Do You Worship a Historical or Living God?

We as Christians often treat God as if He is merely a historical character from the past rather than the Living God.

How we see God will determine how we worship and engage with Him. Either we will fall into religious ritual and duty or we will be consumed with a passionate desire for greater relationship and intimacy with Him.

In this episode, Nathan Johnson (NRJohnson) talks about the difference between seeing God as a historical character and beholding Him as the Living God that He is. Nathan also gives three ideas to help you grow in your understanding and relationship with the Living God.

And once we recognize God as the Living God, it will change everything in our lives.

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Show Notes / Additional Resources

Three aspects to grow in your understanding and worship of the Living God:

1. Get to know the Living God. God has revealed Himself primarily through Scripture – revealing His character, nature, and works throughout the ages – and thus we should get to know God through the Bible. But we can also get to know Him through history, reading Christian biographies, and talking to Him in prayer.
2. Don’t merely do spiritual disciplines for the sake of duty or obligation, rather allow them to press you into greater relationship and intimacy with the Living God. Remember, the disciplines don’t produce or create life, but they do sustain life (think of an apple). Christianity isn’t just rituals of religion … it’s to be a vibrant relationship with God Almighty.
3. Start living as if God is, in fact, living. Knowing information and details about Him is different than living as if He is involved in the everyday moments of our lives. We can know that He is triumphant and victorious over sin but that is different than letting Him rescue us amidst temptation. We might know He is a God of provision (Jehovah Jireh) but that is different than trusting and depending upon Him in faith when you are at the end of your rope.

So what about you? Is the God you worship merely a historical figure from the past you tip your hat to each Sunday … or do you worship the Living God, Creator of the heavens and earth, the King of kings and Lord of lords?

Get to know this living God (Scripture, history, nature, character, prayer)

• Books on the spiritual disciplines you may want to check out:
  • Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life (Donald Whitney)
  • Celebration of Discipline (Richard Foster)
  • Habits of Grace (David Mathis)
    

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Question: Do you recognize that God is the Living God, and if so, how has that changed your life?

Leave a response or ask a question and we will try to address it in a future episode.

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About NRJohnson & the Deeper Christian Podcast

NRJohnson (Nathan Johnson) is a Christian who has an overwhelming passion for Jesus, the Gospel, and Studying God’s Word. He is a writer, teacher, and communicator who helps other believers understand and apply the Bible as they grow and mature in their faith—desiring that they gain greater intimacy with Christ, experience the victorious Christian life, and transform the world through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Read more about him here.

The Deeper Christian Podcast is the podcast to help you study God’s Word, know Jesus intimately, and discover how you can build your life around Jesus Christ. This weekly audio program, hosted by NRJohnson, dives into Scripture and encourages Christians to keep their focus upon Jesus Christ—equipping believers in how to study the Bible and know God’s Word, grow in their spiritual lives, and change the world. Main discussion topics center around practical advice on Christian living, Bible study, prayer, the Gospel, freedom from sin, evangelism and how to share your faith, the Christian disciplines, and the lives and messages from the Christian heroes from yesteryear such as A.W. Tozer, Charles Spurgeon, Major Ian Thomas, Oswald Chambers, Hudson Taylor, Amy Carmichael, Corrie Ten Boom, C.T. Studd, George Müller, Andrew Murray, Leonard Ravenhill, E.M. Bounds, and others. Learn more about the deeper Christian life.