Series #2 – The Foundation of Our Faith
We begin our first post in our series #2: Foundation of our Faith – Who is Jehovah God? Since all the Old Testament and New Testament scriptures are based on this God, our Creator, we need to understand just Who and how God brought this world into being.
So welcome to “Who is Jehovah God?”
To begin with, trying to get our limited, finite mind around God, the infinite, is like an ant trying to understand the Sydney Opera House or the New York Bridge. Unless we have some direct input from this God of Creation, we can only see Him from a very limited perception.
However, because God is a God of relationship and of revelation, He chose to make Himself known to His creation. He even went so far as to “… become flesh…” so we could see His character and purpose first hand.
He became that ‘ant’, in the world of flesh and blood and was born and lived here on Earth as Jesus.
In this first chapter, we will explore the nature and character of God. Do we really believe there is a God? How desperately the world and the church need a revelation of Him to make sense of the turmoils of today.
In our second chapter of our series #1, we will look at angels, the spiritual realm and the rebellion of Lucifer.
Chapter Three of our series, we shall discuss the creation of Earth and of mankind. We consider the decisions made by the first Couple and the consequences the ‘Fall of Adam and Eve’ have on us today.
Chapter Four continues the Greatest Story ever told, with a study on the True Rescuer – the Lord Jesus Christ.
We have also included some worksheets and Reflections to help you better see the awesomeness of our Creator!….but we need to find His Perspective on Reality!
God lives in ultimate reality compared to us humans. We live in a short-sighted, blinded perspective. God does not see this physical world as we do; His overview is timeless.
His Big Plan started before ‘the Fall of humans’. He planned a growing revelation of Himself that stretches to the ends of eternity. How does One who is so totally awesome, so infinite, reach these blinded clay vessels, called humans?
Because Salvation was His idea, only He could accomplish the task of bringing mankind to their rightful place in the Universe. God became flesh, was born in the form of a baby called Jesus. He is Emmanu-EL, “God with us”, our Redeemer and Friend – or our Judge, depending on which side of the fence we finally end up on.
Our First Important Question: Does God exist? This is the first question we must grapple with.
If the answer is “no”, then searching for God is pointless. Christians might as well join the World with their “Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die!” attitudes.
Resolving this question for yourself is THE most crucial issue in the whole of life. If the Bible, and other Christians, are right, then our belief about God and His ways forms the basis for where we spend Eternity.
Since it is impossible to prove God’s existence using a measuring tape, how do we begin?
1. We can see the evidence of God all around us – in Creation.
a. We can see an amazing God in Nature all around us. The perfection of design found in the created world could only come from a Creator God. None of what we see could have survived through the chaos of ‘Natural selection’ or evolution. An orderly creation speaks of an orderly God, Romans 1:18-23.
b. Secondly, life can only come from life; so the ultimate source of all life must be an original life-source. Whatever the current ‘theory of life’ in the world today – whether evolution or “Live began on Another Planet” – life can only come from a Living God.
c. Then we exist, because God exists. Intelligent mankind is one of the a greatest augment for an intelligent God. We have a moral sense, which animals do not. This points again to the fact that we are made in His image. Even the finest looking is not comparable to the God-given image of mankind.
d. We can see the Bible as a witness to the existence of God, both in its unity and in the 
historical accuracy of both the Old and New Testaments. The Bible wasn’t written as proof of God’s existence. The Hebrew people already had recorded His dealings with the people. The Bible declares the Lord God as a real fact.
e. The witness of others points to the existence of God. Every culture, race and time period has had a belief in a Supreme Being. People have been willing to five up possessions and even die in order to pursue God. No One would willingly do this without knowledge of God.
f. The Historical witness of Jesus of Nazareth points to the existence of God. The recorded birth, life and death of Jesus does not make sense without the need for God to intervene in our lives.
g. Then we can have our own personal Revelation of God. He has promised us that if we seek Him, God will be found. Personal experience is an essential part of everyone’s faith journey.
2. We see His relationship with the people in the Old Testament as proof of His existance.
God has shown His nature and His existence by building a progressive relationship with Israel. From the seeds of Faith with Abram, to the nation under the rule of King David, God’s hand has been evident in the history of Israel. He has been true to His character in His treatment of their idolatry and rebellion.
3. Thirdly we can see the existence of God through the eyes of Jesus.
Jesus declared the nature of Jehovah God to mankind. He shocked the Jewish people when He dared to picture Jehovah as a loving Father, a kind and merciful One who wanted companionship with unholy mankind.
Jesus used at least 30 parables to show the nature of God, His plans for mankind and what God’s kingdom is like.
In one parable He showed ‘Abba’ or ‘daddy’ as a grieving father, waiting for His prodigal son to return. In others he revealed a merciful father, judging rich and poor, the unmerciful, the proud, the tax collectors and the ‘religious’.
Father God is displayed seeking out the lost – the parables of the lost coin, the lost sheep or seeking treasures. His care for sparrows, lilies and details of “ … numbering the hair on our head…” proves His desire for intimacy with His creation. He is also pictured as impartial, wise, long-sighted, faithful, just, righteous, knowledgeable of human wiles and knowing good from evil.
It is truly sad how many ‘Christians’ still doubt if God exists. Certainly the age of Evolution and the world’s thinking has affected us in the church. One of the best things you can do for yourself and your Christian growth is to work through your own belief about God’s existence, so you “jump off the fence” one way or the other. We need to be hot or cold (Revelations 3:15+16)
Next week, we shall continue Series #2: the Foundations of Our Faith by looking at the Character and Attributes of God. For many Christians, their view of God falls far short of His almighty, all-knowing character. Others have even lost their way as they see Father God much as they saw their own earthly father – far from the loving nature that God truly is! Please join us for our next post.
Begin to look for the God of Creation all around you. The evidence is there!
Susanne Fengler, blog editor
www.christianfoundations.jesus-treeoflife.info
Tags: Who is God?
Filed under: Foundations of our Faith
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