“Relationship with God”
August 28, 2016
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
Romans 5:8 “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Ephesians 2:4-5 “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ”
1 John 4:9-11 “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”
The other day I was watching a TV preacher who is very popular going off on what I believe. He was saying if you believe you can backslide you are a false prophet. I have said a time or two that it is a false prophet who teaches that once you are saved you are always saved. The fact of the matter is that theologians have been debating that very thing for hundreds of years.
I was talking to God about this dispute. I want to believe and teach the truth. I told God it puzzled me why He allows such a disagreement among His children. Both sides ‘claim’ to love God and I truly believe they do. So what is the truth? What is right? WHY do you allow this disagreement, God?”
I believe, God the Holy Spirit said to me, “Andy, each person will be judged by what he believes. It is the intent of the heart I am concerned with. Besides, it is not your affair what I do and how I work in other people’s lives – or even what they believe. You just do what you know is my will for you.”
You see, I think we get it all wrong when we argue theology. No one has it completely correct. We are all intellectually imperfect. We all lack context and experience. Therefore our judgments and beliefs are imperfect. WE are imperfect. Even if we try as hard as we can – we will be imperfect in our actions and thoughts. And I think that is okay with God. He doesn’t ask us to be perfect of action. Even with the best of intentions we will say and do the wrong thing at times.
He knows we can’t be perfect intellectually. We are so limited in our intellectual ability. Our problem is that we have put a little box around what we experience with God or what we think we experienced or what God’s will is. Our likes and dislikes and prejudices and flaws play a part in what we formulate as our beliefs. Since no one is exactly alike – we all come to a different conclusion – and it divides us if we let it.
I have come to the conclusion (and I believe God has revealed this to me) is that God is not interested in a one-time experience with us. He desires a ‘relationship’ with us. All this stuff of when we are saved or can we lose our salvation or once we experience this thing we call ‘getting saved’ we can never lose it – is totally the wrong emphasis. The emphasis should not be when we were saved, sanctified, filled with the Spirit or any other experience. It should be on our relationship with Jesus. It is true that we will experience many of those experiences when we are in relationship with the Lord. But the focus needs to be on relationship – right now. Not on what it was yesterday or whenever it happened in the past. The question is “what is your relationship with Jesus at this moment?”
God loves us so much that He describes our relationship with Him as one between a groom and a bride. He says He is the Groom and we are His Bride. Think about that a minute. That relationship between a bride and groom is so sweet. They aren’t aware of any flaws in each other yet. They have few negative experiences with each other. When that groom looks down the aisle at his bride his heart thrills. She looks at her groom as a knight in shining armor and adores him. After the honeymoon the relationship goes downhill for awhile – but if they hang in there and make the right choices it will get better. In fact, the relationship will just get better and better.
God describes our relationship with him like that. He says,
“As a young man marries a young woman, so will your Builder marry you; as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.”
Isaiah 62:5
“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.) Revelation 19:7-8
“One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” Revelation 21:9
Do you see that God views us as His beautiful bride? Do you understand that as God sees you He sees YOU as a groom sees his bride? He LOVES you! He adores you! He cherishes you!
That is so hard for us to comprehend! It is so hard for us to believe. We know how imperfect we are. We know how unlovable we can be. We know all about those ugly, dirty, disgusting things in our past. But guess what? God does, too! And He still loves us! How amazing is that?
Get this through you head. God does not base His love for us on experiences. He doesn’t even base it on relationship. It is who He is. God is love. God is good. And all who come to Him He will not turn away. And that is the key to relationship with Him. We simply need to be willing to come to Him – not for an experience – but for a relationship.
What if a groom or a bride figured that the wedding ceremony was it? That was it. That marriage wouldn’t last long – would it. Some people think that. Even married – they don’t change their life style. They still have experiences with other people or they ignore their mates and continue to do their own thing and go their own way. The relationship will deteriorate pretty quickly if that is so.
Do you know the most important thing in a relationship? It is commitment. A couple need to be committed to one another if the relationship is going to last. Why? Because no one is perfect. We come into relationships so very different from one another and if we are not committed to one another – if we are not committed to the relationship – it won’t last.
Lasting relationships are not based on perfection – but on commitment. In the marriage relationship we say “’til death do us part”. There is a reason for that in the marriage covenant. If you have that commitment you will look for solutions to problems – not for a way out. Unfortunately, relationships take two willing people. If one is not committed – not matter how badly the other wants the relationship – it won’t happen. Divorce is inevitable – or at least probable.
That happens to be one of the reasons I believe a person can lose their salvation. It takes two willing individuals in a relationship – even spiritually. God will never desert us, leave us, abandon us, or forsake us. But we can destroy the relationship by rebellion or neglect. Relationship take commitment.
Secondly, relationships takes nurturing. Relationships take work. Pity the fool who thinks saying “I do” is the end of it. It is only the beginning. Hopefully, before the marriage you take the time to know the person you are committing to, but I have news for you. You don’t know that person. In fact, that person doesn’t know that person. We are all changing constantly. Even if we don’t want to change – we are. Even if we don’t WANT to change – we will. We grow. We mature. And it is the blessed couple who grows together and allows each other to grow individually.
We also have emotional ups and down. If our relationship is based on one adoring emotional moment – watch out! Because we are going to get mad; be disappointed; be disillusioned, depressed, and so on.
In the same way our relationship with God will have ups and downs, too. He will not do as we think He ought to do. He may not answer our prayer in the way we want Him to. He may seem distant and cold and maybe even indifferent to us at times. If we are not committed – our relationship will not last or it will become empty and is in name only. Relationships take continual nurturing. Our manual says about our relationship with God:
“We believe that the grace of entire sanctification includes the divine impulse to grow in grace as a Christlike disciple. However, this impulse must be consciously nurtured, and careful attention given to the requisites and processes of spiritual development and improvement in Christlikeness of character and personality. Without such purposeful endeavor, one’s witness may be impaired and the grace itself frustrated and ultimately lost.”
Church of the Nazarene Manual
I like that. I think it is important. God does not want a one-time experience with us. He wants a relationship. Relationship must be consciously nurtured. We all have relationships that have died over the years from neglect. Maybe they moved away or we did or for whatever reason we have lost contact with them. I can think of a number of friends I have had through the years that I love – or did deeply love them. But now we have no relationship because of neglect. And in some cases that is okay. But in our marriages or family relationships and especially with God – that is NOT okay. They take nurturing.
Relationships that last, thirdly, take sacrifice. We come into relationships selfishly. It is a ‘what can you do for me’ attitude. We think that mate or friend or even God will benefit us in some way. That’s why get into the relationship. We will feel loved. We will feel appreciated. We will have our needs met. But, very quickly, that knight in shining armor becomes a court jester. That snow white princess becomes the wicked witch of the north. God does not live up to our expectations. And the relationship deteriorates. Unless it is built on commitment and is consciously nurtured – and unless each is willing to sacrifice self in the relationship – it will die.
In a relationship, when each come to a place where they forget about their needs and desire to please the other – the relationship become heavenly. Unfortunately, because we are fallen humans, some will selfishly use the other person. An immature, selfish, carnal person will take the other for granted and – take, take, take – without giving in return and sacrificing to the other.
But if both choose to express their love through sacrifice the relationship becomes awesome. That is why God asks us to be willing sacrifices. He knows that sacrifice opens the door to unbelievable blessings. He says,
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” Romans 12:1
Do you understand that the more you give to God – the more you get? God never asks us to do anything selfishly. He only asks us to sacrifice so that the door to blessings will be opened. He gave the ultimate sacrifice for us. If we want the kind of relationship we were created for – we need to sacrifice ourselves to Him. We need to surrender our wills to His will.
Another thought on this thing of sacrifice. In our relationships we need to accept the other as they ARE – not as we want them to be. I can’t tell you how much better my relationship with Julie became when I finally understood that she was an artist and I allowed her to be who she is and not what I thought she was or who I thought she ought to be.
Sometimes we have these ideas of what God is like or what we think He SHOULD be like. Once we accept Him unconditionally as He is – life will get so much better.
One thing we all have in common is relationships. We have experienced good ones and not so good ones. I think this is one of the reasons for life – so we can get good at them – especially our relationship with God. It is so important. One of my jobs is to help you in your relationships. I hope this has helped. Remember, good relationships are based on
1. Commitment, 2. Nurturing, 3. Sacrifice.
I want you to know that God wants you. You are His bride. He adores you. He wants to spend eternity with you. Once we get through this engagement period we call life – He has unbelievable, unfathomable plans for us. Listen.
Zephaniah 3:17 The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.
1 John 3:1 “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”
Proverbs 8:17 “I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently - find me.”
Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
You Groom adores you. He is getting your place ready for you right now. I encourage you to make yourself ready for Him.
SONG
