Experiencing God
Day 5: A Real, Personal, Practical Relationship
Day 5: A Real, Personal, Practical Relationship
God’s plan for the advancement of His kingdom depends on His relationship with His people.
The relationship God wants to have with you will be real and personal. Some people ask, Can a person actually have a real, personal, and practical relationship with God? They seem to think God is far off and unconcerned about their day-to-day living. That is not the God we see in the Scriptures.
Read each Scripture passage and describe at least one fact indicating the relationship the person(s) had with God was real, personal, and/or practical. If you are already familiar with the account, you may answer from your present knowledge of the passage. I have completed the first as an example.
a. Adam and Eve after they sinned (see Gen. 3:20-21): They were naked, God made garments of skin for them.
b. Hagar when she fled from Sarai (see Gen. 16:1-13): ______________________
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c. Solomon and his request for discernment (see 1 Kings 3:5-13; 4:29-30): ____________________________________________________________________
d. Twelve Jesus sent out to preach (see Mark 6:7-13): ______________________
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e. Peter in prison awaiting trial (see Acts 12:1-17): _________________________
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f. John on the island of Patmos (see Rev. 1:9-20): _________________________
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From Genesis to Revelation we see God relating to people in real, personal, intimate, and practical ways. God had wonderful fellowship with Adam and Eve, walking in the garden with them in the cool of the day. When they sinned, God pursued them to restore the love relationship. He met a practical need by providing clothing to cover their nakedness.
Hagar fled for her life after Sarai used, mistreated, and abused her. At a time when she had reached the end of her resources, when she had nowhere else to turn, when all hope was gone, when everyone else had forsaken her, God came to Hagar. In her relationship with God, she learned that God saw her, knew her needs, and would lovingly provide for her. God is extremely personal.
Solomon’s father, David, had been a man who sought the Lord with his whole heart. Solomon had a heritage of faith and obedience to follow. He had the opportunity to ask and receive anything he wanted from God. Solomon demonstrated his love for God’s people by asking for a discerning heart. God granted his request and gave him wealth and fame as well. Solomon found his relationship with God to be very practical.
The disciples also had a real, personal, and practical relationship with Jesus, the Son of God. Jesus had chosen them to be with Him. What a joy it must have been to have such an intimate relationship with Jesus! When Jesus gave them a difficult assignment, He did not send them out helpless. He gave them authority they had never known before over evil spirits.
In some places of the world, obedience to the Lord results in imprisonment. This was Peter’s experience. In answer to prayer, the Lord miraculously delivered him. This was so dramatic Peter first thought it was a dream. The praying Christians thought he was an angel. Soon they discovered the Lord’s deliverance was real. That deliverance probably saved Peter’s life.
In exile on the island of Patmos, John was spending the Lord’s Day in fellowship with God. During this time of fellowship in the Spirit, the revelation of Jesus Christ came to John to “show his servants what must soon take place” (Rev. 1:1). This message has challenged and encouraged churches from John’s day to now.
Do you sense, as you read Scripture, God became real and personal to people? Do you see their relationships with God were practical? Was He also real and personal to Noah? to Abraham? to Moses? to Isaiah? Yes! Has God changed? No! What was true in the Old Testament also occurred during the time of Jesus’ life and ministry. It was the same after the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Your life can also reflect a real, personal, and practical relationship as you respond to God’s work in your life.
Briefly describe an experience in your life when God was real, personal, and practical in His relationship with you.
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Love must be real and personal. A person cannot love without someone to love. A love relationship with God takes place between two persons. A relationship with God is real and personal. This has always been His desire. His efforts are expended to bring this desire to reality. God is a Person pouring His life into yours. Christianity is a personal, practical, progressive relationship with Almighty God.
If for some reason you cannot think of a time when your relationship with God was real, personal, and practical, spend time evaluating your relationship with Him. Go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to reveal the true nature of your walk with Him. Ask Him to bring you into that kind of relationship. If you realize you have never entered a saving relationship with God, turn to the activity on page 8 for help in settling that most important issue now.
God’s Presence and Work in Your Life Are Practical
Some people say to me, “Henry, what you are suggesting about doing God’s will is not practical in our day.” I always differ with them. God is an extremely realistic God. He was in Scripture. He is the same today. When He provided manna, quail, and water for the children of Israel, He was being helpful. When Jesus fed five thousand people, He was being practical. The God I see revealed in Scripture is real, personal, and practical. You can trust God to be practical and real as He relates to you too.
God’s constant presence is the most practical part of your life and ministry. Unfortunately, we often assign God a limited role in our lives. Then we call on Him whenever we need help. That is the exact opposite of what we find in God’s Word. He is the One who is working in our world. He invites you to relate to Him so He will accomplish His work through you. His plan for the advancement of the kingdom depends on His working in real and practical ways through His relationships with His people.
Knowing and experiencing God through a real and personal relationship was practical in the Scriptures. Be patient as we work together. I believe you will find that this kind of walk with God will be exceedingly helpful to you. God can make a significant difference in your relationships in your family, in your church, and with other people. You can encounter God in such a way you know you are experiencing Him.
Can you describe your relationship with God as real, personal, and practical? ❒ Yes ❒ No Why or why not?
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Fill in the blank to complete the second reality of experiencing God. Make it personal.
Reality 1: God is always at work around me.
Reality 2: God __________________ a continuing _______________ _________________________ with me that is ___________________ and __________________________.
Review your Scripture-memory verses and be prepared to recite them to a partner in your small-group session this week.
If you have not taken time to walk with God and write about the experience in day 3, try to do so before your small-group session.
SUMMARY STATEMENTS
The relationship God wants to have with me will be real and personal.
God’s plan for the advancement of the kingdom depends on His working in real and practical ways through His relationships with His people.
Review today’s lesson. Pray and ask God to identify one or more statements or Scriptures He wants you to understand, learn, or practice. Highlight them. Then respond to the following.
What was the most meaningful statement or Scripture you read today?
Reword the statement or Scripture into a prayer of response to God.
What does God want you to do in response to today’s study?
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1. Carrie is now doing well. She graduated from seminary, married, has two beautiful children, and serves with her husband
as a church planter in Germany.
2. Rhea F. Miller, “I’d Rather Have Jesus,” © Copyright 1922. Renewal 1950. Assigned to Chancel Music, Inc. International copyright secured. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
God Pursues a Love Relationship
SESSION 3
Scriptures Referenced
Hosea 1:2-3
Hosea 3:1
Romans 3:11
Testimony
Jim and Kaye Johns
DVD Message Notes
1. Christianity is not a religion; it’s a relationship.
2. God never speaks without a purpose.
3. God is a God who pursues.
4. We don’t have quiet times so we can grow to love God. We have quiet times because we love God.
5. When we obey God, it says, “I love You.”
Your Notes
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Unit Review
Which of the following ought to be the primary influence in shaping your life? Why (day 2)?
❒ a. My past ❒ b. My future
Who takes the initiative in establishing a love relationship between you and God (day 4)?
❒ a. I do.
❒ b. My pastor does.
❒ c. God does.
Fill in the blanks to complete the second reality of experiencing God.
God _______________________ a continuing _______________ relationship with you that is _______________________ and _______________________.
Sharing Time
• Things in which you are investing your life, time, and resources and the adjustments God wants you to make (activities 7–8, day 2)
• Reasons you know God loves you (activity 3, day 4)
• An experience when God was real, personal, or practical in His relationship to you (activity 2, day 5)
• One of the most meaningful statements or Scriptures from this unit’s lessons and your prayer response to God.