WHO is God to you? Is He the God of ‘out there’ or the God of ‘right here’? It is your choice you know. And yes, I’m talking about relationship again. I’ve learned so much about relationship with the God of the Universe in the past 6 months and HAVE to share.
I find it incredible that the Creator of All wants, yes – WANTS to be in relationship with us, His creation. And I don’t believe that there’s any evidence that He wants the relationship to be an ‘out there’ type. In my thinking, this means that if we only go to Him as a last resort – when things have reached crisis status – that this is man made (determined), not God. Honestly, isn’t that just a trifle stupid?! He has the answers, why not start there first? And besides, He wants to be in a personal relationship with us… not just as creator. Personally, I think that this was part of the reason that the devil got so incensed. He, satan, was important, not us, and he never has wanted us to develop a relationship with the Father.
Do we deserve a personal relationship? Hardly. There’s a wonderful saying that says… “God owes us nothing, yet gives us everything”. True. And one of the wonderful gifts is relationship. It all began at the beginning, with how God treated Adam and Eve. He walked with them in the cool of the day (Genesis 3:8). From the very start the Lord wanted to be in relationship. And He kept demonstrating this throughout the Bible.
Is there something we need do to begin to develop a relationship. I would answer… YES. Abide. John 15: 4-11 has to be one of my favorite verses because these verses also provide us with a promise. That when we abide in Him and His words abide in us… the end result is fruitfulness! As simple as that and yet not. We are a stiff necked creation that wants to do everything – our way! Even with all the disasters, misunderstandings, bad choices, sins, unthinking decisions… we still want to do it our way. (Definitely a head slapping reaction.)
Why? To prove something to ourselves and to our God? Probably a big portion of our rebellion (yes, rebellion – at least call things as they are) has to be part of our doing it my way behavior. But since we’re invited to co-develop the relationship… our reason??? Not worthy? Is this our bottom line – or is it an excuse, a cop out? Why do we become so reluctant to be in relationship?
Perhaps there are as many different reasons as there are those off us who have accepted the Lordship but haven’t walked in relationship? Do you remember this scripture?
“You are my friends if you keep on doing what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you [My] friends, because I have revealed to you everything that I have heard from My Father. You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and I have appointed and placed and purposefully planted you, so that you would go and bear fruit and keep on bearing, and that your fruit will remain and be lasting, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name [as My representative] He may give to you.”
[John 15:14-16]
How do you understand these verses? Do you understand that you are given an invitation to friendship? Yes these verses were intended for Jesus’ disciples but if you have accepted Him as your Lord then He is inviting each of us into a personal relationship. Look at the words: I HAVE CHOSEN YOU: appointed, placed, planted (notice too that these are past tense not future – He’s done everything He can do and now it’s up to us!. And the result of a close, personal relationship is that we would bear fruit and continue to bear fruit! I would argue that this doesn’t happen if we keep Him ‘out there’. Without a ‘right here’ relationship, without abiding in Him… this can’t happen. The loss is ours.
