“Afterward Moses and Aaron went in and told Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness.’ And Pharaoh said, ‘Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, nor will I let Israel go’” (Exodus 5:1-2 NKJV). Moses was told by God to go and tell Pharaoh to let God’s people, the children of Israel, go from their slavery and bondage. After many excuses and missteps on the part of Moses, Moses and his older brother Aaron (ages 80 and 83) did as God commanded. However, Pharaoh did not let the Israelites go. In fact, Pharaoh asked a very contemporary question, “Who is God?”
This is an old question, and it has been asked by lesser and greater men and women, even in recent history. In the late 1800’s, Friedrich Nietzsche proclaimed that God is dead. On April 8, 1966 the cover of Time magazine asked the question, “Is God dead?”
The debate over the existence of God has been ongoing, and it is still going in many forms. You may remember when Ken Ham of the Creation Museum fame and Bill Nye, “The Science Guy,” debated the existence of God and the age of the earth. A couple of years ago Kyle Butt debated Dr. Bart Ehrman, a debate entitled, “The Pain and Suffering in the World Indicate that the Christian God Does Not Exist.”
Some may ask, “Who is God,” and still many more may ask, “Why does it matter?” Here is a good Bible reason why it matters: Jesus Christ will one day come back with His angels “in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power” (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9 NKJV). We must first know God – who God is and that we should obey Him.
- God is one. “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one’” (Mark 12:29).
- God is our Creator. “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness’” (Genesis 1:26).
- God is Almighty. It’s what God told Abram in Genesis 17:1. In Matthew 19:26, Jesus added, “with God all things are possible.”
- God is all wise. “Known to God from eternity are all His works” (Acts 15:18).
- God is ever present. David sang, “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?” (Psalm 139:7-10).
- God is eternal (1 Timothy 1:17).
- God is spirit. “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24).
- God is true. “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3).
- God is merciful and just. Ephesians 2:4 teaches that God is rich in mercy.
- God is unchanging. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” (James 1:17).
- God is loving (John 3:16).
- God is love. First John 4:8 teaches that we can know Him by loving each other. If we don’t love each other, we don’t know Him.
Who is God to you? Do you know Him?
