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How Do You See God?
Revelation 19:11
"And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war."
Our perception of a person or a situation is often determined or influenced by the current situation of our life. This way of perceiving things will often determine how we see God. In the verse above, John saw God coming to fight the last battle, the Battle of Armageddon. You must realize that John was exiled on the Isle of Patmos when He described how he saw God. Though John was going through a rough time in his life, he still gave us a good description of God.
He first described God as faithful. Though John could have looked at God and thought that God had forsaken him, He did not say this, but he said He was faithful. In other words, John was saying that God could be depended upon. It doesn't matter what you are going through, you can rest assured that God is still faithful today. God will always be there for you in your time of need, for faithfulness is part of the character of God.
John then described God as true. How thankful you ought to be that God is still a God of His Word. Whatever God says He is going to do, He will do. When trying to determine truth, look no further than God. Whatever you read in God's Word is true, for God is truth. Man may lie to you, but God is always true. Man may skew a story, but what God says is absolutely true. Man may exaggerate illustrations, but whatever God says is exactly how something happened. Not only can God be depended upon to be there for you in your time of need, but His Word can be depended upon to guide you through life.
The third way that John described God is righteous. Every Christian can be thankful for this. If it were not for the righteousness of Jesus Christ, then every person would be destined to Hell. However, John was saying that everything that God allowed to happen to him was something that he deserved. Likewise, you must stop griping to God about how He treats you and realize that you deserve everything that God allows to come your way. God's treatment of His people is always righteous treatment. Nothing will come your way that you don't deserve. I can say this because we are all sinners, and the best that any of us deserves is Hell. Therefore, stop complaining about what you don't deserve and accept God's treatment of you as righteous.
John then described God as determined and passionate. In verse 12 John saw the eyes of God "were as a flame of fire,..." God's determination and passion should be exemplified in every Christian. Don't be a Christian who is passive and dead, but be like your Saviour Who is determined and passionate about everything that He does.
In verse 13, John finally saw Jesus as his sacrifice. Jesus is the sacrifice for salvation. He is the only way that anyone can be saved. If you will focus upon Jesus as the sacrifice for your salvation, then you will find that you will see Him properly.
Let me ask you, how do you see God? John was right when he described God in these ways. Yet, how he saw God didn't even scratch the surface of the goodness of God. Take some time today and write down how you see God. Then take your list and thank God for everything that He is to you.