The Air I BreatheSample

The God Who Wants to Be Known

In the New Testament book of Acts (a historical overview of the early Christian church) we find the main character, Paul, entering Athens to proclaim the gospel.

Right in the middle of the intellectual center of the known world, Paul found a multitude of idols to gods of every name and description. But the inscription on one altar seized his heart. It read: “TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.”

Even with all their idols, these intellectual giants wanted to cover their bases, making sure all deities were happy in the event there was something, or someone, more.

When Paul spoke to the people of Athens, he didn’t take long to get to the point.

“I see that you are religious in every respect,” he began. “For passing through your objects of worship I also found an altar with this inscription, ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’ What you worship in ignorance, I proclaim to you.” (See Acts 17:15-34.)

Just as they were at the time of Paul, people everywhere are still searching, still wondering if there’s a God they can know.

And there is. God is always seeking you. Every sunset. Every blue sky. Every ocean wave. He blankets each new day with the invitation “I am here.”

It’s a revelation that is accessible to all. Yet painted skies and a spinning earth aren’t enough to tell His story. God’s face couldn’t be clearly known until His Son appeared—God on the ultimate search, appearing in human flesh.

To us, ready or not, Jesus came. To us, worthy or not, He appeared. Accepting or not, we find His footprints in Palestinian soil.

God wants you to know Him.

Searching for Him isn’t like looking for a needle in a theological haystack. He isn’t hiding. He isn’t some mysterious force or philosophical construct that you can’t quite grasp or attain.

In fact, the opposite is true. His Son appeared to all in bodily form. Jesus walked this earth in plain sight so that anyone seeking God could find their way to Him.

God wants you to know that you’re the object of His affection, created in His image, made by and for Him. He wants you to know that the Unknown God has a name. He wants you to know that the incredible desire for worship rooted deep inside your heart was crafted for Him.

In what ways today do you see God seeking you?