Read: Psalm 9:8-10; John 10:11-15; John 10:27-30; Psalm 139:1-18
Before I was married, I spent one semester in Minot, North Dakota at a very small Bible college. One autumn day, my roommate and I decided to drive to a lake just to get out of the dorm. We had a nice time simply being outdoors, but when we got in her vehicle to go back, it wouldn't start. What to do? There were no cell phones, and it was too far to walk. No one was around; so, we decided to pray, begin walking and take a ride when it was offered. A vehicle then came into view. Guess which of these happened next?
Thankfully by God's providence, the driver was my Old Testament Survey professor. He had been fishing at a different lake than the one where we had been. He not only picked us up but brought us to his home where we enjoyed the best stew and homemade biscuits I've ever eaten.
A trucker stopped and offered us a ride. We reluctantly got in, and I kept my hand close to the door handle throughout the ride. My plan was to jump out if that became necessary.
If you chose answer #1, you are wrong. I would have loved it if that had been what happened; however, thankfully, choice #2 turned out okay since the truck driver dropped us off at a home where we were able to phone for help. He evidently meant us no harm, but when we hopped into his truck, we had no way of knowing that since we knew nothing about him.
Many people think of God in that same way. They don't believe that there is any way to truly know Him. No wonder faith in Him seems so nebulous. No wonder this faith is called blind faith since it is so commonly believed that it rests on nothing at all. I understand that thinking because I used to believe that there wasn't anything I could know about God that was a certainty. Yet, as we read the scriptures we learn that God wants us to know what He is like so that we can understand both ourselves and His love for us. Yes, it is true that His thoughts are not like our own thoughts, Isaiah 55:8-9, and there are things we can't understand. Even so, God has told us in His Word countless truths about Himself that reveal His desire that we come to know Him through all that He has revealed.
For example, in Psalm 9:10 we are reminded that those who know God's name put their trust in Him. In the scriptures, knowing the Lord's name means knowing about Him. What does He love, and what does He abhor? How does He see human beings? Does He have a plan for the future? What does He do when we fail Him? All these and multitudes of other questions are answered by God through what He has revealed in the scriptures. As we learn more and more about Him, we know His name in deeper and richer ways, 2 Peter 3:18.
Back to the trucker who gave us a ride. If he merely told us his name, nothing of importance would have been relayed to us concerning his character. Only if we had either spent time with him or talked with people who loved and knew him would we have truly known anything about what he was like. The same thing is true if we want to know God's Name. In John 10:11-15, Jesus referred to Himself as the Good Shepherd. He said that He was different than any other who called himself a shepherd because He was the One Who laid down His life for the sheep. Talk about knowing something precious about God! He is the One Who actually gave His life to pay for the sins of the sheep, 1 Peter 1:18-19; John 3:16. He said another wondrous thing in these verses. Jesus knows His sheep and they know Him. No blind faith here. The Shepherd knows His own, 2 Timothy 2:19. Sometimes in earthly relationships, we come to know a person, but that intimacy is not reciprocated if they never seek to truly know us. Yet, with the Lord this isn't the case. Psalm 139:1-18 reminds us that God knows us completely, and His thoughts are always toward us, Psalm 139:17-18. He is aware of the words we will speak even before they enter our minds. We are never out of His sight regardless of where we might run. Ask Jonah about that! He knows each of His own sheep, and we know Him and listen to Him. No one can take us out of His hand, John 10:27-30.
No wonder David says that when we know God's Name, we will put our trust in Him. His understanding and power are limitless, and so is His love, Psalm 62:11-12. Even those of us who belong to the Lord sometimes feel like I did the day my roommate and I got into that truck. We might feel uncertain because of all that we see going on around us. It is at those times that it is important for us to return to what we know to be true about the Lord.
Proverbs 21:30-31: No human wisdom or understanding or plan can stand against the LORD. The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but the victory belongs to the LORD.
Lord, help us to remember Who is "driving the truck." and how trustworthy You are.