Growth Group Week 4 - Revealing God's Character

As we continue in our small group study of Discerning the Voice of God by Priscilla Shirer, I am amazed at how God is working in each of our lives and bringing us to a closer understanding of who He is. That was what this past Friday was about - understanding God's character as revealed in Scripture.

Chapter 7, A Revealing Heart, began with a powerful verse. Jeremiah 24:7 - "I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord." God wants us to experience Him in our lives; not just know about Him, but know Him. The Bible uses many different names for God, so that we can better understand His character. For instance, He is known as Jehovah-Jireh - God our Provider. He is Jehovah-Rohi - God our Shepherd; El-Shaddai - All Sufficient (Omniscient) God; Jehovah-Shalom - God of Peace; Jehovah-Elohim - All Powerful (Almighty) God; and many more. As He reveals Himself in all these different names, we experience these different facets of His character, which bring us closer to Him. What really spoke to me about this chapter was the words found in Psalm 119:10 - "Do not let me wander from Your commandments." David showed us here that it is our responsibility to get to know God, but it is God's responsibility to cause us to hear and recognize His voice. Proverbs 3:6 - "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths."

Chapter 8, A Peaceful Voice. This isn't describing God's voice as meek and mellow. It is describing the feeling of peace we experience when we listen to and obey God's voice. The Holy Spirit speaks to us in a way that leads us to make God-honoring decisions, and these assure us of peace. Isaiah 48:18 - "Oh, that you had listened to my commands! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river and righteousness rolling like waves." Most important note in this chapter: "The Holy Spirit will not lead us to do anything that in any way hinders peace and unity in the body of Christ." (Page 105).

Chapter 9, A Truthful Voice. God's voice will always guide us in the direction of truth. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, and will NEVER lead us in a way contrary to God's written Word. The enemy would have us believe that Scripture is NOT absolutely true (just as he deceived Eve). He will use human traditions to substitute God's truths. That's why it's so important to read and reread Scripture throughout our lives, so that we aren't deceived into believing something is Scriptural when in fact it's only tradition. The enemy also uses strongholds, rebellious thoughts contrary to God's Word, to make us believe we aren't loved by God, or accepted by Him. The enemy uses these strongholds so that we can't experience God's triumph in our lives. We need to remember the words of Psalm 33:4 - "The word of the Lord holds true, and everything He does is worthy of our trust."

Chapter 10, A Powerful Voice. God's voice isn't wimpy. It is strong and powerful, because He is Almighty and All Powerful. We don't need to fear, because there is no one more powerful than our God. When we see how God changes our lives and the lives of others, we understand His power and authority and feel confident and secure in what He will do in our lives. Ephesians 1:19-20 - "I pray that you will begin to understand the incredible greatness of His power for us who believe Him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms."

Understanding God's character helps us to know what pleases Him and what He despises. It then changes our character to match His own. We become more Christ-like as we know Him and strive to imitate Him.

The best part of our study group wasn't Friday; it was Sunday, when one of the dear ladies in our group was baptized at church. We laughed, cried, and praised Jehovah-Elohim, Almighty God, for His goodness, His kindness, His mercy and grace. What an awesome weekend! It is such joy to know that as we are reaching up to Him, He is reaching out to us as well.