by RobertCummins | Aug 10, 2015 | 32. Intimacy
Intimacy – Isaiah 62
In this passage, God is revealing things about himself through the foretelling of His servant Isaiah. The prophet is declaring a reversal of fortunes for Zion. The language is very strong! He is vowing, by His might and power, to cause this to come to pass. Zion will one day enjoy a windfall! Where she has viewed herself as forsaken and desolate, prophecy indicates she will one day see herself in a holy different light.
What will this look like? These are the words Isaiah chose; gloriously beautiful, royal, holy, desirable, an object of praise, worthy of God’s own rejoicing. How will this seemingly impossible thing come about? Isaiah chose the imagery of marriage to convey the answer. God’s might will originate in intimacy! It turns out intimacy, of the strength lovers enjoy, shall be the ways and means of God. Consequently, that Bride, secure in her identity as his beloved, shall become a marvel in the earth and a crown of glory to God Himself.
How could this come about? Not to belabor the point 🙂 but, have I mentioned the Blue Book lately? In its unassuming appearance Jim Branch’s devotional, at its core, is an invitation into intimacy. I will always view it as God’s somewhat nondescript yet personal invitation to the Marriage Supper. When people pick up on the spirit of this devotional, they discover that a feast has already been prepared. Yes, we must take up knife and fork, but the Blue Book points us to Jesus who is our feast. Intimacy with God is a gift but we must learn the process of partaking.
So many of us have been conditioned to think its a professional pastor’s job to prepare the meal and dish it out once or twice a week. Sadly, this idea is a broad path which leads too many into a complacent state of starvation. Where this apathy exists, the Blue Book can help stimulate the native hunger within a redeemed soul. Admittedly, it is a plain vanilla looking invitation but for those willing to engage, the Blue Book can lead to the discovery that the door into the Holy of Holies is wide open. Intimacy is not just the bread of select mystics. It is the inheritance of the redeemed. Intimacy is simply what Father wants with his children and has provided in Christ.
I do not attend a conventional (little “c”) church at this time although I consider myself to be a member in good standing of the (big “C”) Church – the Body of Christ. I have many friends who do attend church and who even lead in this setting. I do not seek to win them away nor do I really want them to try and win me back. I already know when I will return. It will be when I find a core of leaders who have successfully raised up disciples – men, women and children who have formed a living community by partaking of Christ in the ongoing affairs of their daily lives. They will not only tolerate the mystic’s notion that intimacy with God is possible; they will demonstrate how intimacy, since it is a gift, is normative.
Our passage suggests there is another behind-the-scene variable in the ways and means of Israel’s transformation. There are a group of people referred to as watchmen who would simply not be quiet nor would their souls find peace until Zion’s glory is evidenced in the earth. God has uniquely yoked Himself to these people whom He has appointed as reminders to Him and to others. Since God’s memory is fine it seems reasonable that his motive is, at least in part, to include men in this process of restoring identity and destiny to his children.
As a road contractor, I appreciate Isaiah’s,
Build up the highways, remove the stones, lift up a standard over the people.
I believe a watchman may be the equivalent to an inspector on a construction project. This person is the owner’s representative. The owner’s standards have created a vision in the watchful inspector’s mind and he knows what the project is supposed to look like when it is finished. The plans are always rolled out in his office and he has poured over them. His experience even enables him to understand the processes required to build the project. And interestingly, he does not give himself, nor anyone else, rest until the project is completed according to the standards. I believe between now and the time the Church is fully glorified we will see more watchmen.
Note: He didn’t label them watchmen, as such, but Charles Swindoll identifies them in Parts 1& 2 of The Problem With Progress which I have included as an addendum to today’s MwM post. These pieces were originally offered in Crosswalk.com on December 6th and 8th of 2014. This content appeared originally in his book; Come Before Winter and Share My Hope. God bless you C.S.!
Isaiah was a watchman for Zion. Who are the watchman, the standard bearers today for the kingdom of God? I believe they exist. They are the ones who have rolled out the plans, in whose listening hearts God has whispered what He intends His kingdom to look like. Watchmen may appear troubled because what has been built to date does not resemble the standard God revealed to them in His word and by His Spirit.
You may be able to recognize them because they are coloring outside the established lines. With a glorious king and His kingdom in mind, they are envisioning new structures and concepts which to them, more closely resemble the vision that has been planted in their hearts. The hard questions they ask and the radical proposals they consider are warranted (in their view) because what they are observing seems incompatible with the standards as they have come to understand them.
Not all watchmen are atop the walls of the ancient city of Jerusalem crying out for the restoration of that nation or its real estate. Some are weeping and making petition for the Church and are not giving God (or others) much rest until this community resembles the glorified Bride of Christ referred to in Scripture. Some, who have the plans rolled out, see a day where a glorified church will be used to awaken Israel, by way of jealousy, to the intimacy of God’s love. Paul was one of these; in Romans 11, he aspires that…..
I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them.
Father raise up those watchmen who are holding up your standard, clinging to the vision You have of Your Bride and Your kingdom. Raise up those who hunger and thirst for kingdom realities. May the children of Zion awaken to Your call as they see glories of intimacy with God. May we individually and corporately see our appointments and pathway to intimacy. May we partake with many of our feast who is Christ Jesus. Amen.
The Problem With Progress: Part 1
| Progress seems like a two-headed giant, doesn’t it?Looking back on it, it is admirable, almost heroic. We salute visionaries of yesteryear. They emerge from the pages of our history books as men and women of gallant faith. We shake our heads in amazement as we imagine the herculean courage it took to stand so confidently when the majority frowned so sternly. Yesterday’s progress earns for itself today’s monuments of stone.
Looking back, we laud those who refused to take no for an answer. We quote them with gusto. We even name our children after them.
But today? What do we do with such creatures today? We brand them as irritating malcontents, reckless idealists who simply won’t sit down and be quiet. Today’s progressive dreamers are seen as permissive, wild-eyed extremists.
Not showing much corporate promise (since they hate the status quo mold), most of them have a tough time going along with the system. They in fact loathe the system. But what they lack in diplomacy they make up for in persistence. Cooperative they’re not. Resilient they are. Give most of them a couple hundred years and they’ll be virtually knighted. But at the present moment, they seem nuts.
I can scarcely think of a half dozen churches today, for example, that would so much as consider having Martin Luther candidate for the pulpit. It’s doubtful that very many of you in business would hire Thomas Edison or Leonardo da Vinci into your company. And which evangelical seminary would chance turning over its students majoring in systematic theology to a firebrand like John Knox? Or tell me, how would an emotionally charged free spirit like Ludwig van Beethoven fit the stuffy chair of any university’s department of music? And who today would choose to go into battle with a blood-n-guts, straight-shooting commanding officer like George Patton or “Howlin’ Mad” Smith? For that matter, how many votes would a crusty, outspoken, overweight visionary like Winston Churchill—or the rugged Andrew Jackson—get in our day of slick government and touch-me-not bureaucrats and politicians? You think we’d respect their progressiveness and value their vision? Don’t bet on it. People didn’t in their day.
One biblical hero who was especially upsetting to the national status quo—and whose life spanned agony and ecstasy—was Elijah. Follow the rise of his prophetic career in 1 Kings 17–19. What is his legacy for you?
Tomorrow we’ll talk more about such revolutionary eagle-types. Perhaps you’ll realize that you’re one of them.
The Problem With Progress: Part 2
Though in time we may laud their boldness and radical qualities, in their day most progressive dreamers are seen as permissive, wild-eyed extremists.
I came across a rather remarkable letter purportedly written over one hundred and fifty years ago by Martin Van Buren to President Andrew Jackson. The contents? A strong, critical warning that the “evil” new railroads would disrupt business, boost unemployment, and weaken our nation’s defense. Historians may debate the authenticity of this little epistle, but see if the underlying tone doesn’t sound vaguely familiar.
January 31, 1829
To President Jackson:
The canal system of this country is being threatened by the spread of a new form of transportation known as “railroads.” The federal government must preserve the canals for the following reasons:
One. If canal boats are supplanted by “railroads,” serious unemployment will result. Captains, cooks, drivers, hostlers, repairmen and lock tenders will be left without means of livelihood, not to mention the numerous farmers now employed in growing hay for horses.
Two. Boat builders would suffer and towline, whip and harness makers would be left destitute.
Three. Canal boats are absolutely essential to the defense of the United States. In the event of the expected trouble with England, the Erie Canal would be the only means by which we could ever move the supplies so vital to waging modern war.
As you may well know, Mr. President, “railroad” carriages are pulled at the enormous speed of fifteen miles per hour by “engines” which, in addition to endangering life and limb of passengers, roar and snort their way through the countryside, setting fire to crops, scaring the livestock and frightening our women and children. The Almighty certainly never intended that people should travel at such breakneck speed.
Martin Van Buren
Governor of New York
How wildly progressive can you get? Just imagine the shock of the Almighty(!) as those iron horses began to rumble by at such “breakneck speed.” It may be amusing in our day of moonshots, Concorde jet flights to London, and intercontinental ballistic missiles, but when the late Governor Van Buren dispatched that epistle in the winter of 1829, he was sober and serious as a judge. The very idea of a President even tolerating such a thought smacked of temporary insanity. Maybe the heat from Old Hickory’s “kitchen cabinet” was getting to him.
Are you an eagle-type, soaring to heights beyond your peers? Do you find yourself bored with the maintenance of the machinery . . . yawning through the review of the rules . . . restless to cut a new swath . . . excited rather than intimidated by the risks? Don’t expect pats on the back or great waves of applause. Not today. Chances are good you’ll lose a few jobs, fail a few courses, ruffle tons of feathers, and be the subject of the town gossip. Mavericks who don’t color within the lines are also notorious for not staying within the fences. And that makes folks terribly uncomfortable.
There’s something about that old progressive giant that currently casts a shadow on your genius. But take heart! Many an alleged heretic today will be a hero tomorrow. Which is another way of saying, “first the cross, then the crown.”
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
by RobertCummins | Aug 10, 2014 | 32. Intimacy
John 17:20-26
If prayer is authentic surely it must express that thing within us that is the most prominent, the most important of our heart’s desires. When I read this passage which is Jesus’ final prayer before Judas betrays Him, I thought I was likely reading the fullest expression of God’s core heart desire. It caused me to pause and pray myself that my heart would be responsive as I peered in upon something so beautiful and holy as the refined passion and intent of God’s own heart.
Jesus begins by making it clear that He is praying for you and I. With yearning He asks God to reveal to us the glorious nature of love that was shared among the Godhead before creation. With a sense of urgency He goes further; He prays that all those of us who have been given to Him would not only witness this love but experience it and the unity that attends it –
that they (which is us) would all be one“.
He elaborates on unity with these words;
Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee“; I in them and Thou in Me.
When we think of unity, we might think of doctrinal harmony or we may be drawn to the idea of various church “joint-ventures” where resources are combined to meet a need in the community. I thank God for these small beginnings. But without taking anything away from them, I do think when Jesus’ prayer is answered it will look like these gatherings plus much much more.
The reason for my confidence has to do with the “in” word. I want to honor the work of Christ that has transpired so far in the earth but I must confess I see a day coming when the implications to us of being in-Christ and Him in-dwelling us, works itself out in a way that will be so spectacular it will eclipse by far anything we have seen to date. I am envisioning the day that this final prayer of Jesus, “that the world may know and believe” is answered. It is OK to me that I have not yet seen anything so dramatic. That Jesus Himself has made the request assures me this day will come. The only question is “when” ?
If I am dreaming in the right direction; in the direction of Jesus own prayers, I can envision the Bride of Christ awakening to the valid notion that her destiny is not just decay or indifference, which in her slumber, she had learned to call normal. One day she will hear his kind words that are spoken to her in her wilderness; she will respond to His invitation to come away to that place where she can be alone with Him. His words will then awaken a rightful and normative engagement with His great heart.
I believe Christ in us, is the basis for that kind of glorious hope. A representative of the Godhead indwells us by His Holy Spirit. My heart tells me we have not yet seen the fullest implication of this fact. OK…so what good is this grandiose thinking? What do I have to do with some future-possible dispensation that may be slated eschatologically downstream somewhere? Maybe nothing – yet maybe everything. Awakenings and revivals begin in human hearts. What if individual members in Christ’s body were to invite Jesus to launch the next great revival in their own hearts and begin taking responsibility for their hearts by getting alone with HIm and praying in harmony with Jesus’ stated intentions?
Father, thank You that You prayed this for us – that we would realize the “oneness” we have as You indwell us. Help us to grasp the indestructible nature of this union. Grant that our heart’s desires would be shaped by Your heart and that our chief ambition would to be simply to recognize that You are with us wherever we are, and that we might behold Your glory. Grant that our vision and our destiny be constructed from what You have prayed as opposed to what we have thought. Lord, perfect us in unity that the world may know that You sent Jesus to restore all things to Your wondrous original intention. Amen.
by RobertCummins | Aug 9, 2014 | 32. Intimacy
Hosea 2:14-23
That God is powerful goes without question for most Christians. We can look up at the stars and realize that the light we see now was emitted long long ago and has only now reached our vision. A testimony from nature such as this helps our perspective regarding the dimensions of God’s power. We conclude that a God such as this surely deserves to be honored and we respond, “God we worship You in Your power and might.” No doubt God appreciates that we reverence Him so. However, as stunning as his strength is, Hosea reveals something that is perhaps even more astonishing about God – His heart.
To reveal it, God requires the prophet Hosea to wed Gomer, a prostitute, to graphically depict how God’s mysterious heart works. She is habitually unfaithful and deluded, believing her material needs are being provided by her many lovers. No doubt Hosea wept as he watched his wife degrade and soil herself, sharing her body with those who cared nothing about her. What Hosea rightfully deserved and wanted was her fidelity and her love but he could not have it. All he could do was dream of a future day when he would get her back. While she deserved to be stoned, he is dreaming of her redemption.
As God dreams and projects His will forward, He anticipates a day when His beloved will be brought into a wilderness place and He will woo her with kind words; give her gifts and restore the vitality of her youth. Most importantly her heart will somehow be changed and she will speak the names of her lovers no more. It seems the event of her restoration will be so glorious that God will initiate a new covenant that occasions blessing to spill over into all surrounding nature and society.
We see married couples commonly rehearsing their vows after years of marriage. It seems something similar is going to occur between God and Israel. In this long awaited ceremony God will betroth His Bride to Himself in righteousness, justice, compassion, lovingkindness and perhaps most importantly to the spurned Lover – faithfulness. Finally! Faithfulness.
Verse 20 says, that then Israel will know the Lord.
As God enjoys renewed intimacy with His Beloved it seems all of creation will join in the celebratiion and enjoy the gift of its own restoration. It says God will respond differently to the heavens, and in turn the heavens will respond differently to the earth, and the earth itself will then respond with unprecedented fertility. My mind is drawn to the New Testament where Paul (in three places) expresses it this way;
with a view to an administration suitable to the fulness of times, that is the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things upon the earth. (Eph 1:10)
and through Him (Jesus) to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross…whether things on earth or things in heaven. (Col 1:20)
that all creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the the freedom of the glory of the children of God. (Rom 8:21)
Father, we know this was about Israel but we also know that we have been grafted into that story and that we are the beneficiaries of Your great heart. We see the cosmic implications for man and creation but I will satisfy myself with knowing that in my most grotesque and shameful thoughts and deeds you were loving me and wooing me. In my wildernesses, many of which I have created, You have spoken kindly to me and rescued me. May the faithfulness and consummation You desire with Israel begin in my heart. Permit me to journey further into that place in Your heart where Your power and Your love merge – transforming all they touch. Amen.
by RobertCummins | Aug 8, 2014 | 32. Intimacy
Song of Solomon 4:8-16
At first encounter most wonder what is so special about the Blue Book. This passage of scripture helps reveal the secret. Please read on.
Song of Solomon is about two persons; one royal, the other of common Shulamite ancestry. These two are obsessed with each other. There is room for nothing else in their hearts and minds than each other. Theirs is an all consuming love affair. In this passage it is the man confessing his passion and desire. Yet, he will not force her. He invites her,
Come away with me.
Being alone with his beloved is where his desire will be satisfied. It is her choice to reciprocate. This book may be instructive to courting and married partners but I mentioned Tuesday that I believed the Spirit was using the imagery of physical attraction and union as the closest metaphor available to convey the incomprehensible strength and focus of God’s love.
I am struck again that it was this kind of passionate vulnerable Heart that was leaning, as God incarnate, with expectation and anticipation of union with his beloved, which was greeted when He was making His invitation, with unbelief, scorn, ridicule and ultimately crucifixion; essentially saying to this broken hearted Lover, “Leave us alone permanently.” His response?,
Father forgive them for they don’t understand what they are doing.
Truly, what manner of love is this?!! I wonder what the scribes and Pharisees were teaching about this book when Jesus walked the earth? I wonder; how did they instruct the people to consummate their relationship with God and fulfill their primary command to love the Lord their God with all their heart and soul and mind and strength? As I understand it they taught that fidelity through obedience plus the priest’s sacrifices, were what God wanted. They taught that God demanded compliance to the rules He had previously given plus a few hundred more (which they had thrown in as a hedge). I wonder if Jesus ever heard a single one of them say, “I love you Lord.”
It was not that long ago that this sentence would have gotten stuck in my throat. I really could not say it with clear conscience. After all, religion had drilled it into me that my desperately sick heart was always, as the song goes, “inclined to stray”. I knew my secret sins and something about my selfish dual motives. All I could do was say, “God, I pray that someday I will love You in a way that is really worthy of You. We both know what a mess of a person I am”. Then, depending on whatever my current level of spiritual exhaustion was, I would recommit to being obedient and attempt to live in brokenness and contrition. Unless I had been very productive or chaste I would not have enough gaul (based on my efforts) to say, “Lord, I love you”.
I have often thought that if Jeff Foxworthy had a Christian act, he might say, “You might be a Pharisee – if you struggle in saying, “I really love You Father”. Or, “You might be a Pharisee if – you are deeply concerned about other’s performance (but not so much about your own).” From personal experience I can say that these two conditions usually exist in tandem as they did with the original legalists who, like I, made a mockery of God’s amazing grace and His loving invitation “to come” by living in the illusion that my performance was the prerequisite for His approval as well as the essence of my coming.
Note; For this pharisee, I can report that I was not conscious of my religious bent. (This is called deception.) I was doing all this bad math at a deeper level somewhere than conscious thought. I did not arise in the morning and plot how I could earn His approval. It was instinctive and foundational. Just like our other fallen appetites, religion is systemic to our flesh but it is far more deadly than lust or greed because religion will make a case (and a pretty good show) out of its false (self) righteousness. The heart that is tapped into religion produces only the toxic-fruit of works, never the eternal fruit of rest.
Today, I am so grateful that the sentence, “I love You” rolls off my lips easily without consideration of my performance past or recent. There is not enough space here to describe how I got into a religious performance-based relationship to God or how I was freed from it, but it is enough to say that it has been like taking deep gulps of refreshingly clean and life giving air after having been long submerged below water. Note: If this awakens something in you, the story of how the Lord un-entangled (and is untangling) this heart from religion is an ongoing theme at midlewithmystery.com
Father, breakdown every religious stronghold lurking in our hearts. We know that You desire a sensitive and compassionate heart and not just one that foolishly thinks our sacrifices of obedience are all You are after. Where we may have been wounded and grown hardened or become indifferent for whatever reason to Your invitation to “come away” with You, would You heal us and enable us to hear once again Your patient heart that will not rest until You hear from each of us, and all of us, “Oh God, how I love you!” Amen.
The Blue Book’s Secret: First of all; it’s not about the Blue Book. The book is unpretentious. It is not copyrighted. No one profits from it. It was given as a gift to the body of Christ by JLB. It is simple. It introduces us to a community of God intoxicated Shulamites who cannot live without their beloved. Their condensed wisdom is shared in digestible-sized nuggets that each, in their own way, echo the Lover’s invitation to “Come away.” It’s gift is the catalytic impact it has on hearts that respond to God’s invitation. No, its not about the Blue Book and It is for sure not about religion. It all about Him. It always has been and it always will be.
by RobertCummins | Aug 7, 2014 | 32. Intimacy
Revelation 12:1-7
And there shall no longer be any death.
A timely statement as I am attending a fellow contractor’s funeral this morning. I wonder if the minister will mention that one day, in the blink of an eye, death as well as mourning, crying and pain will all be old news. This passage is about new things – a new heaven, a new earth. He even saw….
the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
I have always wondered if I was being irreverent since my imagination has never been awakened by a massive cube of real estate descending from heaven. I am attracted though to the idea of the bride made ready. But then I read on;
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them,
As enamored as a paving contractor might be with streets that are paved with gold (as opposed to asphalt); ones that will never know a pothole, I was far more attracted to the fact that God, at this time, has claimed His own and dwells among them. I pray that our hearts are not just saying something foolish like, “Ah yes, the sweet bye and bye, it will undoubtedly be an improvement over our current circumstances; I shall look forward to that day off in the far distance. I pray that if all goes well, I shall someday see it.”
I suspect if my deceased associate, who has reached his own, could speak, he would testify, now that he is outside of time, that our ends too are not at all far off, rather they are but a moment or so from what we are thinking of as now. That is why scripture reminds us that…
today is the day of salvation.
This means that for all of us, all the time, the hourglass is nearly empty. It is only a mirage that our time is spread out before us like a never ending road over the horizon. It is a fool’s gamble to assume that since we did not die yesterday, we will not die today. Even though verse 7 and beyond are frightening, I think scare tactics to motivate those yet-to-be-saved ones have limited value. I am concerned that those who make decisions under the stress of fear are not really entering into relationship with God; they are just trying to purchase a little insurance policy that may or may not pay the death benefit they anticipate. It would seem much better to me that we come to God drawn by his loving incentives rather driven by His wrath-filled disincentives.
The question always at hand is, will we take Jesus at His Word; will we respond when He says,
I will give to anyone who thirsts from the spring of the water of life (who is Christ Himself) without cost (what a great incentive).
How sad that many of the wheeler-dealers in this world overlook the bargain of eternity. While successful business negotiations in this life do not necessarily preclude one from entering eternity on heaven’s side, having ones heart invested wrongly can. If the ambition of a life is grounded solely in time, motivated solely by profit, status and the comfort it might secure, it is sad to say that this life will not qualify as the overcoming type which will inherit eternal life. And, it is important to say that this horrific outcome will have had nothing to do with the perceived relative goodness or badness of that life. It will have resulted exclusively from the fact that the timeless One was not present reigning as the Life within and the Light of that heart.
He who overcomes shall inherit these things, and I will be his God and he shall be my son.
That some believed they had not seen adequate evidence that there is a God or that, if there was, that He was worthy of their attention, will not matter at the end when God wraps up the old business of this world and pounds His gavel, closing the proceedings with these words,
IT IS DONE! I am the ALPHA and OMEGA (always having been outside of time), the beginning and the end. My words (not our perceptions of them made inside of time) are faithful and true.
If you read Revelation you must allow that the apostle John was either hallucinogenic, a gifted and creative charlatan, or an oracle. I’m betting on the latter. Even though scripture tells us that…
eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and which has not yet entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him
God permitted John, who was in a trance or dream, to leak out some things that, at the very least, stretch our hearts and minds. I think the book of Revelation was offered to us for the same reason all of scripture was given to us – to penetrate our hardened and deluded time-bound hearts with the hope and life of His Words which are by nature outside of time, always spoken in love, to invite us to partake of Him who is the water and the bread of life. (HUGE incentive)
If I were the minister at my deceased associate’s funeral. I would say……
“I am sure it would be the desire of the deceased and his family for us to take this precious fleeting moment in time that is before us as a gift so that we may each personally consider our relationship to eternity and to time; our relationship to the idols of this world; and most importantly, our relationship to the God of this world and the next. We contractors have been conditioned to think of life as a series of contracts, each with an alotted number of days to complete; each of them with their own unique incentive and disincentive clauses (to properly motivate us). The similarities between our vocation and life are profound….
We too, as individuals, each have an allotted amount of time. However, in these contracts we do not know exactly when the Owner of it all will says, “Time’s up. It is finished“. We professional managers of risk must consider our lives from the ultimate Owner’s “timeless” perspective. He who is faithful and true is saying, “Today (this moment actually) is all I have given you. You bargain drivers out there, please understand that receiving eternity as a gift is the best deal you will ever encounter. I am sure our friend, who has gone before us, would encourage each of us, in this very moment, to do business with the One to whom we will all ultimately give an account.”
I would then close in prayer;
Father, may You continue to assault and penetrate our time-driven illusions of reality with Your eternal words of abundant life. Teach us to number our days that we may present to you hearts of wisdom. May you teach us to embrace what we cannot see now so that we may one day be among those who overcame and enjoy a tearless, painless, joy-filled eternity as a part of Your very own family. And…. may you truly comfort those who have lost their loved one today. Amen.”
by RobertCummins | Aug 6, 2014 | 32. Intimacy
Psalm 139
As a brand new Christian in 1976, it truly seemed like something magical had exploded in my heart. I felt as though I was the frog who had become a prince. As it turned out I had but that wasn’t the half of it. It turns out that I was that guilty and condemned criminal bound over for execution only to find someone else had paid my debt and enabled me to walk out of my chains as a free man. If that weren’t enough, to my amazement, it was the Judge who paid that capital expense for my debt. Neither was I released to just wander the streets. The Judge Himself had adopted me . I was an orphan who had become a son of the Most High God. The Judge had become MY Father! I started my Christian experience with a huge “YES” in my heart. “To whatever You say God, my answer will be ‘YES’!” At least I aspired that it would be.
A place that I frequently noticed this “yes” response was when I read the Bible. Prior to 1976, this book had been intimidating and incomprehensible. Now, when I read scripture, I noticed my heart would respond with a “yes”. Even though I did not grasp everything intellectually, I agreed; “Yes this is true; yes this is life; yes this is the way.” Psalm 139 was the first passage of scripture that really grabbed me. I memorized it because of the strange and powerful “YES” I experienced when I first read it. This psalm breaks down the overarching theme of intimacy into many specific realities. I will never regret that these realities were initially imprinted onto my heart 37 years ago. Time and experience has only reinforced them. They have served me well (particularly in times when I could not see a thing) as reference points to the invisible kingdom of which I had become a citizen.
Here are some of the things I internalized and adopted as benchmarks from Psalm 139;
1) I exist because He was intentional in my creation. In other words; I was no accident.
2) I will exist on this earth for the time He has allotted for me.
3) The job He did in creating me was awe-inspiringly wonderful.
4) Everything I do or say is known in perfect detail (even in advance).
5) He is always searching and working in my heart.
6) The thoughts I have about Him will be numerous and precious in value.
7) But as wonderful as those thoughts are, they are far to frail (bracketed by my mortality) to fully grasp the scope of who He is (in His immortality) and all that He oversees (in eternity).
8) Even if I tried, I could not escape His notice and His care.
9) Even if things go dark on me, things are always well lit with God
After I read this passage and considered its import I wanted to respond in kind with David,
Search me O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful ways in me, and lead me in the everlasting way.
In other words, “Please Father, don’t let anything interfere with this ‘yes’ in my heart!”
One of the many amazing things about God is that His memory is not faulty but it is selective. Once we repent of our sin, He forgets them. Its not a malfunction. Its His choice. My point in saying this is that a new chapter of our stories, “our journeys into intimacy” can begin afresh each new day. While they may be troubling to us, our pasts are of no account to Him. Where we have been most traumatized by life, Christ desires that those specific places become our springboards into intimacy (not the millstones about our necks we are apt to view them as). As far as it concerns us, no greater opportunity exists to manifest His glory in this earth, than for us to permit Him to transform our sorrow into joy right in the face of our enemies and in the face of a creation that intuitively longs to see redemption. It is His will in heaven that where evil has abounded, grace shall abound all the more.
If the word “intimacy” throws us and we don’t have a clue what its about, all that is needed is a real conversation with God (prayer). No one who has ever come to Christ with their honest heart questions has been turned away. (Some, I believe have though who have only dressed up their bitterness and unbelief as questions. This would just be complaining) When the human heart turns toward God (instead of away) Christ is receiving some of the reward of His suffering.
If I be lifted up, men shall be drawn unto Me.
It is in this engagement that we discover His faithfulness and we taste and see that He is so good. The yes’s (and the no’s) of our heart will be greatly influenced in this awaiting conversation.
Father, that You daily offer us the privilege to live as sons and daughters in Your holy presence, persons who were once unclean, hopelessly lost, enslaved and condemned, is something we pray that will never be lost on us. Create and sustain that “yes” within us. Search out those things in our hearts that would dull our perception of eternal reality. And like David, we pray that You would be exceedingly rough on our enemies – those whose mission it is to blunt our awareness of Your intimate presence. Receive the reward of Your suffering in us Lord – our enjoyment of the intimate connection You have reestablished between us and the Father. Amen.
