Monday, April 23, 2012

Jesus is Present…Really?!

Matthew 18:20 (NIV)
“For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

            There is an old truism that goes like this: Out of sight, out of mind. How true that statement really is. I realized recently just how bad I am at staying in touch with friends who have moved away. I have a Facebook account, but I rarely check it or update it. I have Skype installed on my computer but have only used it a few times. I have access to e-mail and text messaging but often fail to use these in a personal way.

            I have a very close friend who now lives in Germany. When he was a part of our church we met together weekly for dinner. We did that for 13 years. I looked forward to that regular time of interaction. It was one of the highlights of my week. When his job caused him to relocate to another town our meetings became less frequent. Now that he lives in Germany I have had contact with him only periodically. He is still one of my closest friends, but I can go through the week and never think about him, because he is not present with me.  

            Jesus gave an amazing promise to his disciples. Whenever they gathered under his authority he would meet with them. I am sure that they hung onto that promise during the difficult years that followed Jesus’ resurrection and ascension. But I have to wonder if there were times when they got so caught up in life that they forgot that Jesus was present for them.

            Living in the 21st century it is easy for Christians to forget that Jesus is present with us, even though we cannot see him. I know that I can get so caught up in life that, for a time, I forget about Jesus’ abiding presence. I have to be reminded that I am not alone on this journey of faith. As I was preaching on Sunday I was struck by the reality that, if we take Jesus’ promise seriously, He was in the room with us as we were gathered in His name. What an amazing, humbling, overwhelming thought.

            In John 14 Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to be our companion in life. He promised that the Spirit would take up residence in our lives. He would be present to guide us, instruct us and transform us. Yet, because we cannot see Him, we can live life as if the Holy Spirit is not present. When we forget that the Spirit is a permanent resident in our lives, we do things we know we should not, thinking we can hide them from God. We choose to follow our whims and desires rather than yield to the will of God.

            This is not a new development. Paul had to deal with this in the first century. Paul wrote to the Ephesians reminding them that the Spirit was their constant companion. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.  And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:29-32 (NIV)

            In the letter to the Galatians Paul stressed our ongoing relationship with the Spirit. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-25 (NIV)

            It is an awesome reality that the very Spirit of God is our constant companion. I am humbled whenever I stop long enough to contemplate that God loves me so much he has chosen to take up residence in my life. In the busyness of our lives we can forget that truth. We can live as if God is not present, but he is.

            King David understood the overwhelming truth that we are never out of sight for God. He expressed that reality in Psalm 139. As I read that psalm it is both comforting and alarming. There is nowhere that we can go where we are disconnected from the presence of God.

            Psalm 139:1-24 (NIV)
1 O LORD, you have searched me and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.
5 You hem me in--behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,"
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you.
19 If only you would slay the wicked, O God! Away from me, you bloodthirsty men!
20 They speak of you with evil intent; your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD, and abhor those who rise up against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred for them; I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

            Christ is present in my life…Really!!

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