THE SECRET TO INTIMACY WITH
GOD
Part 1
By David Woodbury
For a
Christian, the sense of an intimate relationship with God is the pinnacle of
our pilgrimage. To know how to make that intimate connection with God is one of
the great challenges of the Christian life. Humanly speaking it is a gigantic
mental and physical leap to have a relationship where there is no tangible,
physical presence, or awareness.
If we are
to have some sort of meaningful and intimate relationship with God, we need to
address this situation. I guess in this day and age it is possible to have a
relationship where there is no tangible physical presence such as on the
Internet. However, even there, there is some degree of physical and/or
emotional awareness.
What we are
seeking here goes into a realm in which most of us have little knowledge,
experience or awareness; the world of the human spirit. At some level, we
acknowledge it exists and that it has some sort of dimension that is far
outside our physical presence or awareness. However, something inside us tells
us that it is the place of connection with God, and Jesus confirmed that in His
conversation with the woman at the well: For
God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth. (John
4:24 - NLT)
When we can
even grasp a smattering of this reality we can begin to change our relationship
with God and open a whole new dimension of spiritual awareness and reality. And
somehow deep inside us we know that is something which we deeply desire.
The promise is that in the
intimate presence of God, there is unfettered and complete freedom and perhaps
if we look at these verses from 2 Corinthians, we may be able to discover
something that will further our experience of being in God’s presence. But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the
veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the
Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see
and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more
and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.(2 Corinthians 3:16-18 - NLT)
The Old
Testament circumstances that Paul is referring to is the veil of the law that
kept the Jews from really encountering God. However, the concept is real in that there are veils or
preconceived concepts, that keep us from a closer relationship with God. Some of them have
been good and right, such as being taught to pray as a child. However, as time
passes and we grow and develop, there may well be a sense in which we still
hang on to elementary ideas that might no longer work for us.
Those who have grown up in the
church may well have acquired, almost subliminally, preconceived concepts that
act more as distractions that keep us from a richer experience of intimacy with
God. Dogma and doctrinal positions, denominational attitudes and policies etc.
all come together to create a fog of uncertainty and misunderstanding of just
how we can meaningfully engage, in the most intimate sense, with God.
Personal attitudes and bias
also can act as barriers to our intimacy with God. Things such as an arrogant
attitude that believes it has all the answer or an unteachable attitude that
rejects any sense of inner light, or just plain spiritual indifference. It is
not until we are ready to remove these veils that authentic intimacy with God
is possible. The reality is that at times we need to remove the veil, strip
away everything that hinders, any sense of distraction or pre-conceived
concepts, and start afresh, guided solely by the Word of God alone.
Many of us use aids or techniques in our worship of God, things
such as Christian music, selected readings, meditations etc. which can be quite
helpful in preparing the heart, mind and spirit to engage meaningfully with
God. However, much of what we have used as aids to make our spiritual
connection with God may well have become crutches or in themselves,
distractions or even the substance. In a sense, they can insidiously insert
themselves as a functioning spirit alternative, rather than the vessel through
which we connect with God.
Such aids are simply a corridor
through which we pass on our way to spiritual intimacy with God, but the great
temptation is to linger in the corridor with that which is safe and familiar,
and that which we can control, rather than step out the door at the end into a
dimension that is significantly different and not within our control.
To have the
veil, the distractions, the pre-conceived concepts stripped away depends
primarily on our attitude and mindset, that is not to say that the Holy Spirit
is very much operative in our lives, should we allow Him. However, we have to
make a cognitive and intentional decision to confront and strip them away. Consequently,
all of us who have
had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord.
When we can
finally strip away any preconceived concepts or distractions and launch into
the intimate presence of God, and it may well be a little scary for we are now
in the unfamiliar territory of infinite and unfettered freedom. Free to be who
we really are, free to express the deepest and, at times, those unspoken
thoughts and feelings we have never shared with anyone, free from any sense of
judgment or condemnation, it total honesty and openness before our Father,
whose love for us is as infinite as the freedom we are experiencing. There may
well be a sense in which this freedom is beyond our finite, human understanding
and we can but grasp and appreciate whatever we can, and appreciate and value
such intimacy.
When we have summoned up enough courage and intent
to strip away those preconceived concepts and distractions that hinder us in an
intimate relationship with God, the
Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed. And here, may
well be one of the reasons for our reticence; we are apprehensive of the change
such an intimate relationship will bring about. What we need to understand is
that whatever change may occur it is from a loving Father for a precious child.
If ever there
was any question about our welcome into God’s intimate presence it is well and
truly made transparent by the writer of Hebrews: So then, since we have a great
High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to
what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he
faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come
boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy,
and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.(Hebrews 4:14-16 - NLT)
Such an
invitation is an act of pure and amazing grace and
clearly indicates the longing of God to have fellowship with His creation. It
is, in the final analysis, a simple act of faith which we can never earn.
Into thy presence, I come
Not by the works I have done
But by thy grace, and thy grace alone
Into thy presence, I come.
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