[Daniel 11:31-35 KJV] “And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate. [32] And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. [33] And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days. [34] Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries. [35] And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed”.
I want to speak to you today about how to stay stronger in times of crisis. We all know that crisis and afflictions bring anxiety, panic and irrational thinking. Many grow weaker and anxious in the face of afflictions, but that should not be the story of a child of God. You can wax strong and do exploits even in difficult times and crisis.
I am not too sure what you might be going through now, but I am persuaded that you can grow stronger when you know what to do. The truth remains that when you go through crisis, you have all sorts of people speaking and counselling and talking to you, but there is only one thing that can make you grow stronger and stronger in times of crisis, and it is to know your God. The Bible tells us that “those who know their God shall wax strong and do exploits”. We must strive to know God and wax strong.
What are the first principles of knowing your God. Those who can know their God must acknowledge the following;
1. The foremost way to know God is from His word:
No man can see God except through His word. In John 1:18, our Lord Jesus Christ said clearly that no man has seen God at any time except to whom the only begotten has revealed Him to. This only begotten is the word of God that was with God and was God and became flesh and dwelt among men. Apostle Paul taught in both 1 Timothy 3:16 and 1 Timothy 6:16 that no man has seen God.
[1 Timothy 3:16 KJV] “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory”.
[1 Timothy 6:16 KJV] “Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen”.
You can know God when you spend time in His word. God is revealed in His word, His word reveals Him totally. So, the surest way to know God is to find Him in His word.
2. God talks
Many can’t know God because they don’t believe that God still speaks and that He is alive. In Deuteronomy 5:24, after Israel requested to meet God, He spoke to them out of smoke and fire on the mountain. It was a fearful sight and after Israel heard the voice of God they acknowledged that indeed God speaks to men. You must admit that God is still speaking and that you can hear Him when you pay attention.
[Deuteronomy 5:24 KJV] “And ye said, Behold, the Lord our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.”
In Job 33:14-17, we understand that “once has the Lord spoken, yea twice; but men have not heard Him”. The Bible says “but in the deep of the night, when deep sleep falls on all men, the Lord comes down and seals instructions to them in dreams”. Dreams and visions are sure ways of hearing from God. God speaks and He is still speaking.
3. God is not tied to any location:
Those who are striving to know God must admit that God is not tied to a location; neither to a mountain or to a temple, God is a spirit and He is omnipresent. God is everywhere at the same time. You don’t need to go to any special place to be healed and delivered. You need to know that God is a spirit and that He will answer anyone who calls upon Him. The Lord warns us in Matthew 24:23, not to look for Him in places. John 2:23 teaches that God is a spirit. You will know Him when you strive to know Him as a spirit.
[Matthew 24:23 KJV] “Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not”.
[John 2:23 KJV] “Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did”.
4. God is bigger than our individual experiences of Him:
God is bigger than whatever He has related to you. In Exodus 6:3, we understand that God has revealed Himself to each of us in a different way. To Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, He was known as God, but unto Moses, He would be known as Jehovah. We know Him as Emmanuel. So, what you have experienced of God is only an aspect of Him. God is bigger than what your finite mind can comprehend. Let us be open to know more of Him, our God is so big, so mighty and so powerful.
[Exodus 3:6 KJV] “Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.”
5. Without holiness or separation, no man can see God:
Philippians 3:8-12 teaches that until a man is fully separated unto God to know Him, that man would never know God.
[Philippians 3:8-12 KJV] “Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, [9] And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: [10] That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; [11] If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. [12] Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus”.
The Bible teaches us to “follow peace with all men, and holiness without which no man can see God” (Hebrews 12:14). You need to be separated unto seeking God in order to know Him. You will not know God until you despise all the idols in the land. You ought to despise the idols of money, status, fame, influence and all that the world worships before you can know the only true God.
Stay safe and stay healthy!
I love you!Kofi Simpe
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