Because I Know…Intimately
Psalms 9:10 “And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.”
If I talked to you about God, what would I tell you? Well, I could share scriptures about His awesome power and His mighty works. Or I could tell you how the same power and works changed my life and brought me out of my personal struggles and desolation. Of course, there is nothing wrong with sharing information, but if I shared only information with you, all I would be communicating is theology. However, sharing with you what I intimately know about God is my testimony. Revelations 12:11 tells us that the “accuser of the brethren” was defeated by the blood of the lamb and the word of their testimony.
Our text starts this way, “And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee.” The first thing we want to focus on is the word “know.” In context, this word does not refer to an intellectual type of know; instead, it refers to an intimate type—-the testimony type which confirms that you’ve seen God do only what He can do. And if the truth be told, there is no way that you can have a testimony if you’ve never had an intimate, one-on-one experience with God. This intimacy produces the awesome by-product called trust. Now, let’s go back to the text.
Psalms 9:10 “And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee.”
Through our personal experiences of seeing God move, not our intellect, we learn to trust Him more and more. Of course this trust is known as faith, and as our faith strengthens, so does our relationship with God. As we learn to rely and believe in Him, we grow spiritually. But none of this can occur without intimacy – taking the time to get to know God on a personal level.
Also intimacy moves God. This is confirmed in the latter portion of our text: “for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.” As long as we are seeking God with our whole heart, He won’t abandon us, forsake us, leave us, or neglect us.
James 4:8 tells us, “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” Doesn’t this sound like the opposite of forsaking us? As we pursue the intimate relationship with God, He will accept us and not abandon us, forgive us and not forsake us, lead us and not leave us, nurture us and not neglect us. Therefore, pursue God with all of your heart. Pursue the intimate, close, one-on-one relationship with Him. In doing so, you will experience for yourself His personal promise of intimacy: “I will never leave you nor forsake you!