Jesus described eternal life as knowing God (John 17:3). Unlike any religion, Christianity is about a relationship. It is the intimacy that exists between you and your Creator.
Yet how can the clay pot know anything of the Potter? First, God must reveal Himself to us, and He has done so in many ways. In Romans 1:20, the Apostle Paul makes it clear that knowledge of God can be learned by observing nature. The Bible is God’s written word, and it reveals details about Him we could never imagine on our own.
But even more startling are the names by which God has chosen to reveal Himself to us. I can think of four reasons to familiarize yourself with God’s names –
- 1. His names reveal God’s glorious character and the more we know, the more we will trust Him. Knowing His names will grow our faith.
- 2. Knowing God’s various names will correct our “wonky” theology and cause us to worship Him better – in spirit and in truth. We can’t properly worship Him without knowing Who He is!
- 3. Knowing the names of God helps us to follow Him closer and to live in a manner more worthy of His gracious calling. We will grow in our Christ-likeness as we see Him more clearly.
- 4. Knowing the names of God helps us share the gospel with others. We can’t really tell our friends and family about the One True God we serve, if we don’t truly grasp Who He is for ourselves!
To follow after, worship, or share anything about God, we first have to know Him. Otherwise, we practice idolatry as we worship a figment of our own imaginations.