Session 1: KNOWING HIM

“Do you know God—or do you merely know about God?”

There is a very important difference between knowing about someone and knowing that person personally.

I may know a great deal about a famous person—where they were born, what they achieved, what they believe—but that does not mean I know them. Knowledge about someone is not the same as relationship with someone.

And perhaps that is one of the great challenges of our Christian faith. We can know our Bibles, know our hymns, know our theology, attend church regularly—and yet still struggle to say, “I know God.”

Jesus said something remarkable in John 17:3:

“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”

Notice that Jesus did not define eternal life simply as knowing about God. He described it as knowing God.

So what does it mean to know Him?

It means discovering what God is really like. And the more we look at Jesus, the clearer that picture becomes. Jesus shows us a God who is compassionate, forgiving, patient and deeply interested in His children.

God is not some distant heavenly authority waiting for us to make a mistake. He is not reluctant to love us. The Bible tells us that God loved us first.

But there is another extraordinary dimension to this relationship: God already knows us.

Psalm 139 reminds us that God knows when we sit down and when we rise up. He knows our thoughts, our fears, our failures and our hopes. Nothing about us is hidden from Him.

And yet, knowing everything about us, He still invites us into relationship with Him.

That should humble us—and encourage us. You do not have to pretend before God. You do not have to become perfect before approaching Him. You do not have to impress Him. You simply have to come as you are.

Perhaps today the invitation is to move from religion to relationship.

Instead of merely asking, “What does my church teach about God?” perhaps we should also ask, “Am I getting to know God for myself?”

Take some time this week simply to sit quietly in God’s presence. Open the Scriptures, especially the Gospels, and look carefully at Jesus. Ask:

“Lord, show me who You really are—and help me to know You.”

That is where a healthy relationship with God begins.

Not with striving. Not with performance. But with knowing Him.

And the wonderful truth is this:

The God who already knows everything about you is inviting you to know Him.’

 Peace and Grace to you,

Michael Crockett