Page 34 - Presbyterian Connection

Connection
REFLECTIONS
Knowing God
34
PRESBYTERIAN
SUMMER 2024
presbyterian.ca
By Ann McKibbon, Professor Emeritus, McMaster University Medical School, The Gathering Place in Port Colborne, Ont.
I grew up in a small community, where our local United church was the centre of the commu- nity. My family has a strong faith background and by the time I left home for university I had 16 years of perfect Sunday school attend- ance. My teachers were, howev- er, not always eager to have me in class as I was always asking tough questions. One of my big questions was: How can we know an unknowable God?
I still consider this question to- day, because I believe it is vitally important to try to know God. Knowing God is what God wants and ask of us. Hosea describes a people destroyed because they did not know God. Jesus says that we need to know God: Know- ing God is equated to salvation (John 17:3). In Philippians 3, Paul states that his goal in life was to know God.
Yet, God is ultimately unknow- able—we cannot comprehend God, for God’s thoughts are unat- tainable. Isaiah 55:8–9 says that the distance between our finite, transient thoughts and God’s in- finite wisdom is higher than the distance between the heavens and the earth.
Still, we are encouraged to
know God. However, as Paul writes, “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known” (1 Corinthians 13:12 KJV).
The Very Rev. Thomas Hopko, an Eastern Orthodox Christian priest and theologian, helps us somewhat in our goal of know- ing God when he says, “You can- not know God—but you have to know him to know that.”
So how can we “know” God? Several ways exist and I want to talk about two of them. Both are biblical. We can use the Bible to learn about God through studying God’s attributes and images. Both attributes and images, or meta- phors, give us small glimpses of insight into knowing God.
We know more about a person when we know their attributes. Many of us in our congrega- tions have notable attributes. Any church I have been involved with has individuals who are musical, great cooks and bakers, car- ers and welcomers, designers and decorators, fixers of broken mechanical things, gardeners, organizers, teachers and treas- urers. We know these people, partly because of their attributes, and these people help make our churches.
The Bible assigns attributes to God that can help us know more
about God. For example, God is Love. God is all kinds of love: friendship, family love, uncondi- tional love, tough love, affection and even passionate love (Song of Solomon).
God is also Creator—past, pre- sent and future. God is inclusive, as God’s love includes everyone. God is caring, comforting, pro- tecting and good. God is also mighty and powerful. Another at- tribute is that God is triune: father, son and holy spirit.
We also get to know about a person (and God) using images or metaphors related to them. Many images and metaphors of
God exist in the Bible, and these are glimpses that help us know God just a little bit better. Here are some that are impor tant to me:
Wind
Wind—or breath—is often sym- bolic of the Holy Spirit (Job 33:4; John 20:22; Acts 2:2). In Ezekiel 37:1–14, the wind blows across dry bones in the desert and brings them back to life. I think about storms on the lake, tall ships sail- ing, summer breezes.
Fire
Our God is a consuming fire (He- brews 12:29). God is also de- scribed as a pillar of fire to give light in Exodus 13. There’s also Moses and the burning bush in Exodus 3. When I think about God and fire, I think of warmth, camp- fires, hot chocolate, deep baths, long showers, flannelette sheets and furnaces that work.
Rock
My God, my rock in whom I take refuge (from Psalm 18). Also see Psalms 78:35, 62:6–9. I think of strength, permanence, founda- tions, beauty, beach rock, North- ern Ontario, the Rockies.
Water
Water is mentioned more times in the Bible than faith, hope, prayer and worship. God as wa- ter quenches thirst permanently, cleanses us, and is living water. Think of our lakes, rivers, cold drinks and rainy seasons.
Sun and Light
In Psalms 84:11, God is a sun,
and in 1 John 1:5, God is light, and in God there is no darkness at all.
There are many other meta- phors for God in the Bible: eagle, warrior, gardener planting the Garden of Eden, shepherd, pot- ter, knitter who knits me together in my mother’s womb, teacher, and even lover. One metaphor is God as Father. This is a pow- erful image of God and is vitally important to many people. Father images associated with God con- note protection, provision, uncon- ditional love, intimacy, goodness, strength, family unit, discipline and so much more.
At the same time, those of us who have experienced substand- ard parenting, domestic violence or sexual abuse, either personally or in our family or friends, hunger for multiple or other images and descriptions of God in addition to father. These alternate images and names of God are refreshing, expanding and may even start a healing process.
God as Mother is also scrip- tural—bir thing, nur turing, and caring for us as we grow. Other images show God as a mother bear or eagle, hen, midwife and milkmaid. Genesis 1:27 states that God created men and women in God’s image—a very powerful concept.
Spend some time with the Bible to discover the many images and metaphors of God that will help you better know God. We are chil- dren of a marvellous, wondrous, majestic God who cannot be fully known. We do know, however, that we are loved and blessed to be in God’s family. Amen.
Committee on History Collection of Stories
In recognition of the PCC's 150th anniversary in 2025, the Committee on History is preparing a published collection of stories about where we have been, where we are, and where we are going.
Do you have a favourite memory of singing in choir, attending youth group, going to a potluck supper, attending General Assembly, or anything else that shaped your involvement in church?
What are some of the things your congregation is doing today to share the good news of Jesus in your community? And what are your hopes and dreams for the PCC as it approaches
150 years?
We want to hear from you! Please write to Ian McKechnie, Project Coordinator, at: pcc150book@gmail.com
Submissions will be accepted through December 2024.