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Written by: Salome Oro
In the Scripture, the church's relationship with Christ has been compared to a bride to his bridegroom and the bridegroom to his bride. In the worldly standards, men choose their bride and women choose their groom on the basis of physical attraction. The idea of courtship from the world's viewpoint sets both parties up for a disaster, why? because there is an unspoken expectation between man and woman to cater to the other's physical need more than anything else. Two people who do not have the Scripture as their guideline in intimacy are inviting trouble. The sad part is, when the church copies the standard of worldly courtship. Many Christians do not understand that, it is God who should join two people together, not just God to bless their choice.
The intimacy that God is talking about in the Scripture, which He expects His people to have with HIm is based on knowing Him for who He really is: not merely on the work of His hand, nor the answered prayers we received, nor the physical manifestations, nor the provisions that He gladly gives to His children. God has a personality. He has emotions. He has desires. He is relational. The kind of relationship He desires from us is not only skin deep. HE EXPECTS US TO KNOW HIS HEART FOR EVERY ISSUE IN OUR LIFE.
Intimacy with Jesus, means we are to allow the Lord to speak into our attitudes, our preferences, our desires, our day-to-day living. When we see God as just a 'way out' of trouble, then we only relate to God when we have trouble or when we have a need. God has designed men to fellowship with HIm! What does it mean to have 'fellowship with God?' it means: He talks, we listen, we talk, He listens. He asks a question, we answer and we ask a question, He answers. It means we have a regular conversation time with Him. We involve Him whether we are having fun or when we are dealing with other relationships, ministering or making plans.
Gen. 5:21-25 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became a father to Methuselah. And after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Enoch lived 365 years. Enoch walked with God; then God took him away.
Walking with God means intimacy with God. Our God has designed mankind for relationships. But our fallen nature usually gets in the way of being relational in the healthy and fulfilling way. We are so bound by our past hurts, our traumas, our bad self-image and by the way people perceive us 'physically'.
And so, Jesus came to earth to set the captives free. When we are free from hurts and pains, we begin to open like little children. One of the most basic thing needed for a relationship to work is the element of TRUST. The devil has planned to destroy that particular thing in our hearts by using other people to abuse us, so that we begin to curl up inside and not open up to other people. And so, when we become born again, we need to be freed from that mindset that says "I will never trust another human being ever again.' Then, of course, when you come to church and someone who is a Christian fails you, you clam up even more. God cannot work on someone who is not open. The Holy Spirit may be moving in the room and you are sitting there feeling nothing but discomfort and angry then, you say 'this doesn't work for me.'
Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. One of the works of the devil is killing our childlike trust. We must become like little children in order for God's kingdom to be established in our lives. How is God's kingdom established in our lives? By trusting God. We cannot see God, but if we have truly encountered God, we will never be the same again. Little by little, God the Father, chips off the hardness of our hearts. The Holy Spirit is sent by God to help us do what is right. Even the most painful things we have to face about ourselves, become bearable when we trust in the strength of the Holy Spirit to come and do a thorough work in our lives. During my deliverance sessions with Tita Nene, I had to trust that she can hear from God and even when i didn't feel anything at all I just decided I will obey what she is telling me to do. And the minute I did what God intsructed her, the pent up pains and hurts returned and the dam broke! What was buried in my distant past, suddenly emerged into the surface. But we have to trust that God is doing this because He wants to do a deep healing and deliverance in our lives. The devil messed us up so well, that we ourselves cannot recognize it and we need a brother or sister to help us see what we cannot see on our own. The reason why God wants to deliver us is, so we can better understand Him when we are freed from the old way of thinking which molded us. He is a loving Father. He wants to give us His kingdom! But we would not be able to handle the blessings properly if we are not in proper relationship with Him. The reconstruction work that God is doing may take a long period of time but if you just allow Him to finish it and not hurry it up, you will become the best 'you' that you could ever be, then you will be able to accomplish the God-given destiny He has for you, in the way that He wants you to finish it.
Many people say 'I'm doing this for Jesus!' But what if we go before God one day and He will say 'depart from me, I do not know you?' They did great exploits yet they did not know God. Perhaps they were not instructed by God to do it. Those who are led by the Holy Spirit are children of God. We must learn to host the Holy Spirit when He comes in our midst. We must offer the members of our bodies to be used by Him at His pleasure. We offer it willingly, with joy, because we love Him.
Intimacy with God is more than just experiencing pleasure and excitement. There are times when we must allow God to spank us... We must allow His loving discipline to do His thorough work in us. There is a cross road in our Christian walk where God's will and our will are in the opposite directions and it is because of this that we know Who really God is. In times, when we feel like we are being killed slowly, surely, the convicting power of the Holy Spirit begins a deep work in us. This does not happen unless we say "Lord, I allow you to do the deep work you need to do in me." Deep change only happens through total surrender to the Holy Spirit. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, demands Lordship from the one who truly follows Him. Obedience is the key to intimacy. If we are to know true love, we must let go of the Hollywood concept of love. True love is a sacrifice for the sake of the one you love. True love is self denial in order to give pleasure to the object of your love. True love is a death to self.
Intimacy with God is more than just singing uplifting songs. It's commitment to do what He asks us to do, because we love Him above ourselves and others. Intimacy is submitting to the painful dealings of God over our soul, so that when we come to Him we will understand our First Love better than our unsettled and undealt 'issues' in life. Intimacy means we are willing to lose everything to gain the smile and favor of the One who will never leave us, nor forsake us.
When the church will really make Jesus its LORD, then the devil will be afraid to mess with us. The very thing you fear the most, is the thing that will manifest in the coming days of your life. Fear the Lord and He will come and show Himself to his bride! By the time, He finds a people who will do what He says and submit to the seasons He has designed for them so that Jesus will be well formed in them, then God will release His Power and the earth will see Him for who He really is!
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