Is it Important to Know Who God Is?

What is "Christianity"?

Many do not understand the concept of Christianity. Some think it is a philosophy of life, like communism or Marxism. Others see it as a code of morals promoting a good standard of life. Still others look at it as a business transaction with God: follow His rules, appease Him, and earn eternal life.

Christianity is none of that. Christianity is the way to eternal life. Jesus gave the definition in one sentence: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3)

Christianity is not a philosophical system; it is a living, breathing relationship with the Creator. But here is the critical point: You cannot experience a living relationship with someone you have fundamentally misunderstood. If we get the identity of God wrong, our entire spiritual experience is built on a shadow, not the substance.

Knowing About God vs. Knowing God

When you become a Christian, you move from having an intellectual knowledge about God to knowing Him intimately and personally.

James wrote something sobering: "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble" (James 2:19).

Intellectual knowledge qualifies you to be a devil. The demons have perfect theology. They know exactly who Jesus is—they cried out, "I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God" (Mark 1:24). Yet, they are lost. Jesus was talking about relational, experiential knowledge.

It is possible to be "right in our own eyes" about our theology, feeling completely certain, while entirely missing the Person we claim to serve. Knowledge brings light, and light received into the heart brings salvation. "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32). But if that knowledge never leads to a personal, indwelling relationship with the Father and the Son, it is just data.

Why Do People Avoid the Question?

In discussions over the years, two main reasons emerge for why believers refuse to examine who God is.

Reason 1: Tradition and the Fear of the Unknown

Doing what we have always done is very easy. Believing what we have always believed is comforting. For centuries, the Trinity doctrine has dominated Christianity. If someone questions it, they are often labeled a heretic.

But we must ask: Is a belief true simply because it is old, popular, or defended by the majority? The Bible warns us against inheriting lies (Jeremiah 16:19) and commands us to "prove all things; hold fast that which is good" (1 Thessalonians 5:21). We must be willing to follow the biblical evidence wherever it leads, rather than deciding the answer in advance just because "everyone believed it for a long time."

Jesus confronted this exact mindset when He spoke to the religious leaders of His day. They were sincere, they were religious, and they were completely blinded by their traditions. Jesus told them: "But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." (Mark 7:7).

When God’s people replace the teachings of God with the teachings of men—like human creeds set up by denominations—Jesus says their worship becomes worthless. You either follow man’s tradition like the Pharisees did, or you follow Jesus’s teaching. You cannot have it both ways.

Reason 2: Not Seeing Why It Matters

The second reason people avoid this topic is quieter. They say, "The real issue in the last days is the Sabbath and the law of God, not the Godhead. Why stir up division?"

But think about ancient Israel. They esteemed nothing greater than the temple and the Sabbath. Yet when Jesus came, they wanted to kill Him because He healed on the Sabbath. Jesus told them, "In this place is one greater than the temple" (Matthew 12:6).

They kept the rituals, but they missed the One the rituals represented. Their temple and Sabbath keeping became worthless because they forgot who it represented. Solomon said, "There is no new thing under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Today, many hold on to their denomination, their Sabbath, or their good works as the thing that matters most, while forgetting the One they worship. If we get the identity of the God we worship wrong, we are repeating the exact same tragedy.

Look at What Has Been Exchanged

Notice what has happened in modern Christianity. Man-made traditions have introduced subtle but massive exchanges:

• Scripture speaks of the Son of God (John 10:36). Many today speak of "God the Son." Can you find that phrase anywhere in your Bible?
• Scripture speaks of the Spirit of God (Matthew 3:16). Many today speak of "God the Holy Spirit." Can you find that phrase in your Bible?
• Scripture speaks of Christ in you (Colossians 1:27). Many today speak of the indwelling of a "third person." Can you find that in Scripture?

This exchange is not just a semantic game; it is a spiritual catastrophe. When we replace the literal Son of God with a philosophical construct, and the indwelling presence of Christ with an abstract "third person," we lose the very mechanism of the gospel. We lose the Indwelling Hope. If the Spirit is not the Spirit of the Son, then "Christ in you" becomes a mere metaphor rather than a living, victorious reality.

God Wants to Be Known

God is not pleased when we hide behind man-made traditions, refusing to honestly study the Scriptures to find out who He is. After all, the Scriptures are God’s revelation about Himself and His character.

To the Israelites of old, God said: "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee" (Hosea 4:6).

God wants us to know Him because He wants a relationship with us. The more we know Him, the closer our relationship will be. That is why Jesus came. Part of His mission was to reveal the Father: "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him" (John 1:18).

Jesus has made the Father known to humanity. In His prayer He said, "I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it" (John 17:26). John the Apostle wrote, "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true" (1 John 5:20).

Jesus came to give us an understanding so we can know God. We are left without excuse. To say the Godhead is a "mystery" we cannot understand is to say that Jesus failed in His mission to reveal the Father.

A Message for These Days

In Revelation, a message goes out to the whole world: "Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters" (Revelation 14:7).

Why would God send a call to worship the right God? Because Scripture warns of a great deception. Satan "deceiveth the whole world" (Revelation 12:9). Do not be so naïve to think that you are immune from deception. If one believes they are living in the last days, then it is crucial to understand who their God is.

So, Is It Important?

Look at the Jews. What happened to them when they got the identity of their Messiah wrong? They crucified the Son of God and lost their position as the chosen ones because they failed to recognize His identity, choosing instead to hold onto their traditions.

Jesus said that eternal life is knowing the only true God and Jesus Christ whom He sent. Like it or not, the identity of the God one worships is a salvation issue.

You will have to make a choice. Truth does not fear investigation. If what you believe is true, a careful look will only confirm it. If it isn’t, you will want to know.

"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15).