Skip to main content

With You/With Him


Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
                                                            (Matthew 28:18-20)

          Today's revelation is of omnipresence,  immanence and intimacy. It is Immanuel. Jesus said, "Go and make disciples (which involves baptizing and teaching). Then He did not say "I will be with you always." He said "I AM with you always" where ever you may be. The I Am is "with you always, to the very end of the age."
      I've shared about this idea before. It's a recurring theme in Scripture, so it's important, but it's not just that God happens to be with us. He's omnipresent, so He can't not be with us, but that's not all this passage tells us. The I AM is with us. It is His nature to be with us. It's integral to His character. It does not depend on our abilities. Being with His people is just as much God being God as God being all-powerful, or loving.
      Not only is He with us always, but in this passage He tells us how we can be with Him. If you've ever had an argument with someone, you know what it's like to be in the same room with a person, and not be with that person. He invites us to be with Him, doing what He is doing, having the same priorities that He has. This is one of the main teachings of Henry Blackaby's Experiencing God: seeing where God is at work and joining Him there.
         This may be part of the solution to the issue of burnout. So often, we think we have to be everywhere and do everything, or we wonder whether what we're doing is of value. We get stuck in a rut and it seems as if we're spinning our wheels. When you're feeling that way - or even when you're not - perhaps it is time to remind yourself that God is with you always and time to examine your life and your surroundings and ask where God is working, and join Him.       
 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Right Road

          Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. (Psalm 139:7-12)                  For years before GPSes existed, I told people I wanted something in my car that would tell me, “Turn left in half a mile…turn left in a quarter mile…turn left in 500 feet… turn left in 100 feet…turn left now …You missed the turn, Dummy!” The problem isn’t necessarily that I get lost so much as I’m afraid I’ll get lost. I don’t want to have to spend my whole trip stressing over the next turn. I have the same problem with my spiritual journey.   
Post a Comment
Read more

Died as a Ransom

                 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. (Hebrews 9:15)                  This is something I’d really rather not think about but here it is and it’s important. I was reading in Bold Love about seeking revenge.  The author wrote of seeking justice when a supposed Christian does something sinful, harmful, and/or horrific, like sexually abusing a daughter.  And the thought that came to mind was of God asking if Jesus’ death was sufficient payment to me for the sin committed against me.                I have no specific longing for revenge, vengeance, or justice. I’m sure there are some lurking somewhere in my heart, but this wasn’t a response to one. It was more a question of principle. Jesus’ death was sufficient payment for to God for our sins.  That’s the standard Sunday Schoo
1 comment
Read more

Out of the Depths

  Out of the depths I have cried to You, Lord. Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive to the sound of my pleadings.   If You, Lord, were to keep account of guilty deeds, Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with You, so that You may be revered. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and I wait for His word. My soul waits in hope for the Lord more than the watchmen for the morning; Yes, more than the watchmen for the morning. Israel, wait for the Lord; for with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption. And He will redeem Israel from all his guilty deeds . (Psalm 130)             I like Mr. Peterson’s interpretation of the first line. “The bottom has fallen out of my life!” Of course, the problem for some of us is the fact that we’re drama queens, and/or we’re weak. Any time anything happens that disturbs our sense of mastery and control, the bottom has fallen out of our lives. If the past couple of days have taught me anything, they’ve t
1 comment
Read more