I loved playing football in junior high and high school. As a running back, it was nice to have the fullback or a tight end leading the way around on the sweep to clear defenders out of the way. I love what God says to his people in Deuteronomy 31. He says, “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.” Did you hear that? He will personally go before us. That’s comforting in a world that is full of chaos and misdirection. God KNOWS you and is for you.
The first time the word, “know”, is used in Scripture is Genesis 4:1. It’s the spot where Adam knows Eve. In other words, they are intimate and sleep together. There was nothing in the way. Nothing was covered. Everything was exposed.
The word of “know” in the original Hebrew language is “yada”. It means to know intimately. As you read through the Old Testament, it describes the relationship God wants to have with us. The word tells us that God knows you completely. That can be so very comforting or absolutely terrifying depending on your relationship with God.
King David knew how deeply God cared for us and knew us when he wrote Psalms 139. Reading the first four verses, you see how deeply God knows us. We are beautifully made. Did you know God knew you even before you were born? Jesus says in Matthew 10 that God knows how many hairs are on your head. That’s how intimately God is close to you.
In the Old Testament, Job is the story of a man who is asking if God knows him and what he’s going through. We each may be asking that same question right now. But at the end of Job’s story, he seems to land on the idea that God does know him and that thought does two things for Job. Job is comforted that God knows and Job is confident that God will redeem him.
Right in the middle of Job’s story in Job 19:25, he exclaims I know that my Redeemer lives and one day will make all things right. He’s proclaiming that everything going on in his life is temporary but God is eternal.
Because God is powerful and tender and personal, we too can proclaim that our Redeemer lives. So the challenge is to live like it. Let the world know by your words, your actions, your life you believe God knows you and is for you. He sees you and you are his. Blessings on your journey.