Yesterday I showed you a major change in my experience of God: Because Jesus bridged the gap between God and I and came to dwell within me, I don’t have to seek him. I don’t have to try and ‘connect’ with him. I’m not supposed to. I’m supposed to enjoy him, because I’m already connected. He did the work, so I could enjoy the benefits. That was a huge revelation for me.
One of my commenters asked a brilliant question: How do I enjoy God? Well, by ditching the Old Way of the written code and learning to live the New Way of the Spirit. The next few days will unpack that a bit more. Let’s take statement #2: If you want to get closer to God (presumably once you’ve found him) you need to engage in regular spiritual disciplines. I’ve come to call this belief the ‘devotional correctness’ paradigm.
First of all, the Bible never uses that phrase. Ever. Secondly, and hear me on this, there is not a single story in the whole Bible of anyone ‘doing their devotions’ like we outline them these days. Not even… GASP!… Jesus. And there isn’t a single verse in all of scripture that commands us to do our devotions. Nada one. We’re invited to keep in step with the Spirit, pray without ceasing, meditate on scripture constantly, listen for the voice of our shepherd, and obey him moment by moment. That’s relational, not discipline-based.
Secondly, we’ve got to be careful not to become Pharisees. Pharisees, totally missed the relationship with God thing and built up a system of rules and expectations around the 10 commandments instead (the law). We don’t do sheep and goats, but we do have a “what a good Christian looks like” list, and we pretty much damn people with it, ourselves included. But Colossians 2:13,14 says that Jesus took that list that stands opposed to us and nailed it to the cross. That’s fantastic news! Jesus crucified the “what a good Christian looks like” list and said, “Will you please just walk with me?”
So I accepted his offer. For a relationship. And it’s made all the difference, cause it’s not about measuring up anymore. There’s no pressure. Just an invitation.
I can do an invitation. TO BE CONTINUED…
BTW, Check out my website, www.presencevoicetouch.com, for more resources that will help deepen your relationship with God.