In John 14:23
Jesus answered and said unto him, “If a man loves Me, he will keep My words; and My Father will love him, and We will come unto him and make Our abode with him.
God’s intent has always been from before the foundations of the earth to create and indwell in and with a group of people for all eternity. He wants to dwell with us now and He will dwell with us forever. His dwelling depends on our response to His endless love!
Herein lies the key to a successful relationship with our God! His love for us was sacrificial. When we respond in kind, we can experience Him in depths and heights we have not known before. Love must have the fruit of obedience; obedience to Him at all costs. It is that makes Himself to be manifest amongst us. A life of obedience is a life that will carry the presence of God everywhere.
Today, many haven’t truly experienced God’s sacrificial love, and we have been indoctrinated by a religion of convenience rather than self-denial. That is why many of our relationships with God is so shallow and we know Him so little even though we have been professing to be His children for a very long time.
We may read the word for long periods of time or even pray or worship but is our underlying lifestyle contrary to His will or are we waking in disobedience to His word? Then He will not reveal Himself no matter how hard we may pursue Him in these avenues. However, a life of obedience opens the door to a constant communion with Him as we are overtaken by the awareness of the eternal God! There is a divine transaction happening all the time, where His life flows into us, substituting our weaknesses and our lack for His strength and fulness. So, when people meet us, they encounter God through us.
Our love expressed towards God must be sacrificial or must come from that heart. If so, it is so easy to know Him and experience Him. If not, everything we try or put our effort into is in vain.
Unfortunately, much of modern-day Christianity is self-centered, rather than God centered. So much has been built focused on one’s own self and selfish ambitions and the selfish needs and desires of people. Now, our God is a good God and He cares for us and values each one of us to meet all our needs and grant our desires (when we delight in Him). He provides, heals and delivers us! He is a good, prefect loving Father.
However, at some point in our walk with Him, the love of Christ on the cross should have touched and transformed us to the point where we start to deny ourselves and start to walk with His interests and priorities before ours!
Since, this has not been the case and much of what we see today is man centered than God centered; people generally don’t know God or our relationship with Him is shallow lacking real depth. We are not able draw from the wells of our salvation and give to a world that is thirsting very deeply.
Today, we mainly seek God only for our needs and wants and priorities to be fulfilled. We want God’s blessings on our ministry and our service. Even in the context of serving Him, we want Him to help us succeed, we want Him to increase our influence. It arises from our selfishness, and it is only self-serving. We may use all the right words and even profess to give Him glory, but in the heart of hearts haven’t we been seeking Him for our success rather than His?
A life and service built on God, is only focused on God succeeding. There is no room for ‘I’ or ‘myself’ there. Everything is done or said only to promote or glorify Him at any or all costs. If we ask for greater influence, its because the need for God is greater. If we want to succeed, it’s because the truths and grace that have been given to us is much needed for the edification of His body or for the many in darkness.
In Colossians 1: 15 to 20 and Ephesians 1:10; we see that Christ is central to the entire universe. Everything was created for and through and in Christ and one day everything will be gathered in Him. We will do well if we understand this basic but profound truth. The universe revolved around Christ and currently whatever is not revolving around Him should be brought in subjection to his Lordship. Our job at this moment in time is to do just that. There is nothing else outside of Christ. Christ is the focus; He is the beginning. He is the end.
If truly our lives and ministries are built centered on Christ, there is a presence of God that will be manifest as a result. The more we continue to build based on that, the more of Him we will be aware of and know and the more of Him we will see at work in our individual lives and ministry. The growing consciousness of Christ leads us eventually to a place where we are lost in Him. The growing (revelatory) knowledge of Him leads us to a place of transformation that comes from Him, knowing us! Christ becomes all in all in the end!
It is to this sole purpose that everyone who builds is called and if we don’t build as such, then we labor in vain and our efforts are futile!
Over the years, this fundamental truth has been key to seeing the presence and power of God at work in life and ministry. Once in a remote place called Dungra of Rajasthan, people gathered for a meeting. They were unlearned and mostly non-believers. They hadn’t come to the meeting but only for the ‘eating ‘after that 😊. I had to preach to them and was wondering if I could say anything worthwhile to them as they seemed least interested in even being there. The Spirit put in my heart to talk on Matthew 18:20. I talked to them as talking to kindergarteners as they lacked understanding also. At one point as I was emphasizing the point that Jesus was in their midst; the power of God started to manifest. Demons began to flee as I was talking and many were powerfully touched by the manifest presence of God. I didn’t have to lay hands to see people set free at that point.
If when a group of (simple non- believing) people, started believing that they had gathered to honor Jesus, resulted in the manifest presence of God; how much more should we experience God and His presence as His children when we gather to honor and worship and to know Him. From glory to glory, as we are continually built in our knowledge of Him and transformed into the same likeness together. It is not difficult at all to experience God in worship or through any part of a service, if our undivided focus is to exalt and know Him!
There is no limit to experiencing Him. My prayer is that we pursue Him always with that heart!
