A Relationship with God

"Then Job answered and said, I know it is so of a truth: But how should man be just with God?" Job 9:1-2

”How should  man be just with God?” This question asked by Job, is the most important question that will ever be asked by anyone. Consider this question asked in other words: How can we be sure that all is well between us and God, that we are looked upon by Him with favor? “Is God pleased with me?” or to put it another way, “Am I in a right relationship with God?” 

This is an extremely important question to ask ourselves because one day everyone of us is going to stand before God, and give Him an account for our lives. “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.” (Romans 14:12) 

Who is God?

Now that might sound like an unusual question to ask, but in the day and age in which we live more and more people are giving the wrong answer to the question, “Who is God?” Consider some of the ways that the Scriptures answer this question:

God is the creator of the universe 
(Gen 1:1 KJV) In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Exo 20:11 KJV) For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it. Notice that it says that God created the heaven. This includes all of the planets and the stars. John Piper writes, “Scientists know that light travels at the speed of 5.87 trillion miles a year. They also know that the galaxy, of which our solar system is a part, is about 100,000 light years in diameter–about five hundred eighty seven thousand trillion miles. It is one of about a million such galaxies in the optical range of our most powerful telescopes. In our galaxy there are about 100 billion stars….” 
And God is the one who simply spoke and all of that came into existence! That is who God is!

God is everywhere 
(Psa 139:7-10 KJV) Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? {8} If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. {9} If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; {10} Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. There is no place that you can go to escape the presence of God. If you were to go to the furthest galaxy from us, He would still be there!

God is all knowing 
(Psa 139:2-4 KJV) Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. {3} Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. {4} For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether. There is nothing that we have ever thought, said, or done, that He doesn’t know about. And there will never be anything that we will think, say, or do that He will not know. That is who God is!

God is absolutely holy and righteous 
(Psa 11:7 KJV) For the righteous LORD loveth righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright. His righteous character demands that all sin be punished. He cannot overlook and tolerate sin. None whatsoever. If He were to let any sin whatsoever go unpunished He would not be righteous. That is just who God is!!!

Who is Man?

Remember now, Job has asked the question, “How should man be just with God” and we are trying to answer that question. We have seen just a little bit about who God is, now we need to ask the question, who is man. Men are not righteous, but sinners. (Rom 3:10 KJV) As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: (Rom 3:23 KJV) For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

As a matter of fact if someone were going to be pleasing to God on their own, they would have to have kept every one of the ten commandments every moment of their lives, out of a heart that was always full of love for God and men. Then and only then could they be the object of God’s pleasure instead of His wrath!!

So we have a real problem! We have an all powerful, all seeing God who created us, and who is everywhere, and absolutely righteous, and before whom we are going to have to give account one day. And in ourselves we are filthy sinners in his sight, and the objects of His wrath!!! If He is going to be true to His righteousness, He is going to have to punish our sin!! Because that is just who He is, and that is just who we are!!! And so this question that Job is asking is a very serious question!!! How can sinful men, who have broken the commandments of their creator be just in the sight of this Holy Creator?

Who is Jesus Christ?

Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who became man by being born of a virgin. He lived a perfect sinless life. He kept every one of the commandments of God with a heart that was full of love for God and men. He was God, and He was man.

He went around doing miraculous things, to glorify God and help those who were suffering. When He was 33 years old, He was nailed to a cross, and suffered the most agonizing death that anyone has ever suffered. On that cross, God poured out His wrath for all of our sin on the Lord Jesus Christ. All of the righteous anger that we should have gotten Jesus took for us. And it killed Him! But three days later, He came back alive! Now, in order to be right in the sight of God, in order to have a right relationship with Him, He has commanded all men every where to turn from their sin, and put their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, as their only hope for righteousness. 

God has promised that if we put our trust in Christ, believing that He died for our sins, and came back alive, that He will give us Jesus’ righteousness. (2 Corinthians 5:21) For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. (Romans 10:10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

This is the only way that sinful men can be pleasing to God, and have a right relationship with Him. To die without putting your faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, and entering into a right relationship with God, through the righteousness of Christ, is to spend eternity separated from God, and perish in a place called Hell.

What should you do?

Turn from your sin and put all of your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, as your only hope for a right relationship with God! Don’t put it off!

(John 3:16, 36) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life… He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.