“The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I have been saved from my enemies. The cords of death entangled me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me. The cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me.” Psalm 18:1-5

Our relationship with G-d is at the heart of our moral life. And the images of G-d we form play an important role in how this relationship develops. For example, for many of my younger years I had formed the image of G-d as an angry G-d, a harsh punisher and ultimate judge. As such my relationship with G-d was one formed out of fear – not love and grace.

As Christians we have certain influences for forming an image of G-d: the Sacraments, prayer, and bible study have as much influence as our experiences in and out of the church. These all influence how we think and feel about G-d. One image of G-d that comes to us through scripture  comes from the Psalms (18, 62). These suggest the image of G-d as “Rock” – “The Lord is my Rock, my fortress”; “G-d alone is my Rock and my salvation.”

Now you may not be comfortable thinking about or comparing G-d to a rock, but we should not hold just one image of G-d in our hearts. We need to multiply our images of G-d. Different images help us to appreciate different aspects of G-d, who, truthfully is always greater than any description. But each image we have gives us a glimpse of the mystery of   G-d.

The bible offers a wonderful variety, including fire, love, shepherd, shelter, bread of life, and the Holy One. And the parables point to an intimate, loving G-d. So, what image of G-d is at the root of your relationship with G-d?

Pastor Dave