What does it mean to know God?

[arunangelo]

Eternal life is to know God (John 17:3). To know Him and love Him is to obey His commandments (1John 2:3: John 14:15; 1John 2:5); and whoever says he lives in God will live just as Jesus Christ did (1John 2:6). To know God is different, from to know of Him. Even the devil knows of Him. To know Him is to be His friend (John 15:15). We must therefore remove everything that is an obstacle to our friendship with Him-which is sin. We must, therefore, repent for our sins (Luke 24:47). To repent we must be sincerely sorry for betraying God’s infinite goodness, and firmly resolve with the help of His grace to never sin again (John 8:11). It is, therefore, to start a new life. We will, therefore, remove our self from sinful situations in life and restore relationships which we have damaged by our sins. To be His friend we must also know everything about Him and have faith in it. We must therefore internalize His infinite act of love for us (in which He sacrificed His life for our sins, although we were unfaithful to Him) and love one another as He loved us (John 15:12).

 

[AChristianman]

Eternal life is to know God (John 17:3). To know Him and love Him is to obey His commandments (1John 2:3: John 14:15; 1John 2:5); and whoever says he lives in God will live just as Jesus Christ did (1John 2:6). To know God is different, from to know of Him. Even the devil knows of Him. To know Him is to be His friend (John 15:15). We must therefore remove everything that is an obstacle to our friendship with Him-which is sin. We must, therefore, repent for our sins (Luke 24:47). To repent we must be sincerely sorry for betraying God’s infinite goodness, and firmly resolve with the help of His grace to never sin again (John 8:11). It is, therefore, to start a new life. We will, therefore, remove our self from sinful situations in life and restore relationships which we have damaged by our sins. To be His friend we must also know everything about Him and have faith in it. We must therefore internalize His infinite act of love for us (in which He sacrificed His life for our sins, although we were unfaithful to Him) and love one another as He loved us (John 15:12).

You have a very truthful post here. You tell everyone what he or she must do to know God, but not how it can be done.

How did you defeat sin if you have?

 

[PJM]

=arunangelo;6719744]Eternal life is to know God (John 17:3). To know Him and love Him is to obey His commandments (1John 2:3: John 14:15; 1John 2:5); and whoever says he lives in God will live just as Jesus Christ did (1John 2:6). To know God is different, from to know of Him. Even the devil knows of Him. To know Him is to be His friend (John 15:15). We must therefore remove everything that is an obstacle to our friendship with Him-which is sin. We must, therefore, repent for our sins (Luke 24:47). To repent we must be sincerely sorry for betraying God’s infinite goodness, and firmly resolve with the help of His grace to never sin again (John 8:11). It is, therefore, to start a new life. We will, therefore, remove our self from sinful situations in life and restore relationships which we have damaged by our sins. To be His friend we must also know everything about Him and have faith in it. We must therefore internalize His infinite act of love for us (in which He sacrificed His life for our sins, although we were unfaithful to Him) and love one another as He loved us (John 15:12).

To “know God” means:

1. Know that there is a first and final cause that we call God
2. Know that this God has chosen to make Himself known to us as the Blessed Trinity. Three seperate and yet unable to be seperated persons, sharing One Divine nature. Co-equal and co-eternal.
3. That knowing of this God GRAVELY obligates one to know and follow all of His Teachings.
4. That the Bible is the Divinely Inspired Word of God, and the Mastr plan for humanities
   salvation, ALONG with the Sacred Traditions of the CC ancommon sense.

 

[grannymh]

You have a very truthful post here. You tell everyone what he or she must do to know God, but not how it can be done.

In my humble opinion, in reply to your comment, the how it can be done is explained
in Genesis 1: 24-31.

This is what the Catholic Church says about “in the image of God”. In Adam’s own nature, God unites the spiritual and material worlds. The human person, alone, is called to share by knowledge and love in God’s own life. *How * we can know God is because our human nature is an unique unification of the spiritual and material, the rational and corporeal, the material anatomy and spiritual soul.

As direct descendents of Adam, our spiritual soul is created by the Supreme Spiritual Being so that of all visible creatures, we are the only ones able to know and love our Creator. Our intellect and will as powers of our soul enable us to share, like Adam, in God’s friendship through knowledge and love.

How did you defeat sin if you have?

I am a work in process, sometimes in progress, most often in procrastination. Nonetheless, to answer your question, my suggestion would be to start with John 3: 16 & 17.

Blessings,
granny

Basic Catholic teaching **regarding the reality of Adam’s nature **is found in the
Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition, ISBN: 1-57455-109-4
Paragraphs 355-421.

The good news of Jesus Christ follows in Paragraph 422, etc.

One can put the word paragraph and the number in the Catechism’s search bar in link www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm Entering topics is also very useful

 

[MarcoPolo]

Remember, full knowledge of God comes in heaven as Paul told us in

1 Cor 13:12 Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

“Knowledge” in Scripture is even likened to the union of man and woman (e.g. 1 Sam 1:19, 1 Kg 1:4, etc). In this world, our knowledge of God is limited and cannot achieve the full intimacy. We won’t “see” God in heaven with our eyeballs. The things we see are external appearances, images of an underlying reality. In heaven our knowledge is uninhibited by methods of knowledge here on earth like images.

 

[AlanFromWichita]

There are several levels of intimacy with the Scriptures, each roughly corresponding to the four steps in Lectio Divina.

The most intimate step in prayer is the unitive step, characterized by silent forms of prayer called contemplative prayer.

Reference CCC 2724

Contemplative prayer is the simple expression of the mystery of prayer. It is a gaze of faith fixed on Jesus, an attentiveness to the Word of God, a silent love. It achieves real union with the prayer of Christ to the extent that it makes us share in his mystery.

If we reach a certain level of intimacy with the Word, then so do we with the Father. :tiphat:

Alan

 

[PJM]

Originally Posted by AChristianman
You have a very truthful post here. You tell everyone what he or she must do to know God, but not how it can be done.

Here’s how

By HEARING the word of God then living it

**Matt.7: 24, 26 **“Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock; And every one who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand;”

Mark.4: 15-20 “And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown; when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word which is sown in them. And these in like manner are the ones sown upon rocky ground, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy; And others are the ones sown among thorns; they are those who hear the word, But those that were sown upon the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”

**Luke.11: 28 **"But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

**Col.1: 5 **"because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel"

**2Tim.1: 13 **“Follow the pattern of the sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus”

**Jas.1: 22-23 **“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who observes his natural face in a mirror;”

**Rev.1: 3 **“Blessed is he who reads aloud the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written therein; for the time is near”

Put yourself in a postion of being taught God’s Word by an EXPERT. It is fair to say if any understanding of God’s Word does not confrom fully with what th CC teaches; it is a WRONG understanding.

Love and prayers,

Pat

 

[AChristianman]

Here’s how

By HEARING the word of God then living it

**Matt.7: 24, 26 **“Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock; And every one who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand;”

Mark.4: 15-20 “And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown; when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word which is sown in them. And these in like manner are the ones sown upon rocky ground, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy; And others are the ones sown among thorns; they are those who hear the word, But those that were sown upon the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”

**Luke.11: 28 **"But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

**Col.1: 5 **"because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel"

**2Tim.1: 13 **“Follow the pattern of the sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus”

**Jas.1: 22-23 **“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who observes his natural face in a mirror;”

**Rev.1: 3 **“Blessed is he who reads aloud the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written therein; for the time is near”

Love and prayers,

Pat

Pat you really should know that man can’t teach one to know God. You made the following statement: “Put yourself in a postion of being taught God’s Word by an EXPERT. It is fair to say if any understanding of God’s Word does not confrom fully with what th CC teaches; it is a WRONG understanding.”Now read what Paul says. (1 Corinthians 2:10-16) “These are the very things that God has revealed to us through the Spirit, for the Spirit reaches the depts. Of everything, even the depths of God. After all, the depths of a man can only be known by his own spirit, not by any other man, and in the same way the depths of God can only be known by the Spirit of God. Now instead of the spirit of the world, we have received the Spirit that comes from God, to teach us to understand the gifts that he has given us. Therefore we teach, not in the way in which philosophy is taught, but in the way that the Spirit teaches us: we teach spiritual things spiritually. A spiritual man, on the other hand, is able to judge the value of everything and his own value in not to be judged by other men. As scripture says;’ who can know the mind of the Lord, so who can teach him?’ But we are those who have the mind of Christ.”

Next you should read what John says. (1 John 2:27) “But you have not lost the anointing that he gave you, and you do not need anyone to teach you, the anointing he gave teaches you everything; you are anointed with truth, not a lie, and as it has taught you, so you must stay in him.”

 

[fhansen]

**To know God in the sense meant by scripture-meaning to know Him in a way that is effecting real change in us -is to first of all know that He exists, then to know of His goodness and of His love, and, with that, the validity of His promises, including such things as forgiveness and eternal life. This is a process whereby we grow in willing love and obedience towards Him, letting go of sin or anything that separates us from Him, ultimately coming to love Him with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength. This is our perfection and our holiness. **

 

[DPMartin]

It’s truly His Presence, of which He taught and insisted on through out the OT and also in the NT.

His Presence is the Holiness, for Holiness is of the Lord. Contemplative Prayer is simply as described here, it’s truly to meditate His Word in silence and listen. Even the Apostles taught that the Farther already knows of your concerns, but His concerns should be our desire which is the fulfillment of His Commandments, in those who seek so. For they are (the Commandments) for our sake, for He lives forever, no matter what one may or may not do. It is also absolutely true that of the Father through the Son , (His Word) , in His Holy Presence (Holy Spirit) is God known, note, the only Way. The OT teaches it, and Jesus, the Holy One of Israel revealed it, and fulfilled it, according to the Will of the Father (which is the fulfillment of all the Commandments clear back to the beginning of man, in the Son of Man), that all may receive and be received, in the same, of Him.

Jesus has already overcome that which separates us from God, hence the Glory of the Cross. The Father sees us through His Perfect Son, and we seek to be like unto His Perfect Son out of Love for His Perfect Son in whom we admire, honor, respect, all that He is, and repent to receive that which is of Him. Love, Faith, Hope, Truth, Life, the Way, Wisdom, Knowledge, Understanding, Mercy, Righteousness, Judgment. His of Him.

You can’t know some one if their presence is not with you. Therefore true, to know of is one thing, and to know, is another.

 

[PJM]

=AChristianman;6731444]Pat you really should know that man can’t teach one to know God. You made the following statement: “Put yourself in a postion of being taught God’s Word by an EXPERT. It is fair to say if any understanding of God’s Word does not confrom fully with what th CC teaches; it is a WRONG understanding.”Now read what Paul says. (1 Corinthians 2:10-16) “These are the very things that God has revealed to us through the Spirit, for the Spirit reaches the depts. Of everything, even the depths of God. After all, the depths of a man can only be known by his own spirit, not by any other man, and in the same way the depths of God can only be known by the Spirit of God. Now instead of the spirit of the world, we have received the Spirit that comes from God, to teach us to understand the gifts that he has given us. Therefore we teach, not in the way in which philosophy is taught, but in the way that the Spirit teaches us: we teach spiritual things spiritually. A spiritual man, on the other hand, is able to judge the value of everything and his own value in not to be judged by other men. As scripture says;’ who can know the mind of the Lord, so who can teach him?’ But we are those who have the mind of Christ.”

Next you should read what John says. (1 John 2:27) “But you have not lost the anointing that he gave you, and you do not need anyone to teach you, the anointing he gave teaches you everything; you are anointed with truth, not a lie, and as it has taught you, so you must stay in him.”

***Sorry to disagree

But I do believe it’s possible to prove the existence of God to anyone who is open minded enough to actually listen and think objectively. It still requires God’s grace, but is possible.

Teaching someone to Know, Love and Serve God; now that is a matter that requires God’s grace [as does of couse acepting that God does exist].

The “annointing” John is speaking about is not a random grace to everyone. He was speaking to a specific group of people and the measage was specifically for them. Not everything in the Bible which as you know is a Catholic book, has individual revelance to us today, nor does everything apply today as it did when written.

If this statement has revelance for eveyone today; why are there many THOUSANDS of Protestenant denominations caused by not agreeing on what the bible says?

Love and prayers,***

Pat

 

[DPMartin]

---

I forgot

One the subject of how?

Very simple my friend, consider the seed as taught by Jesus more then once. When the seed is planted in the ground (you, you made of dust) the seed does not yield to the ground. The ground yields to the instruction in the seed for there to be Life, that bears fruits of the seed. If the ground does not yield to the instructions in the seed for Life to be. Then there will be no Life.

Prov:6:23: For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life:

 

[AChristianman]

***Sorry to disagree

But I do believe it’s possible to prove the existence of God to anyone who is open minded enough to actually listen and think objectively. It still requires God’s grace, but is possible.

Teaching someone to Know, Love and Serve God; now that is a matter that requires God’s grace [as does of couse acepting that God does exist].

The “annointing” John is speaking about is not a random grace to everyone. He was speaking to a specific group of people and the measage was specifically for them. Not everything in the Bible which as you know is a Catholic book, has individual revelance to us today, nor does everything apply today as it did when written.

If this statement has revelance for eveyone today; why are there many THOUSANDS of Protestenant denominations caused by not agreeing on what the bible says?

Love and prayers,***

Pat

Pat, how do you know that John was not talking to everyone of us? Do you believe the Holy Spirit had that verse but into the Bible, because he wanted us to be aware of what John said to a specific group of people? The Bible is the written Word of God, not a history book.

Do you remember what Jesus told us?
(John 10:1-5)“I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.”

Jesus said he would call his people by name, and lead them.

 

[ryanoneil]

This scripture says personal knowledge of God is a sign of the New Covenant.

But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD. I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer will they have need to teach their friends and kinsmen how to know the LORD. All, from least to greatest, shall know me, says the LORD, for I will forgive their evildoing and remember their sin no more. (Jer 31:33-34)

 

[PJM]

=AChristianman;6732045]Pat, how do you know that John was not talking to everyone of us? Do you believe the Holy Spirit had that verse but into the Bible, because he wanted us to be aware of what John said to a specific group of people? The Bible is the written Word of God, not a history book.

Do you remember what Jesus told us?

(John 10:1-5)“I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.”

Jesus said he would call his people by name, and lead them.

Bible experts have proven to there satifaction that the Apostles were writting to a specific audience and that the message was taylored to them. As there were no printing presses for another 1,000 + years, the apostles could not have known that they were writting to “the world” for prosperity. They would not have conceived such a thought as 90% or more were illiterate.

That is why we see so letters addressed to a specific community, especially from Paul.

Further there was ONLY ONE CHURCH even hundreds of years after he bible was complied and Codeified. That Church being the CC. So what ever the message was it was intended for Catholics alone. That it has revelance for others today demonistrates that the Bible was indeed Inspired by God, who alone new furture events.

The GATE by the way that Christ Speaks of is His ONE Church, One Faith; the CC. See Matt. 16:15-19 and Matt.18:18.

Eph. 2:19 So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, [SINGULAR] built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; SINGULAR] in whom you also are built into it for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.”

Eph. 4: 4 “There is one body [One Church] and one Spirit, [One set of beliefs] just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, 5 one Lord, One Triune God] one faith, [One set of doctrine and dogma and Tradition] one baptism, By water in the Trinity] 6 one God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all."

Pat

 

[AChristianman]

PJM, no one is denying that the letters where written to the people that they were addressed to. But the Holy Spirit did not need to put the letters that were placed in the Bible there if they were not speaking to us.

How do you explain away the fact that Jesus said he would call his own by name and lead them?

 

[PJM]

=AChristianman;6732942]PJM, no one is denying that the letters where written to the people that they were addressed to. But the Holy Spirit did not need to put the letters that were placed in the Bible there if they were not speaking to us.

How do you explain away the fact that Jesus said he would call his own by name and lead them?

I agree completely with this comment of yours My point was that this is evidence of Godly Inspiration NOT authors intent. Further; one could be at serious risk applying something from 2,000 years ago to wht is happening today. thus the need to keep thoughs in context of the Chapter and book.

Love and prayers,

Pat

 

[AChristianman]

I agree completely with this comment of yours My point was that this is evidence of Godly Inspiration NOT authors intent. Further; one could be at serious risk applying something from 2,000 years ago to wht is happening today. thus the need to keep thoughs in context of the Chapter and book.

Love and prayers,

Pat

Why would two thousand years make a difference? God is not any different today than he was two thousand years ago.

We are talking about the Holy Spirit teaching us about God.

Again you failed to address the fact that Jesus said his people would hear his voice, and he would call his people out by name.

 

[DPMartin]

Why would two thousand years make a difference? God is not any different today than he was two thousand years ago.

We are talking about the Holy Spirit teaching us about God.

Again you failed to address the fact that Jesus said his people would hear his voice, and he would call his people out by name.

Maybe you are talking to one who don’t know how it is that a Loving Father would want to talk to one of His Children through His Word, (Jesus Christ) in the Holy Spirit.

How can a Loving Father not want to speak to His own?

 

[AlanFromWichita]

Some thoughts:

To know God is to love God.

To love God is to obey His Son – love God and each other.

What we do to each other, we do to His Son. Therefore if we learn to love each other, we love His Son.

Jesus said if we know Him, then we know the Father.

Alan