THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP - EL ROI, THE GOD WHO SEES

October 15, 2013 The Discipline of Getting to Know God - El Roi, The Omniscient, The God Who Sees “The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men. From His dwelling place He looks intently upon all the inhabitants of the earth; He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their doings” (Ps.33:13-15). God “showed-off” His awesomeness when He created the eye. To me, being able to see is my most wonderful sense. The human eye is a complex miracle of the Creator that provides us the power of eyesight, the ability to observe the world around us in all its beauty and intricacy. As marvelous as our physical sight is, how far greater it is to have spiritual sight and be able to discover the things of God. Being the all knowing, all seeing God (El Roi), He has given Believers spiritual gifts of seeing and knowing the Truth as we look into His Word (I Cor 2:14). This is called (discernment). I am very thankful for this gift of “seeing” Truth, but I pray along with discernment, I pray the Lord will give me His eyes to see the good in others; to see their hurt and confusion; to be able to see and discern how to pray for their needs and see how to reach out to them with help. I will never have His infinite “eyes,” but I want a heart full of His love. In Gen.16:13-14, God saw Hagar, the wife that was turned out by Abraham. She was the one who named God, El Roi, “A God of seeing,” “Living One Who sees me.” (Look up Genesis 16 and read this interesting account.) El Roi (the Living One Who sees us) because He is omniscient (all knowing), He sees and knows all things. Psalm 139 tells us that, “He saw you before you were born. He sees you when you sit or lie down; He sees you when you get up and walk and where you walk, and with whom you walk, and even your motives of everything you do and everywhere you go. He knows (sees) your thoughts, even before you think them. You cannot go into the highest heaven, or deepest sea without His seeing you and knowing where you are, and without His hand holding you. He knows and sees what moment of what day of what year you will die. His thoughts toward you are precious, they are too many to count – more than the sand of the seas. When you go to sleep – He is there and sees you. When you wake – He is there and sees you.” What an unfathomable, loving God we serve! Just as He saw and was with Moses those 40 years in the wilderness (Duet.2:7); and with Samuel’s mother, Hannah, who was a righteous woman and desired but couldn’t have a child (I Sam.2:3); and with Samuel when anointing David as king, “The Lord sees not as man sees; for man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart (I Sam.16:7; I Kgs.8:39). And when King Asa relied on the Lord when his enemies came against him, God said “The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show Himself strong in behalf of those whose hearts are blameless toward Him” (II Chr.16:9). Just as God showed Himself faithful to those of the past, He also will show Himself faithful to you. Remember, God is not a respecter of persons, He sees your blameless heart toward Him and He will reward you for it. “God knows all things independently…..He receives not His knowledge from anything without Him; He hath no tutor to instruct Him, or book to inform Him.” (Stephen Charnock, in The Existence and Attributes of God) When you give, give secretly and God will see and reward you openly (Matt. 6:1-4). When you pray, pray in your most private room, and He will see you and reward you openly (Matt.6:5-6). When you are fasting do not look gloomy and sour, but wash your face and look nice so your fasting will not be noticed by men, but your Father will see and He will reward you in the open (Matt.6:16-18). Whatever your need, don’t be anxious about it because your Heavenly Father sees and knows well your needs, but first of all seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and then all these things will be given to you. The Father sees and will provide (Matt.6:31-35; 10:29-30; Luke 12:32). God the Father saw His Son, Jesus, delivered up, like a common criminal, according to His definite and fixed purpose, to be killed by the hands of lawless and wicked men, and He did not abandon His Son’s soul, leaving it helpless in death, nor His body to decay in the grave, but He saw His Son raised from the grave and ascend to the Father in heaven (Acts 2: 23-33). If the Father saw and preplanned this death, resurrection and ascension, surely you can know He sees you with all your needs, sins, motives, thoughts, hurts, sicknesses, etc., and He looks at you with love, compassion and forgiveness. He sees and understands and knows all. “Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite (Psalm 147:5). Infinite seeing, knowing and understanding is God’s attribute called, omniscience. Your heavenly father watches over you. The prefix “omni” means all, “science” means knowledge. David Jeremiah describes God’s omniscience in this way: “God knows all we know, all the angels know, all the universal truths of the cosmos, and all the particulars of our lives down to the number of hairs on our heads. He knows the future as well as the past. He knows what will happen and what will not. He knows all realities and contingencies. His understanding is infinite.” “It is a glorious thing to know that your Father God makes no mistakes in directing or permitting that which crosses the path of your life. It is the glory of God to conceal a matter. It is our glory to trust Him, no matter what” (Joni Eareckson Tada). I trust in God wherever I may be, Upon the land or on the rolling sea, For, come what may, from day to day, My heavenly Father watches over me. I trust in God, I know He cares for me, On mountain bleak or on the stormy sea; Tho’ billows roll, He keeps my soul, My heavenly Father watches over me. (Unknown)