The God of Relationship

The God of Relationship (He Knows You and Wants to Be Known)

Gen 12:1-8 (ESV) Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. [2] And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. [3] I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” [4] So Abram went, as the LORD had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. [5] And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people that they had acquired in Haran, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan, [6] Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. [7] Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him. [8] From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the LORD and called upon the name of the LORD.

Introduction

Do you know what the scariest thing in the world is? No, it’s not being told to eat all of your vegetables or to clean your room. No, it’s not being asked by your wife to wash a load of laundry or to cook dinner. No, it’s not even public speaking, even though 75% of Americans say that is their number one fear. The scariest thing in the world is relationships. Knowing another person completely and being known by them. They know your thoughts, your dreams, your likes and dislikes. They know how you feel about everything from pogo sticks to politics and everything in between. They know when you are full of joy or fully terrified.

Terri and I were having a discussion a few months back over this phrase used in Scripture—the “God of”. As I dug into the phrase, I was amazed to discover that it is used in the ESV translation of the Bible 484 times! Don’t panic—we are not going to study all 484 uses. What I was able to see as I looked at each phrase, however, is that there are four categories that the phrase naturally falls into. So, over the next four weeks we are going to explore those categories to answer the question “Who is God?”

The very first use of the phrase drives us to explore the reality that God is a personal God.

God is a Personal God (He’s the God of Relationship)

Gen 9:26 (ESV) He also said, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant.

When we say God is a personal God what do we mean?

1. He can be known. He has a name.
2. He has intellect and thoughts.
3. He has a will, purposes, and plans.
4. He has feelings.
5. He is relational. He knows us, sees us, hears us. He can be heard and obeyed and followed.
6. He is present and near.
7. He is living.

God was the one that Shem worshiped. God was the one that Shem believed in. God was the one that Shem trusted in. Think about it. Shem has been deeply involved with his father, Noah, in building an ark for a world-wide flood, when the world has never even experienced so much as a rain drop. So, why build a boat? Because he believed in God. He took God at his word. When Scripture says that the Lord is the God of Shem, it’s a relational term. He’s a personal God. He’s a God who desires relationship with us!

Scripture goes on to say that God is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob or Israel. He’s the God of Nahor and Terah. He’s the God of the Hebrews. He’s the God of Elijah. He’s the God of David. He’s the God of Hezekiah. He’s the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He’s the God of Daniel.

We could spend time on each person in this list, but for clarity let’s focus in on the God of Abraham.

Because God is a God of relationship, we can see that—

1. Abram was known by God. (God knows us)
   1. Gen 11:27-30 (ESV) Now these are the generations of Terah. Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran fathered Lot. [28] Haran died in the presence of his father Terah in the land of his kindred, in Ur of the Chaldeans. [29] And Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran the father of Milcah and Iscah. [30] Now Sarai was barren; she had no child.

 Because God is a God of relationship, we can see that—

2. God made himself known to Abram. (God makes himself known to us)
   1. Gen 12:1 (ESV) Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.
   2. God had already revealed himself to Terah, Abram’s father. He was the God that Terah worshiped. Now God made himself known to Abram. He revealed himself to Abram as the the One true God, as the God of his forefathers. The God of Adam, The God of Noah. The God of Shem. The Creator God. The almighty God over creation, who alone has the right to rule and to reign and to judge. Do you think that Abram had heard of God’s wonder and power? Do you think that Abram knew God was the God who spoke all creation into existence? Do you think Abram knew that God was the God who saved a family in a really big boat, while at the same time judging the entire globe with a world wide flood? Now God, in a very personal way, calls to Abram and makes himself known to him

Because God is a God of relationship, we can see that—

3. God called Abram to trust him. (God calls us to trust him)
   1. Gen 12:1-3 (ESV) Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. [2] And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. [3] I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
   2. Psa 111:7 (ESV) The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy;
   3. Out of that trust (that belief) comes listening, comes obedience, comes following, comes the experiencing of the promises of God.
   4. Why give the Lord an audience? Why listen? Because I know through relationship he can be trusted.
   5. Why obey when the Lord commands to go and uproot yourself and your whole family from your country and your kindred and your father’s household? Because you know through relationship that the Lord can be trusted.
   6. Why follow the Lord into the unknown? Because you know through relationship he can be trusted.
   7. Why risk your life on the promises of God? Because you know through relationship that the Lord can be trusted.

 Now that we’ve seen the relational side of the Lord (knowing Abram, making himself known to Abram, calling Abram to trust him basically with his very life), now we need to see how Abram responded.

Because God is a God of relationship, we can see that—

4. Abram chose to pursue relationship. How? (We must pursue relationship with the Lord
   1. Abram believed God. (12:4-6) (We believe God)
   2. Abram obeyed God. (12:4-6) (We obey God)
   3. Abram worshiped God. (12:7) (We worship God)
   4. Abram relied on God. (12:8) (We rely on God)
   5. Gen 12:4-8 (ESV) So Abram went, as the LORD had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. [5] And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people that they had acquired in Haran, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan, [6] Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. [7] Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him. [8] From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the LORD and called upon the name of the LORD.

Belief is the Ultimate Response

How do you begin to pursue relationship with the Lord who knows you and wants to be known by you? (We believe God)

Jas 2:23 (ESV) and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God.

Can I just remind each one of us this morning—the Lord knows us.

Psa 139:1-6 (ESV) To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. O LORD, you have searched me and known me! [2] You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. [3] You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. [4] Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether. [5] You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. [6] Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.

Can I just remind each one of us this morning—Jesus Christ came, God in the flesh, to show us that God is a relational God. He has made himself known to us through the person of Jesus Christ. And in the very fact that Jesus came to this earth to live and to die, it is revealed to us just how much God loves us and wants a personal relationship with us.

Jhn 1:43-48 (ESV) The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” [44] Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. [45] Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” [46] Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” [47] Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” [48] Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”

Conclusion

We can know for ourselves that God is a personal God because of who Jesus is and what Jesus has done. God created us to have relationship with us. That relationship is broken through the destructive nature of our sin. Our willingness to walk away from God and to live our lives solely for ourselves has shattered the relationship between us and God. Jesus came to live for us the life we were supposed to live but couldn’t. Jesus came to die for us the death we deserved to die because of our sin. Jesus rose again, victorious over death, to cast away sin and death from us and to give us his righteousness. Jesus came to be the one and only mediator between us and God to restore our personal relationship with the Lord. And when we believe God, take him at his word, he gives us his righteousness and we too become a friend of God