Here’s something to smile about. . .
I can’t think of anything better than to be in the presence of the physical Christ – to see the expressions on His face when He talks, to be able to ask Him questions and hear His answers clearly
– to be able to touch Him.
I can’t think of anything better than that – but He can.
The disciples knew that physical closeness to Jesus, and when He told them He was leaving them they were, very understandably, filled with sadness –
because they couldn’t think of anything better than being that close to Him, either.
“”But now I am going to Him who sent Me; and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.” (John 16:5-6 NASB)
But Jesus could think of something better than physical closeness to His earthly body….
“But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.” (John 16:7 NASB)
It’s To Our Advantage. . . .
Wait – It’s to our advantage that we can no longer see him with our natural eyes,
feel him with our hands, hear His voice with our natural ears?
How can that be better?
Because of what comes in place of all those wonderful things:
The Holy Spirit.
Now God doesn’t just live WITH us,
He lives IN us.
I remember asking God once who was the one person in the Bible who was the closest to Him.
I felt Him respond: The New Covenant Believer.
Three Dimensions of Closeness
One of the very awesome things that makes the new covenant we have with God even better than the old one (Hebrews 8:6), is that God has deepened and broadened His “dimension of closeness” to us.
He was WITH the nation of Israel:
“”Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; State a proposal, but it will not stand, For God is with us.””
(Isaiah 8:10 NASB)
It’s comforting to know that God is WITH us, alongside us to defend and protect us.
But we can take that to an even deeper level by realizing that God is FOR us:
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?” (Romans 8:31 NASB)
He is not our accuser, no longer acting as our judge, but because of Jesus, He is on our side, and because of that, who can be against us?
But I think the greatest mystery of God’s “dimensions of closeness” to us is what Jesus clearly understood as He told his disciples He was leaving:
Now He can be IN us.
He has chosen to make us His home, the place on earth that His Spirit dwells – like Solomon’s temple at its peak of beauty – but He has made us even more beautiful than that (Ephesians 5:27).
And just like the tabernacle that held the presence of God in such a powerful way that people couldn’t bear it, that same presence dwells in us – but strengthens us and gives us power,
rather than destroying us (Romans 8:11).
Because He is in us, He can make Himself known to us in a more meaningful, powerful way that takes that dimension even deeper – to us being intertwined with God Himself….
“I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity…..I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”” (John 17:23,26)
The Holy Spirit lives in us, and with Him is all that He is – and all those things live in us. . .
So now He no longer brings us peace, He IS peace in us;
He no longer gives us joy, He IS joy in us;
He no longer just teaches us about His love and His truth and His power –
those things LIVE inside us, intertwined in who we are –
we have access to His love and His truth and His power because we have access to Him Who is in us,
Wow – we live so far beneath that truth. . .
How many times have we read this:
“If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. – – But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Romans 8:10-11 NASB)
Think about the kind of power it would take to bring a completely dead person back to life, and not just back to mortal life, but eternal, glorified life. That’s incredible power.
And that’s the Spirit that lives in you and me.
It’s Amazing To Think About. . .
. . .that everything that Jesus did on earth we have the ability to do.
Sure, He was God, but He lived on earth as a human with human limitations, completely dependent upon the Father for all He did – just like He wants us to live.
He did only what He saw the Father doing – just like He wants us to do.
And on top of that, He said that not only can we do all that He did and live like He did,
but we would do even GREATER things.
Why?
Because He was going to the Father and sending us His Spirit. . .
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.” John 14:12 NASB
What This Should Mean. . .
Where’s our peace when we feel anxious and overwhelmed?
Where’s our victory when we struggle with sin?
Where’s our help when we’re attacked by the enemy?
It’s in us, because He’s in us, and He has all we need to meet all those needs.
I Don’t See It Or Feel It. . .
None of us lives up to the full potential God has provided for us by causing His Spirit to live in us.
Maybe we haven’t ever really recognized the resource that is in us. . .
maybe we don’t really believe it. . .
maybe we just put way too much emphasis on our flesh nature
and don’t spend enough time in His presence recognizing. . .
and growing. . .
and developing – nourishing –
that part of us that is His home. . .
But Take a Deep Breath. . .
. . . there is untapped potential in you if you belong to Christ –
and that is something to smile about.
