Experiencing God
Day 1: Love And God’s Invitation

Unit 4: Love and God’s Invitation
Verse to Memorize

“Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”— John 14:21

God Is Provider

When the church I led in Canada started its first mission, we called Jack Conner as our mission pastor. However, we had no money for moving expenses and no funds for his salary. Jack had three children in school, so we felt we ought to pay him at least a modest salary to provide for his family. We prayed that God would provide for his moving expenses and salary since our church had no funds to pay him ourselves. I had never guided a church to do that before. We had stepped out in faith, believing God wanted Jack to pastor our mission in Prince Albert. Except for a few people in California, I didn’t know anybody who could help us financially. I began to ask myself, How in the world will God make this provision? Then it dawned on me that as long as God knew where I was, He could cause anybody in the world to know where I was. As long as He knew our situation, He could place our need on the heart of anybody He chose.

Jack started his move of faith to Canada, convinced that God had called him. I then received a letter from a church in Fayetteville, Arkansas, that read, “God has laid it on our heart to send 1 percent of our mission giving to Saskatchewan missions. We are sending a check to use however you choose.” I did not know how they got involved with us at that time, but a check arrived for $1,100.

One day I received a phone call from someone who heard about what we were doing and wanted to send regular financial support. The person’s pledge completed the amount of money we needed for Jack’s monthly salary. Just as I got off the phone, Jack pulled into our driveway.

I asked, “Jack, what did it cost to move you?”

He said, “Well, Henry, as best I can tell, it cost me $1,100.”

We took a step of faith by believing that the God who knows where we are is the God who can touch people anywhere and cause them to know where we are and what we need. We made the adjustments and were obedient. We believed that the God who called Jack also said, “I AM Provider.” As we obeyed, God demonstrated Himself to be our Provider. In an extremely practical way, that experience led us to a deeper love relationship with our all-sufficient God.

Day 1: Know God

I know God more intimately as He reveals Himself to me through my experiences with Him.

This unit continues to focus on your love relationship with God. You will find that the call to a relationship is also a call to be on mission with Him. If you want to know God’s will, you must respond to His invitation to love Him wholeheartedly. God works through those He loves in order to carry out His Kingdom purposes in the world. During this unit we will look at the way God invites you to become involved with Him in His work.

Knowing God by Experience

You will never be satisfied merely to know about God. Knowing God comes only through experience as He reveals Himself to you. When Moses was at the burning bush, he asked God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” (Ex. 3:13).

God responded, “ I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you’ ” (Ex. 3:14). When God said, “I am who I am,” He was saying, “I am the eternal One. I will be what I will be.” He was saying, “I am everything you will need.” Just fill in the blank for your particular situation: “I am …” During the next 40 years Moses came to know God experientially as Jehovah or Yahweh, the great I AM.

In the Bible God took the initiative to reveal Himself to people by experience. Frequently, when God revealed Himself to individuals, He disclosed a new name to them or described Himself in a new way. To a Hebrew, a person’s name represented his character and described his nature. This is why in the Bible we frequently see new names or titles for God following an event in which someone experienced God. To know God by name required a personal experience of His presence.

Biblical names, titles, and descriptions of God therefore identify ways Bible characters personally came to know God. The Scriptures are a record of God’s revelation of Himself to people. Each name for God is a part of that revelation.

For example, Joshua and the Israelites were fighting the Amalekites. Moses was overseeing the battle from a nearby mountain. While he held his hands up to God, the Israelites were victorious. When he wearily lowered his hands, they began to lose. God defeated the Amalekites through Israel that day. Moses built an altar and gave it the name “ The LORD is my Banner.” A banner is the standard that goes in front of an army to indicate whom it represents. “The LORD is my Banner” says we are God’s people; He is our God. Moses’ uplifted hands gave constant glory to God, indicating the battle was His and Israel belonged to Him. Israel came to know God in a deeper way as they realized anew, “We are God’s people; the Lord is our Banner.” (See Ex. 17:8-15.)

 For another example read Genesis 22:1-18 and answer the following.

a. What did God ask Abraham to do (v. 2)?

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b. What do you think verse 8 indicates about Abraham?

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c. What did God do for Abraham (v. 13)?

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d. What name did Abraham give the place (v. 14)?

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e. Why did God promise to bless Abraham (vv. 15-18)?

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God was in the process of developing Abraham’s character to be the father of a nation. He put Abraham’s faith and obedience to the test, bringing Abraham to a crisis of belief. Abraham had faith that the Lord would provide (see v. 8). He adjusted his life to act on his belief that God was Provider . He obeyed God. When God provided a ram, Abraham came to an intimate knowledge of God by experiencing God as his Provider.

 Look at the  seven realities on the diagram . How does Abraham’s experience of God follow that sequence?

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At the beginning of this unit, you read how my church and Jack Conner came to know God as Provider. God revealed Himself to us through our experience of Him at work in our lives.

As a pastor of college students, I regularly called the students in and talked with them. I knew they were in a period of rapid change in their lives, and I wanted to help them as they made major life decisions. A wonderful young woman who was studying nursing came to my office. I had been praying for her and God’s work in her life. We talked about her alcoholic father. We discussed her decision to continue in nursing. Then I looked at her and said, “I want you to know that God has laid on my heart to pray for a husband for you.”

She asked, “Are you serious?”

I said, “I am serious. Because you have had an alcoholic father and have experienced so much turmoil and heartache, I believe God wants to give you a wonderful man to love you for who you are. I want you to know that, beginning today, I am praying that God will give you a wonderful, loving husband.”

The young woman wept. She and I began to pray that God would provide her a life partner. About three months later, God brought into our church a young man who was an engineering student. The two fell in love, and I performed their wedding ceremony. They now have two children and are faithfully and joyfully serving their Lord.

How did this college student know God could provide a husband? She claimed who God was and then watched and prayed as God acted toward her in that way. She was willing to receive the one God gave her. She was prepared to respond when God revealed His choice to her. Then she came to know God as the Provider of partners.

 Describe an event through which you know you experienced God at work in your life.

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What name could you use to describe the God you experienced?

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 Read the following list of names, titles, and descriptions of God. Highlight those that describe God in ways you have personally experienced Him.

 ❒ My Advocate (Job 16:19)

 ❒ Bread of life (John 6:35)

 ❒ Comforter in sorrow (Jer. 8:18)

 ❒ My Confidence (Ps. 71:5)

 ❒ Wonderful Counselor (Isa. 9:6)

 ❒ Defender of widows (Ps. 68:5)

 ❒ My strong Deliverer (Ps. 140:7)

 ❒ Faithful and True (Rev. 19:11)

 ❒ Our Father (Isa. 64:8)

 ❒ A consuming Fire (Deut. 4:24)

 ❒ A sure Foundation (Isa. 28:16)

 ❒ My Friend (Job 16:20)

 ❒ God Almighty (Gen. 17:1)

 ❒ God of all comfort (2 Cor. 1:3)

 ❒ God who avenges me (Ps. 18:47)

 ❒ God who saves me (Ps. 51:14)

 ❒ Our Guide (Ps. 48:14)

 ❒ Head of the church (Eph. 5:23)

 ❒ Our Help (Ps. 33:20)

 ❒ My Hiding Place (Ps. 32:7)

 ❒ Great High Priest (Heb. 4:14)

 ❒ Holy One among you (Hos. 11:9)

 ❒ My Hope (Ps. 71:5)

 ❒ Jealous (Ex. 34:14)

 ❒ Righteous Judge (2 Tim. 4:8)

 ❒ King of kings (1 Tim. 6:15)

 ❒ Our Leader (2 Chron. 13:12)

 ❒ Your Life (Col. 3:4)

 ❒ Light of life (John 8:12)

 ❒ Lord of lords (1 Tim. 6:15)

 ❒ Lord of the harvest (Matt. 9:38)

 ❒ Mediator (1 Tim. 2:5)

 ❒ The Most Holy (Dan. 9:24)

 ❒ Our Peace (Eph. 2:14)

 ❒ Prince of Peace (Isa. 9:6)

 ❒ My Redeemer (Ps. 19:14)

 ❒ Refuge and Strength (Ps. 46:1)

 ❒ My Salvation (Ex. 15:2)

 ❒ My Savior (Ps. 42:5)

 ❒ The Good Shepherd (John 10:11)

 ❒ Sovereign Lord (Luke 2:29)

 ❒ My Stronghold (Ps. 18:2)

 ❒ My Support (2 Sam. 22:19)

 ❒ Good Teacher (Mark 10:17)

Did you see that you have come to know God through experience? Could you check any of the names and not think of an experience in which God acted that way in your life? For instance, you could not have known God as Comforter in sorrow unless you had experienced His comfort during a time of sorrow. You come to know God when He reveals Himself to you. You come to know Him as you experience Him. That is why we have titled this course Experiencing God. You come to know God more intimately as He reveals Himself to you through your experiences with Him.

 Record your Scripture-memory verse for this unit and review your verses from other units.

SUMMARY STATEMENTS

Knowing God comes only through experience as He reveals Himself to me.

I know God more intimately as He reveals Himself to me through my experiences
with Him.

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?