The Approachable God! - Eph. 3:8-13
"8 Although I am less than the least of all God's people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. 10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, 11 according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. 13 I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory."
Eph. 3:8-13
Have you ever met someone who was hard to approach? Maybe it was their personality or maybe their position, but for whatever reason they seemed unapproachable. That's the picture that I see in the Old Testament. God spoke to Moses in the tent of meeting behind a veil. The Tabernacle had a curtain that separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place where God would manifest His presence. To even approach Him there were rules and regulations, but that was the old covenant. God was unveiling something new... Himself! Through the New Covenant God has made Himself approachable. This was a mystery that has been kept hidden even from the angels, but has been revealed through the church.
God is approachable! What does that mean? It means that we can approach God with freedom and confidence! Freedom because there are no rituals or regulations that we have to jump through to approach Him. We can approach Him anytime! We can commune with Him because because He is in us. The Scriptures teach us that our bodies are the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. God does not veil His presence behind a curtain where He comes and goes, NO He has manifested His presence IN us, therefore, we have the freedom to approach Him anytime! Jesus is said to be our High Priest... the mediator between God and us. The Scriptures teach that Christ is in us, qualifying us to approach the Father anytime! FREEDOM!
We also can approach Him with confidence! My mind wanders back to the picture of a High Priest who would tie a rope around his ankle in case he approached God in a wrong manner and would have to have his dead body pulled from the Most Holy Place. No such thing here. We can approach God with confidence. Confidence that He hears us, confident that He knows us, and confident that He knows what is best for us! I know that one of my struggles in relationships is that someone will be talking to me, but I am not "present" with them. My mind is somewhere else. I know this is not good because it makes the other person feel unheard and uncared about. This is not the case with God... He is "present" with us... He listens and cares!
I don't know about you, but that makes me smile! God has made Himself approachable, so the question becomes... "Are you approaching God?"
God, I come before you with the freedom to do so, and the confidence that you are "present" with me. Thank You for making Yourself approachable! Hear the cry of my heart this morning, and give me the grace and power to make Your Name known among people!
Have you ever met someone who was hard to approach? Maybe it was their personality or maybe their position, but for whatever reason they seemed unapproachable. That's the picture that I see in the Old Testament. God spoke to Moses in the tent of meeting behind a veil. The Tabernacle had a curtain that separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place where God would manifest His presence. To even approach Him there were rules and regulations, but that was the old covenant. God was unveiling something new... Himself! Through the New Covenant God has made Himself approachable. This was a mystery that has been kept hidden even from the angels, but has been revealed through the church.
God is approachable! What does that mean? It means that we can approach God with freedom and confidence! Freedom because there are no rituals or regulations that we have to jump through to approach Him. We can approach Him anytime! We can commune with Him because because He is in us. The Scriptures teach us that our bodies are the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. God does not veil His presence behind a curtain where He comes and goes, NO He has manifested His presence IN us, therefore, we have the freedom to approach Him anytime! Jesus is said to be our High Priest... the mediator between God and us. The Scriptures teach that Christ is in us, qualifying us to approach the Father anytime! FREEDOM!
We also can approach Him with confidence! My mind wanders back to the picture of a High Priest who would tie a rope around his ankle in case he approached God in a wrong manner and would have to have his dead body pulled from the Most Holy Place. No such thing here. We can approach God with confidence. Confidence that He hears us, confident that He knows us, and confident that He knows what is best for us! I know that one of my struggles in relationships is that someone will be talking to me, but I am not "present" with them. My mind is somewhere else. I know this is not good because it makes the other person feel unheard and uncared about. This is not the case with God... He is "present" with us... He listens and cares!
I don't know about you, but that makes me smile! God has made Himself approachable, so the question becomes... "Are you approaching God?"
God, I come before you with the freedom to do so, and the confidence that you are "present" with me. Thank You for making Yourself approachable! Hear the cry of my heart this morning, and give me the grace and power to make Your Name known among people!
Comments