Articles
OUR IMAGE OF GOD
There is probably nothing sweeter than a young child’s prayer to God. Their beginning
prayers may begin with “Dear God…” or perhaps “Our Father…” and then through the years of
practice and “maturing” their words may begin to identify God as their “Heavenly Father” or
“Almighty God.” Each of us have in our minds some sort of image of God, which hopefully
changes as we mature spiritually.
The Israelites had several different images of God. While Moses was on Mt. Sinai receiving
the Ten Commandments, Aaron fashioned a “god” in the form of a calf to go before the people
(Ex. 32:1ff). When in the land of Canaan, they used the ark of the covenant as their “god” to lead
them into battle so they could be victorious over the Philistines (1 Sam. 4). Sadly, the Israelites
continued their pursuit of their “image” of God, leading them into idolatry, and eventually God
cast them into Babylonian captivity.
Moses, before resigning his leadership over Israel, reminded the people of the Almighty and
how He had taken them from captivity in Egypt, leading them to the Promised Land (Deut. 32).
Some of the psalms were written to remind the people of God’s guidance through the years (Ps.
66, 68, 78). As the Jews settled back into Jerusalem following their captivity, Nehemiah
reminded them of God’s power and greatness and their need to remember Him and their
covenant with Him (Neh. 9). Stephen, before being stoned, gave a brief history lesson to the
Jewish leaders, reminding them of God’s plan through Jesus Christ (Acts 7).
As we read through God’s Word, I pray that we are reminded that the God we worship is the
same God of creation, the same God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He is the same God who led
Israel out of bondage as a cloudy pillar during the day and a pillar of fire by night. It is this God
to whom we bow before each day asking His guiding hand in our lives. It is this God who
planned from the beginning to send Jesus Christ to die for our sins. It is this God who promised
to never leave us or forsake us (Heb. 13:5). And it is this God who calls us to worship Him!
Sometimes I forget the greatness of God. No, it is not intentional, but perhaps from time to
time we may let life take such control over us that we begin to make God more into what we
understand, instead of letting Him make us into what He truly desires. What is your image of
God? ~P. Mowrer
