From Realizations to Responses

Do people really know who God is? I am not asking if they know that he exists, or that he created the world, or that he sent Jesus to die for mankind. I am simply asking, do people realize just how big God is? Do they understand his omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence?

Most people cannot see God or be changed by God, because their knowledge and comprehension of his true being is too small. In order to illustrate this example, let's go back in time and visit the scene on a ship once headed to Tarshish.

The first chapter of Jonah gives the account of the prophet God selected to preach to Nineveh, but who chose to be a deserter instead. He boarded a boat that was heading in the opposite direction from his divinely appointed destination. God responded with a storm so terrible that it caused the ship's crew to eventually locate Jonah and demand some answers.

When Jonah was pinpointed as the cause, he told his shipmates about the God of heaven, the creator of both land and sea. He discussed his own disobedience to God's command. He finally got the men to cast him overboard in a last ditch effort to save their lives.

With Jonah gone, the sea immediately calmed down. Here we find the response to their realization. Jonah 1:16 reads, "Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows." This is a fascinating verse. It brings to mind what people do naturally when they get a true understanding of the nature and power of God.

This reminder from the Bible should cause us to ask ourselves a few questions and reflect...Do we need more storms? Do we need more calm? Do we need more Jonahs? What needs to happen before we realize how great God is? What needs to happen before we properly respond?

"For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe." ~ Deuteronomy 10:17