If we kill all mathematicians in the world today, it would not change the fact that two plus two equals four. In the same way, the wipe out of all creation does not change who God is. As such, nothing can ever change the existence of God, His sovereignty and His Supremacy.
However, the factor called time has brought the need for intimacy with God and there lies the need for an encounter. Over the years with a count from creation, man has always remained in and maintained a close relationship with God until a shift occurs- usually on the part of man ( Genesis 1:26-31; 2:1-25; 3:1-2). This is very evident in Genesis 3:8 where we see how Adam and Eve heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day.
How to Find God
If we believe that there is a God, then there is a need that we encounter and know Him. The presence and existence of God therefore does not mean a geographical position by saying “He’s up there, somewhere or down here on earth” but His presence in our hearts and how well we relate with Him. In the course of this project work, books, ministrations (audios and videos) and online sources have helped. However, the truth is that these are only guidelines and helplines in the search for an encounter with God. The true search for an encounter lies in a tilled land, fertile and virgin for the rising of God that heralds an encounter.
There is so much about God that is beyond our comprehension. We can be moved by the power of God but can never really understand it. This is because His power, wisdom and glory are eternal aspects of His being. The little we understand of Him are therefore pieces of the whole that He shows to us whenever we encounter Him.
“Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts…” – Psalms 42:7
The society also, is wrong, having drawn up a wrong ideology about where God is and by this, society has drawn many far from Him. The confines of philosophical analysis, sociological intrusions and the aesthetics of thought has influenced the pursuit after wrong. Little wonder why many go to lying prophets and fake ministers who promise help. The understanding that a personal encounter with God can make you become your own pastor and prophet is in extinction. This is why we need encounters.
This article is therefore a container of the basic principles that leads a man to encountering God. Any true believer who follows these principles is sure to experience God in the supernatural, the realm where He operates and where He expects us to operate.
The Position of a Believer
The need for an Encounter
The Bible tells us in Daniel 11:32b that “They that know their God shall be strong and do exploits”
By this we understand that there is a necessity for the knowledge of God. Apostle Paul further affirms the need to know God in the New Testament where he says: “…That I may know Him…” (Philippians 3:10)
The necessity for an encounter in the life of a believer cannot be undermined. It is not an unrealistic fantasy that grows with the spiritual life of a man. Rather, it is a genuine thirst for a transformation. The Biblical examples of men who had encounters with God reveal their lives as changed in the positive. Their lives were never dry and dusty but filled with the extraordinary.
A relationship with God starts with an encounter. The fellowship with the father would be an activity conducted in the flesh is there is no encounter. However, our discussions on this subject should not make Christians see it as a tip to their spiritual life but a necessity for spiritual growth.
Encounters with God also build faith in man. After continuing in the relationship with God that brings the encounter, continuity comes through faith. The Bible puts it that: “Faith is the evidence of things not seen…” (Hebrews 11:1). With the believe that seeds should not remain as seeds, but there should be room for growth, faith thus becomes necessary in subsequent strong encounters with the Almighty God. Encounters are thus the waters for the seed of faith. They work hand in hand in the growing of a perfect spiritual life. The truth actually remains that it may not be so easy but faith pulls through the seasons- good or bad.
Preparing for an Encounter
While preparing for an encounter, many things come in place. The fall of the first man heralds a lot of issues. When people sense the separation caused by the fall of the first man with the Biblical support that “All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way”, then our attitude may become one of rebellion or passive disobedience to God and His ways. As regards obediednce, God gave us the commandments in scriptures and if anyone decides to cook the books by disobeying them, it would literally mean that such individual is lancing a boil. This simply means that disobedience is a detriment to the manifestation of encounters. At this point, doing good to others, religious rituals and trying to be a good person will neither cover sin nor remove it. This leads to the first case on the stair of encounters - Genuine Repentance. Such individual must therefore understand the position of complete forgiveness as long as he confesses his sins. He should believe that because of Jesus’ death on the cross, our sin does not separate us from God any longer. Christ saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. With the full knowledge of his state of righteousness in Christ, the believer has to understand his position of authority. This comes by working out of the salvation of his soul. He sees through the Holy Spirit that he is a son and not a slave.
The Bible further tells us: “You will seek me and you will find me when you search for me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13). The intrusion of “all your heart” shows that an encounter is not a limited edition. It should be a constant factor in the life of a Christian. A further look into the Bible says that the Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth” (Psalm145:18)
Finding God
The question of finding God does not imply that God is missing or that God is far. In many cases, God is just nearby, waiting for us to recognise that He is right there. Finding God is not just a contemporary issue as the men of old also sought God. We see an example in Moses where he says:
“I pray You show me Your glory” (Exodus 33:18)
We have other examples in
- David- “As the deer pants for the water so my soul pants for you O God” (Psalm 42:1)
- Solomon
- Samuel
- Elijah
Where is God?
The opening of this chapter has cleared doubts that God is missing or that He does not exist as some philosophical schools portray. The father wishes to share His heart and convictions to anyone willing to hear Him. However, it is possible that a Christian is yet to know God even after years and decades of following Him. The Bible records that Philip, after following Jesus for a number of years asks, “Lord, show us the father.” Jesus replied “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know me? (John 14:8-9)
It is also very possible that a believer doesn’t know that God is beside him all this while and yet, he would struggle to do things he should ordinarily trust the Holy Spirit to do. The word KNOW as the Bible puts it is not merely an intellectual exercise. Knowing God is not about cramming verses and memorizing chapters. It does not extend to knowing facts about God or reciting His Biblical resume. It is about encountering God and Knowing who He says He is.
How do I find God?
Should I wait for a lightening to strike? Will I hear a loud voice calling my name? Should I devote myself to unselfish religious deeds and activities? Should I become a better person so that God will accept me?
The above questions occur frequently in practical situations. They usually surface when the mind is fairly ready for an encounter. We may never fully understand certain spiritual principles, but we can walk into God’s presence, secure in the inward revelation that He will share with us His heart and affection in an encounter.
- Be enlightened. Read scriptures and meditate largely on them. Trust the Holy Spirit for interpretation of every letter.
- Yield totally. Dethrone self and discard wrong notions about God (wrong teachings and doctrines of men anchored by false teachers, wrong pastors and fake prophets). God’s arm is wide open and his hands stretched. There is no point of struggling to reach Him because He is nearer than we think.
- Search for God with an open mind.
- Choose people of faith (especially those who have encountered God) to help you. He doesn’t necessarily need to be a pastor or prophet. Through them, you can understand personal convictions. Ask questions on the nature of God, the transaction of redemption and His revelation to mortals.
- Spend time with Him. God’s love and convictions transform men from inside out.
THE PROTOCOLS OF DIVINE ENCOUNTER
Age long wisdom covers that Knowledge is power and ignorance is destruction. The Bible says: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” Hosea 4:6 reveals that the children of Israel did not know serious things about their God. The day a man is ignorant of the workings of His God, he heads towards destruction. The knowledge of God requires protocols. In our contemporary world, going to visit the President of a nation or the governor of a state would greet a man with multiple protocol officials. However, the case with God are processes the man who desperately needs an encounter to satisfy certain terms covering the purity of heart and sacrifice. The English Dictionary says Protocol is an explanation of the conditions and conduct of a thing. It is the inclusion of procedures and rules for effectiveness.
1. THE PROTOCOL OF “ALONE WITH GOD”
A. The position of Covenant and Vows
B. The position of Divine Instruction
C. The position of Surrendering all (Humility)
2. THE PROTOCOL OF “A HEART AFTER GOD”
Psalm 51:17 The Sacrifice of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
The Bible discusses the heart of man as desperately wicked with specifications that God alone can fathom it. As a crucial decision making point, the state of the heart is required to be pure and sanctified. Little wonder why David prayed: “As the deer pants for the water so my soul pants for you O God” (Psalm 42:1 )
This prayer of the psalmist should be the cry of Christians daily.
A. The position of Personal Consecration.
When God is Silent
“When He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was” (John 11:6)
The point where God tests the spirit of trust, confidence and patience in the course of waiting for an encounter is the point of silence. Sadly, many Christians tend to give up at this point. Usually, the silence of God should lead the believer to a stronger and deeper understanding of who He is as the craving should daily increase. A true Christian in search of an encounter has cravings that are stronger than that of a pregnant woman. The position of intimate trust is defined as the believer draws closer to the Father in fellowship, making him closer to his anticipated encounter
In the revelation of mainstream promises believers should understand that the evidence of answer in time is simply a matter of God’s sovereignty. It is the wrong understanding of God that produces an inconsistent spiritual life. This wrong understanding of the silence of God makes people think that it is a chastisement in the life of such individual whereas, chastisement is the experience of God’s discipline in our lives. God’s chastisement and silence are entirely different things and are not synonymous in any form.
Trust is the central focus when God is silent. Also, there are times that we may actually be the one who is not listening.
Conclusion
Daily, the need for an encounter with the Living God stares us in the eye. In the same way, God looks at man, willing to bring him near, yet man draws back daily. The pressure of life pulls millions to their knees, pleading for an encounter. So much uncertainty hangs like a shroud over our world. I personally believe this is a summoning of believers into our heavenly father’s presence. A new revelation of the glory of God that will cause a drastic change, renew and fire up believers in these last days calls the body of Christ to come to Him that we may know Him.
There is so much about God that is beyond our comprehension. We can be moved by the power of God but can never really understand it for His power, wisdom and glory are eternal aspects of His being. The little we understand of Him are therefore pieces He shows us whenever we encounter Him.
References
- The Holy Bible (King James Version- KJV)
- The Spiritual Man by Watchman Nee
- Intimacy with God: An introduction to Centering Prayer by Thomas Keating
- When God is Silent by Dr. Daniel Kolawole Olukoya
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