As Close as He Wants to Be
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem … how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. (Matthew 23:37)
One of the reasons the Jews rejected Jesus was that they could not believe how close he desired to be to them. They were ill-prepared to make the changes that a relationship with him would require.
When people are born again and truly come to know Christ personally, their language begins to change, their family relationships begin to change, and their deepest and most personal dreams begin to change.
The world wants Jesus to keep a respectable distance from them so they can control his influence over their lives. However, if Jesus gave his life for humanity, then there is only one legitimate response to him-to give yourself to him like a bride to a bridegroom.
Then the Lord Jesus becomes the Source of your life and your most precious treasure, and the changes that must come are not terrifying but satisfying. It is this level of intimacy with him for which human persons were made.
Are you intimate with the Lord Jesus today, or are you aloof? Do you keep him distant? He longs to be a part of every area in your life in the same way a beloved spouse would affect your daily activities and choices. Amazingly, the sacrifices made for a love relationship with Jesus do not seem like sacrifices.
They become joys, and they bring a deeper freedom than you have ever known. He is longing for your devotion and love. Are you as close to the Lord Jesus as he wants to be to you?
—Dennis Kinslaw
This Day with the Master
Intimacy is not something you learn by talking about it or studying it. Intimacy is something you grow into in practice. Let today’s devotion inspire you to pray into intimacy, asking, “Abba Father, will you teach me to pray? Will you help me to experience intimacy with you, to approach in a healthy balance of confidence and humility, to persevere and prevail in my prayers, and to be willing to leave it all in your hands?” Intimacy is where God will meet you. —DH
—David Hoskins, Founder & Care Guide, Sanctuary Clinics