Knowing the God Who Makes Himself Known
Doctrine: Receiving God’s revelation of his holiness, glory, and covenant love.
Devotion: Responding to him with reverence, delight, trust, and prayer.
Discipling: Helping another person discover and respond to God’s character in Scripture.
Main passages: ;
Supporting passages: ; ;
Memory verse: , using the NET2 Bible.
Our Purpose
By the end of this session, we should be better able to explain how God makes himself known, approach him through Christ with reverence and confidence, and help someone else read Scripture with attention to who God is. Our aim is not simply to collect correct descriptions of God, but to know, love, trust, and worship the God those descriptions reveal.
1. Beginning Together
In the Explore courses, we investigated Jesus’ claims and works. Who is he? Why should we believe him? What does he offer? In D3DStart, we began considering the life his grace gives us: peace with God, the presence of the Spirit, Scripture, prayer, obedience, and witness. D3DGrow builds on those beginnings. We do not graduate from grace into spiritual self-reliance. We become more deeply rooted in Christ, increasingly formed in his likeness, and better able to help others follow him.
We begin with God himself because what we believe about him shapes how we approach him. If we imagine him as impatient and reluctant to receive us, we may hide when we fail. If we imagine him as indifferent to sin, we may stop taking repentance seriously. If we think of him mainly as someone who helps us achieve our plans, we may struggle to trust him when life becomes painful. God does not leave us to invent his character. He makes himself known.
Discuss
- When you approach God in prayer, what do you tend to expect from him?
- What has most influenced that expectation: Scripture, personal experiences, other people, or some combination?
There is no need to give an impressive answer. Recognizing an incomplete or mistaken impression of God can be the beginning of deeper trust.
A Prayer to Begin
Father, thank you for making yourself known through your Word and through your Son. By your Spirit, help us receive what you reveal. Correct our false impressions, deepen our love for you, and teach us to respond with faith and joy. Amen.
2. Read — God Makes Himself Known
Read in the NET2 Bible.
Israel had recently entered into covenant with God. Yet while Moses was on the mountain, the people made and worshiped a golden calf. Their sin was a serious rejection of the Lord who had rescued them from Egypt. Moses interceded for them, and in he asked to know God’s ways and to see his glory. God’s answer included a promise to proclaim his name before Moses.
That is the setting for . God reveals his character in the aftermath of grievous covenant unfaithfulness. His self-revelation includes both abundant mercy and uncompromising justice.
Look Closely
- What does God say about himself in verses 6–7?
- Which descriptions particularly encourage you? Which make you pause?
- What does the passage say about forgiveness and guilt?
- How does Moses respond in verses 8–9?
Now read in the NET2 Bible.
John announces that the eternal Word became flesh. The Son who eternally shares the Father’s life has entered our human condition and made the Father known. Notice the connections with Exodus: God’s presence among his people, his glory, and the language of grace and truth.
Look Closely
- What does John say the disciples saw in Jesus?
- What does the Son make known about the Father?
- How does this passage deepen our understanding of God’s self-revelation to Moses?
Keep these passages open as we explore their significance.
3. Doctrine — Receiving God’s Truth
God Is Living, Personal, and Self-Revealing
The God of Scripture is not an impersonal force or an idea we construct to explain life. He speaks, acts, promises, judges, loves, and makes himself known. In , God identifies himself. Moses does not decide what God must be like; he receives what God reveals.
That distinction matters because we all have preferences about the kind of God we would like. We may prefer a God who never challenges us, always explains himself, or guarantees that faithful people will avoid suffering. But knowing God begins with listening rather than projecting our preferences onto him. His revelation is a gift: the Creator is not dependent on us, yet he graciously enables us to know him truly.
We cannot comprehend God exhaustively. Nevertheless, because he speaks truthfully, our knowledge of him need not be uncertain or imaginary. We can receive what he has revealed and entrust ourselves to him. Where our expectations conflict with his Word, we can bring our questions honestly while remaining willing to be corrected.
Consider: Is there an expectation about God that you need to examine in the light of Scripture?
God Is Holy: Glorious, Pure, and Worthy of Worship
Read .
Isaiah sees the Lord enthroned in majesty. God’s holiness exposes Isaiah’s uncleanness, but the account does not end with exposure. God provides cleansing and calls Isaiah into service. The God before whom Isaiah trembles is also the God who graciously equips him to respond.
God’s holiness includes his utter uniqueness and moral perfection. He is not one more being within the world, only stronger than the rest. He is the Creator on whom everything depends. He is perfectly pure, faithful, just, and true. There is no corruption in his love, deceit in his promises, or wrongdoing in his judgments.
His holiness gives us reason both to bow before him and to trust him. It also means that sin matters. Sin is not simply an obstacle to our happiness; it is rebellion against the good and holy God who made us. Yet holiness and mercy do not compete within God. The Lord who exposes Isaiah’s sin provides his cleansing. In , the Lord who refuses to treat guilt as insignificant also declares his readiness to forgive.
God Abounds in Faithful Love and Forgiveness
God’s self-description in includes compassion, grace, patience, faithful love, and forgiveness. These are not qualities we persuade him to adopt. They belong to who he is. The setting makes this especially striking: Israel has not earned a generous response. God’s mercy meets people who have sinned grievously against him.
His patience is not indifference, and his forgiveness is not pretending that evil does not matter. Rather, God acts toward sinners with a goodness they could never demand. His covenant faithfulness gives his people reason to return to him in repentance and trust.
Through faith in Jesus Christ, we receive the forgiveness he secured through his death for us. Our sins no longer stand against us: we are reconciled to God, welcomed as his children, and given his Spirit. This is the joy of belonging to God under his new covenant of grace.
Forgiveness is a glorious, costly gift. Christ bore our sins, and God does not hold them against those who belong to him. We can confess honestly because our hope rests in the Savior’s work, not in our ability to make our failures seem small.
Read . Notice how Paul holds together justification, peace with God, access to grace, hope, God’s love, Christ’s death, and reconciliation. These gifts belong together in the salvation God gives through his Son.
Discuss: How might your approach to confession change if you were deeply persuaded both that your sin matters and that Christ has secured your forgiveness?
God Makes Himself Known Supremely in His Son
directs our attention to Jesus. The eternal Son became truly human without ceasing to be God. In his human life, words, works, death, and resurrection, he reveals the Father. We therefore look attentively to Jesus as Scripture presents him, rather than imagining a difference between the Father’s character and the Son’s.
We should not picture Jesus as a compassionate Son persuading an unwilling Father to care about us. The Father sent the Son in love, the Son freely gave himself for us, and the Spirit brings us into the life and benefits of Christ’s saving work. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct persons, yet the one God acts in undivided holiness, love, and purpose.
Jesus’ compassion is not an exception to God’s character. His opposition to evil is not a departure from divine love. His cross reveals the seriousness of sin and the greatness of God’s saving love. As we continue through D3DGrow, we will explore Christ’s person and work more fully. Here we establish our starting point: the God who calls us to know him has made himself known through his Son.
Knowing God Leads to Worship and Trust
Moses responds to God’s revelation by bowing and worshiping. He also asks God to remain with his people, forgive them, and receive them as his own. Doctrine becomes devotion: the truth about God teaches us whom to trust, what to love, how to pray, and how to live.
We do not need to manufacture an intense feeling whenever we read Scripture. Sometimes understanding deepens quietly. Sometimes the fitting response is repentance, patient obedience, or a short prayer offered through tears. The important question is not, “Did I feel something impressive?” but, “How am I receiving and responding to the God who has spoken?”
4. Devotion — Responding to God Personally
From Describing God to Addressing Him
There is a difference between saying, “God is faithful,” and praying, “Father, you are faithful; help me trust you with this situation.” Both matter. The first expresses truth; the second personally responds to that truth. Devotion is not a substitute for careful understanding. It grows from understanding as we attend to what a passage says, consider its meaning, and bring ourselves before God in light of it.
D3DStart introduced a daily time in Scripture and prayer. We now deepen that practice by learning to let God’s self-revelation shape our response. The aim is fellowship with the Father through the Son, in dependence on the Holy Spirit—not simply the completion of a devotional task.
A Guided Practice: Linger, Respond, and Entrust
Allow approximately eight to ten minutes. A facilitator may introduce each movement and leave a little silence between them.
1. Return to the passage.
Read again, slowly. Choose one description of God to consider, keeping it connected to the rest of the passage. Ask what God is revealing about himself, how the setting helps you understand it, and what difference it makes to the way you approach him.
2. Recognize your response.
Perhaps you feel gratitude, resistance, relief, uncertainty, or sorrow. Bring that response honestly to God. You might pray, “Father, I believe you are compassionate, but I often expect you to be impatient with me,” or, “Lord, I have treated your patience as permission to delay obedience.” You might simply thank him that his faithfulness does not rise and fall with your feelings. These are examples, not words everyone must repeat.
3. Respond in prayer.
Use whichever parts of Praise, Thanksgiving, Confession, Intercession, and Petition naturally arise from the passage:
- Praise: Adore God for who he reveals himself to be.
- Thanksgiving: Thank him for particular expressions of his grace, especially in Christ.
- Confession: Acknowledge where your attitudes or actions contradict his truth.
- Intercession: Pray for another person in light of his character.
- Petition: Ask for the help you need to trust and obey him.
For example, God’s patience might lead you to praise his character, thank him for bearing with you, confess your impatience, pray for a struggling friend, and ask for patience in a difficult relationship. You need not cover every category every time. These are helps for prayer, not requirements for gaining an audience with God.
4. Entrust one part of your day to him.
Name one real situation and consider what trusting this truth about God would look like there. It might mean telling the truth when concealment seems easier, approaching him rather than withdrawing after failure, or showing patience toward someone who frustrates you. Ask the Spirit for help and choose a response small enough to practice and meaningful enough to matter.
When Devotion Feels Dry
Some days you will read and pray without much sense of warmth or closeness. This does not necessarily mean you have done something wrong or that God has withdrawn his love. You may be tired, distracted, grieving, or learning perseverance. Sometimes there is sin to confess; sometimes there is a burden to share with another believer. Do not assume the same explanation fits every dry season.
Return to what God has revealed. Read a manageable portion, pray honestly, and receive help from his people. A simple prayer may be sufficient: “Father, I do not feel very attentive today. Thank you that I may still come through Jesus. Help me receive your Word and trust you.” Our confidence rests in Christ, not in the emotional quality of our quiet time.
Carrying Truth Beyond the Quiet Place
Communion with God is not confined to a morning appointment. Carry one truth into the day and return to it when you become anxious, irritated, tempted, or thankful. A remembered verse can become a brief prayer amid ordinary responsibilities. The aim is not constant self-monitoring, but a growing habit of turning toward the Father through the Son, with the Spirit’s help.
Reflect: Which truth about God do you especially need to carry into this week? What ordinary moment could remind you to return to it?
5. Discipling — Helping Someone Else See God Clearly
Begin with Attention, Not a Speech
Helping another person know God does not require delivering everything you know. It begins with attending to the person and opening Scripture together. Someone may have experienced harshness from a parent, betrayal by a Christian, or teaching that distorted God’s character. Those experiences deserve careful listening. A quick correction may be factually accurate yet fail to care for the person.
We can acknowledge pain without making human experience the final authority about God: “I can understand why that experience makes trust difficult. Would you be willing to look together at how God describes himself?” The invitation matters. We are helping someone attend to God’s Word, not forcing a conversation or trying to control their response.
Share: Make One Truth Clear
Choose one truth from the passage and explain it simply. For example: “This passage shows that God is patient, but not indifferent to wrongdoing. We do not have to choose between a God who cares about evil and a God who shows mercy.”
Avoid saying more than the passage supports. If a question is difficult, do not improvise a confident answer. You can say, “I don’t know how best to answer that yet. Let’s keep the question and seek some help.” Humility models a faithful way of learning.
Model: Let Others See a Real Response
We help others through both explanation and the way we respond ourselves. You might share, “I realized this week that I often avoid prayer when I am ashamed. Remembering what Christ has done helped me confess rather than hide.”
Keep personal examples appropriate. You do not need to disclose intimate details or turn the conversation toward yourself. The purpose is to show how truth leads to trust, repentance, and prayer. Model growth, not arrival.
Guide: Help Them Take Their Own Next Step
Rather than supplying every answer, ask questions that direct attention to Scripture:
- What do you notice about God here?
- Which part is difficult to understand or believe?
- How does this passage challenge or encourage your present impression of him?
- What might you want to say to him in response?
Let the other person answer and allow time. If they are unsure, return to the text together. Their next step may be a prayer, a question to explore, or a willingness to read another passage. Do not assume everyone is ready for the same response.
Practice Together
In pairs, spend approximately ten minutes with . One person guides for five minutes, then you switch roles.
- Read the passage aloud.
- Ask what the other person notices about God.
- Listen and ask one follow-up question.
- Offer one brief clarification if needed.
- Ask whether they would like to respond in prayer.
Afterward, discuss what helped you feel heard, which question helped you look more carefully at the passage, and where you were tempted to explain too much or rush the response. This is practice, not a performance assessment.
6. Living This Session During the Week
Continue the daily rhythm you began in D3DStart. You do not need to add a second devotional program. If you are using the DQT series, let this session’s focus enrich that existing practice.
With Christ
Return to and during the week, reading slowly enough to notice their setting and message. On other days, you could revisit , , or . Choose one truth about God to turn into prayer and carry through the day. Begin memorizing in NET2, considering how its meaning connects with the rest of John’s introduction.
With Others
Look for one appropriate opportunity to read a short passage with someone—a family member, friend, or fellow believer. You do not need to reproduce the whole session. Read, listen, ask a thoughtful question, and pray if they are willing.
In Everyday Life
Choose one response that fits what you have learned. Perhaps you need to confess something you have been hiding, exercise patience in a particular relationship, entrust a concern to God while taking responsible action, or give thanks for a specific expression of his grace. These are responses to his goodness, not ways of earning it.
When We Meet Again
Come ready to share what you learned about God and how you responded. You may also bring an unresolved question or describe a difficulty. We grow by walking honestly together, not by reporting a flawless week.
7. Closing — The God We Are Learning to Know
The gospel begins with the living God who makes himself known. He is holy and glorious, and he abounds in faithful love. He takes sin seriously and grants forgiveness through the saving work of his Son. He brings us into fellowship with himself and gives his Spirit to form us in Christ’s likeness.
As we receive this truth, we learn to approach him with reverence and confidence. As we respond in worship, trust, and obedience, we become better able to help others know him too. Doctrine, Devotion, and Discipling belong together: we receive God’s truth, respond to God himself, and share life with others in its light.
Closing Prayer
Holy and gracious Father, thank you for making yourself known. Thank you for the forgiveness and peace secured through your Son, and for your Spirit who helps us know and love you. Correct what is false in our thoughts of you. Deepen our reverence, strengthen our trust, and teach us to delight in your goodness. Help us listen well, speak truthfully, and walk patiently with others as we learn to follow Christ together. Amen.