avoid making up our own ideas about God. So, a real Christian experience includes a personal connection with God and accepting His truth as shown in the Bible. This can change our lives, giving us hope and courage even when things are tough.
2. What does this look like in real life?
Really knowing God means enjoying being with Him and developing a personal relationship, not just admiring what He has done. The deep desire for God’s presence, as seen in the Psalms, is a big part of faith, and sometimes feeling like God is absent can actually be a sign that He is there. It’s important to balance study and reflection, understand the real meaning of the Bible, submit to God’s plan, build personal relationships, value the role of a community, and share your faith with others.
3. How can we have this?
A lot of people believe in God in a general sense, but they don’t have a personal relationship with Him. It’s important to understand that God’s forgiveness comes from His faithfulness and fairness, not just His love and mercy, with Jesus as our representative. Understanding His costly mercy can change our lives, leading us to a personal relationship with God, which is what truly knowing Him is all about.
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