February 16th, 2022
One of the greatest promises in the Bible is the promise of God’s presence. As children of God, we have access to the very thing we were made for! Adam and Eve were created for communion with God. When He breathed life into them, they were absolutely perfect and unashamed before Him. They walked and talked with God in the cool of the day, in perfect and unbroken intimacy with their creator. God never forces fellowship though, so He made sure they had a choice. When they chose to disobey His commandment and eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, fellowship was broken, and they were banished from the garden. Every human heart that has beaten since that moment has yearned for the intimacy that Adam and Eve lost. It’s what we’re made for.
The most well-known Bible verse on planet earth, for a good reason, is John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.” This verse captures the heart of heaven. He loves us and gave His very best so we don’t spend eternity apart from Him. Every human being bears the fingerprint of God, made in His image. The greatest suffering a person could know is to be separated from the presence of God. There is some light everywhere on the earth because the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are here. Even in places that seem dark, there is a measure of the presence of God. Only in eternal separation from Him, in eternity, could a human being know the absolute absence of His presence and there is nothing God detests more. He “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 1:3-4).
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is an invitation to draw near to the one we were made to be with. It is the cry of heaven for mankind to be restored to intimacy with God and have unbroken communion with the creator of our soul. Every other endeavor of men, the thirst for love, acceptance, accomplishment, success, or money is misplaced desire. They are futile attempts to fill the void in our hearts that is inevitable if we live without His presence. We were made for Him and Him alone.
In Exodus, we see the account of the God delivering His people out of Egypt and bringing them into the wilderness. His presence came to rest on Mount Sinai and in Exodus 19: 16-20 it says, “On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.” Can you imagine how this would have looked? Can you imagine the people’s trepidation? The presence of God was intimidating. There was thunder and lightning and rumblings. God is not just the image we often have of a gentle Jesus holding a lamb. He is mighty, holy, and powerful. From the mountain, God spoke to the people of Israel, longing to consecrate them so that they could come close to Him. There had to be cleansing and separation. The same is true today! God’s presence will not rest in a place that isn’t consecrated. His presence is a purifying fire! He is the Holy Spirit. I love the Welsh word for the Holy Spirit. In English, it translates to the Clean Spirit. He is holy and clean, the purest presence on earth. He will not come and rest in a human being and leave them the way they are.
In Exodus 20:18-20, we see the people’s response to God’s invitation. It says, ‘when they saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.’ God wanted the intimacy with His people restored, but they were afraid and stood afar off, preferring an intermediary. They wanted someone to tell them what they had to do to avoid judgement, but they didn’t want to enter the place of intimacy that Moses entered. It was on that mountain that God proclaimed His name to Moses and he saw His Glory. It was on that mountain that Moses was sustained by the presence of God for forty days and nights, eating no food and water. It was on that mountain that Moses received the tablets written by the finger of God. From that encounter, the face of Moses literally shone with the light of the glory of God’s presence. After drawing into what seemed intimidating, the rumblings of a powerful storm, Moses encountered the very light of heaven: God himself. That’s the intimacy God still longs for. He is not just a gentle Jesus holding a lamb, but when we draw near to Him, He is the safest place on Earth.
Hebrews 4:16 says, “Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Today, I want to ask you, where are you? Are you walking with God in the intimacy that Jesus died for? Does God speak to you as a man speaks to a friend, like He spoke to Moses? There is always more! The Bible says that God tells His secrets to His friends (Ps. 25:14) and Jesus said, “I no longer call you servants, but friends” (John 15:15). Are we spending time in His presence like we spend time with our friends? We weren’t made for religion. Standing far off from the mountain of God will leave us dry and miserable. We weren’t made for all the desires of life that distract and deter us from His presence. All of the strivings of life will leave us scattered and empty. We were made for Him and Him alone, and nothing but His presence will satisfy the cry of our hearts. Draw near to Him. Draw near like Moses did. Draw near like Joshua did. Draw near like John did when he leaned against the chest of Jesus. Draw near to the throne of grace. His presence is what we were made for.
The most well-known Bible verse on planet earth, for a good reason, is John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.” This verse captures the heart of heaven. He loves us and gave His very best so we don’t spend eternity apart from Him. Every human being bears the fingerprint of God, made in His image. The greatest suffering a person could know is to be separated from the presence of God. There is some light everywhere on the earth because the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are here. Even in places that seem dark, there is a measure of the presence of God. Only in eternal separation from Him, in eternity, could a human being know the absolute absence of His presence and there is nothing God detests more. He “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 1:3-4).
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is an invitation to draw near to the one we were made to be with. It is the cry of heaven for mankind to be restored to intimacy with God and have unbroken communion with the creator of our soul. Every other endeavor of men, the thirst for love, acceptance, accomplishment, success, or money is misplaced desire. They are futile attempts to fill the void in our hearts that is inevitable if we live without His presence. We were made for Him and Him alone.
In Exodus, we see the account of the God delivering His people out of Egypt and bringing them into the wilderness. His presence came to rest on Mount Sinai and in Exodus 19: 16-20 it says, “On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.” Can you imagine how this would have looked? Can you imagine the people’s trepidation? The presence of God was intimidating. There was thunder and lightning and rumblings. God is not just the image we often have of a gentle Jesus holding a lamb. He is mighty, holy, and powerful. From the mountain, God spoke to the people of Israel, longing to consecrate them so that they could come close to Him. There had to be cleansing and separation. The same is true today! God’s presence will not rest in a place that isn’t consecrated. His presence is a purifying fire! He is the Holy Spirit. I love the Welsh word for the Holy Spirit. In English, it translates to the Clean Spirit. He is holy and clean, the purest presence on earth. He will not come and rest in a human being and leave them the way they are.
In Exodus 20:18-20, we see the people’s response to God’s invitation. It says, ‘when they saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.’ God wanted the intimacy with His people restored, but they were afraid and stood afar off, preferring an intermediary. They wanted someone to tell them what they had to do to avoid judgement, but they didn’t want to enter the place of intimacy that Moses entered. It was on that mountain that God proclaimed His name to Moses and he saw His Glory. It was on that mountain that Moses was sustained by the presence of God for forty days and nights, eating no food and water. It was on that mountain that Moses received the tablets written by the finger of God. From that encounter, the face of Moses literally shone with the light of the glory of God’s presence. After drawing into what seemed intimidating, the rumblings of a powerful storm, Moses encountered the very light of heaven: God himself. That’s the intimacy God still longs for. He is not just a gentle Jesus holding a lamb, but when we draw near to Him, He is the safest place on Earth.
Hebrews 4:16 says, “Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Today, I want to ask you, where are you? Are you walking with God in the intimacy that Jesus died for? Does God speak to you as a man speaks to a friend, like He spoke to Moses? There is always more! The Bible says that God tells His secrets to His friends (Ps. 25:14) and Jesus said, “I no longer call you servants, but friends” (John 15:15). Are we spending time in His presence like we spend time with our friends? We weren’t made for religion. Standing far off from the mountain of God will leave us dry and miserable. We weren’t made for all the desires of life that distract and deter us from His presence. All of the strivings of life will leave us scattered and empty. We were made for Him and Him alone, and nothing but His presence will satisfy the cry of our hearts. Draw near to Him. Draw near like Moses did. Draw near like Joshua did. Draw near like John did when he leaned against the chest of Jesus. Draw near to the throne of grace. His presence is what we were made for.
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