If a Christian only exists in arenas with other Christians, it can become hard to see the vast difference between the nature of our God and the world’s sorry attempt of a god in their own image.
Our God is utterly unique. He is Triune. Not only is He three in one, as if God is simply a unity of 3 of the same person; He is also distinctly and uniquely Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He is unbegotten as the Father, eternally begotten as the Son, and eternally spirated as the Spirit. He is unfathomable, incomprehensible, and beautiful in both His simplicity and complexity. In the words of the Scriptures … “there is no God like our God.”
Many modern-day Christians set aside the pursuit of intellectual knowledge of God in exchange for a dollar store understanding of who He is. “I am not a theologian,” they say, and keep all heady and weighty doctrinal information at an arm’s length.
Many modern-day Christians set aside the pursuit of intellectual knowledge of God in exchange for a dollar store understanding of who He is. “I am not a theologian,” they say, and keep all heady and weighty doctrinal information at an arm’s length. However, when one lives in an environment hostile to the God of the Bible, it can become a great incentive to know and treasure the true identity of our God. We must remember that light always shines out of darkness in God’s economy.
My wife and I have the great privilege of living in a country where the belief is that God “does not beget nor is he begotten” (Quran 112:3). Therefore, for us, the difference between the God of the Bible and the god of the culture around us has only caused us to dive deeper into who the God of Scripture really is. What could be a disadvantage for true knowledge of God is a magnet for wanting to know the Son of God, as He is proclaimed to be in Scripture. For us then, the pursuit of God the Son is more than just a hobby or a daily routine, it is our very life. As it is written, “He who has the Son has life.”
We ought to fight the good fight out of love for our neighbor, and if he is won to Christ, praise the Lord. If not, we are still led in triumphant procession by God remaining a fragrant aroma to Him (cf. 2 Cor. 2:14-16) and will enjoy Him in His triune nature nonetheless.
Therefore, as someone who has had this precious perspective forced on me through living where Satan’s throne and synagogue are (cf. Rev. 2:9, 13), I would recommend to any Christian who wants to be faithful in following the Son, go to the front lines sometime. Participating in the spiritual war helps us have perspective for the rest of the Christian walk. It is only after fighting Apollyon that Christian can face the valley of the shadow of death or doubting castle. Find someone who does not believe in, love, follow, or adore the Son the way you do. It is often that believers find their passion for God’s truth in the cause of defending it. We ought to fight the good fight out of love for our neighbor, and if he is won to Christ, praise the Lord. If not, we are still led in triumphant procession by God remaining a fragrant aroma to Him (cf. 2 Cor. 2:14-16) and will enjoy Him in His triune nature nonetheless. We may not all seem like theologians but we certainly are all soldiers.
This blog post was written by the G. Family serving in SE Asia.