Do the Father and Jesus really want intimacy with us? As hard as it may be to believe, the answer to this question is a resounding yes. And that yes comes right from the voices of the Father and the Son Themselves. Jeremiah wrote,
Thus says the LORD:
“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
But let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and [intimately] knows Me,
That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight,” says the LORD. (Jer. 9:23-24 NKJV)
God said that the great joy and purpose of our life—our glory—should flow out of our intimacy with Him. The word translated as “knows” in this passage is the Hebrew word for “intimately knowing.” If intimacy with God isn’t your great joy and glory, don’t fret. As your daily focus becomes hearing and doing what Jesus says, your intimacy with God will become more and more your glory. Jesus went even further in His prayer in John 17:3. He revealed that intimately knowing Him and the Father was the very essence of eternal life. Your eternal life doesn’t begin when you die. It begins while you are alive on earth. And it is experienced moment-by-moment as you live in intimacy with the Father and the Son.
If God says that intimacy with Him is to be our glory and Jesus equates eternal life with intimately knowing Him and the Father, then of course They want intimacy with us. Knowing that Jesus defined eternal life as intimately knowing Him and the Father, take a fresh look at John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” When you believe in Christ to the point of hearing and doing what He says, you will have eternal life—intimacy with the only true God and Jesus Christ whom He sent.
Please know that I am not saying we gain eternal life by doing what Jesus tells us to do. Eternal life is a gift that God gives to all who believe in His Son. We do what Jesus said because we’ve received His gift. Doing what Jesus said is God’s love language, and it’s our way of loving Him back in the way He wants to be loved!
Steven K. Scott joins Randy and Sheila this Tuesday and Thursday on LIFE TODAY. Excerpted from The Joseph Principles by Steven K. Scott. Copyright ©2022 Steven K. Scott. Published by W Publishing, an imprint of Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
