We Can Know God: Big Truths For Young Hearts

What parts of creation show how great or powerful or wise or beautiful God is? What do they reveal about God, and how do they do this? 
March 15, 2022

We Can Know God Because He Made It Possible

We cannot know God or figure Him out by ourselves. Bruce Ware says, “We cannot discover who God is or figure him out on our own. We aren’t smart enough to do this, and God is way too big for us even to try.” It is very humbling to attempt to “figure” out who God is.

Without His help, we could not come close to even knowing or understanding Him.

Ware states, “Unless God had decided to show us who he is unless he had chosen to make known his own life and ways, we simply could know nothing-yes, nothing! -about him. We are dependent completely on God’s kindness and goodness to make Himself known to us, and for this, we ought to be grateful every day of our lives.”

“Unless God had decided to show us who he is…we simply could know nothing.” 

God Made Himself Known

God has made Himself known through His Word. The Bible tells us that God has shown Himself through His created world. Psalm 19:1-2 states, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.” God has not left us alone in knowing Him. People can see His glory and handiwork in His creation. Additionally, Romans 1:19-20 says, “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For His invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” When a person adores a flower, the beauty of God’s creation can be plainly seen. “God is the one who figured out how to make living things grow, and they all grow according to a lot of very complicated rules that he put into every living thing…[it] came from a small seed, was planted in the ground, and watered, and in time grew to be a beautiful, colorful flower” (Ware). 

God also put beautiful stars in the sky. “On a clear night, when you see all of those stars, it sort of takes your breath away, doesn’t it? And to think that we can see only a very, very small number of stars there. Just in our galaxy (the Milky Way) where the earth and solar system are located, scientists estimate that there are about ten billion stars” (Ware). One finds it hard not to see how awesome and powerful God is. 

Another way God made Himself known to us is through creating humanity. The way that our bodies are intricately made is nothing short of marvelous. Bruce Ware states, “Many things about our own bodies – how amazing are our eyes and ears and heart and brain and on and on- also tell us about God’s wisdom and power, just as with the rest of creation.” He created us with a body and an understanding of right and wrong. The apostle Paul writes in Romans 2:14-15, “For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them.” Humanity has a moral written code on their hearts. We know the difference between right and wrong. “God put this into our lives so we would know about right and wrong and so we would know that we are held responsible for what we do” (Ware). 

Questions for Reflection

  1. What parts of creation show how great or powerful or wise or beautiful God is? What do they reveal about God, and how do they do this? 
  2. Have you ever noticed that little voice of your conscience within you warning you not to do something wrong or encouraging you to do what is right? Can you think of any examples from the past when you noticed this?
  3. How are you teaching your child and teen to know God through His Word?

Key Verse

Psalm 19:1 – The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

References

Big Truths for Young Hearts: Teaching and Learning the Greatness of God by Bruce Ware

*All references and quotes come from Big Truths for Young Hearts