The Longing to Know and Be Known
“For the Lord knows the way of the righteous; but the way of the ungodly shall perish.”
Psalm 1:6
Cultures are wonderful things to study. How others entertain guests, how they spend leisure time, what their religious beliefs are, and so on—these are intriguing facts.
You might think you know about someone when you don’t really know them. For example, some who attend church appear to be model Christians, then you learn what happens in their home behind closed doors and you realize you never knew them at all.
There are different ways to know people. Some you know by name, where they live, their occupation, who they’re married to—and therefore you can say you “know” them. However, that kind of knowledge is certainly superficial.
As you reflect on today’s verse, you can see that it divides easily into two parts. First the part about the “righteous” and secondly the part about the “ungodly”. This means that the two statements describe opposite conditions.
What you see is that the way of the ungodly will perish in the end. However, the opposite is true of the righteous. Their way doesn’t perish and it’s because God “knows” their way. The verb “to know”, in the mind of a Hebrew person, meant to be actively involved with the one who is “known”. So the “righteous” person is one who has the Lord ministering to them in many ways.
In the preceding verses of this Psalm we read of the “righteous” person being absorbed in the Word of God, the Bible. They hear God’s voice in Scripture and are guided by its advice. In Psalm 119:130 we read, “The entrance of Your word gives light.”
So the Bible is a flashlight to illuminate the dark path of life.
R. G. Le Tourneau was the inventive genius who worked in the earthmoving industry and held almost 300 patents. He was recognized worldwide as the most innovative and brilliant man in his field. He was also an evangelical Christian who lived his life according to the teaching of Scripture. God “knew” him.
Marion E. Wade was the founder and guiding business genius of ServiceMaster and in writing his story he repeatedly said that it was the Lord who guided his firm. He sought the counsel of the Lord in the Bible as he grew his company into the industry leader in various countries. Christian principles of honesty and hard work were his motto. He entitled his book, The Lord is my counsel: A businessman’s personal experiences with the Bible. God “knew” him.
Does God know you? Is He guiding your life and giving you grace to endure the hardships you experience along the way? Perhaps you need to submit yourself to the direction and help of your Creator today in order that you’ll have what it takes to continue. Invite God into your life to take charge of all of it.
You’ll never regret it if you do. You’ll live to regret it if you don’t.