Awareness
Living with a continual awareness of Him has got to be a supreme goal for anyone who understands the privilege of hosting Him. He is the Holy Spirit, making holiness a huge part of the focus of our lives. Yet He is as good as He is holy ....
Every believer is aware of God, but not always
at a conscious level. Developing this awareness is
one of the most important aspects of our life in
Christ. He is called, "God with us." Knowing Him
that way is essential to our development.
Every believer experiences God's Presence in some way, but we often remain ignorant. This is especially so in a culture that has emphasized cognitive strengths over spiritual and sensual (physical sense) capabilities. For example, our bodies were created with the ability to recognize God's Presence. The psalmist said even his flesh cried out for the living God
How lovely is Your tabernacle,O LORD of hosts!
2 My soul longs, yes, even faints
For the courts of the LORD;
My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. Psalms 84:1-2
The writer of Hebrews taught that a sign of maturity
was the ability to discern good and evil through
our senses:
"But solid food is for the mature, who
because of practice have their senses trained to dis-
cern good and evil" Hebrews 5:14.
Those who are trained to recognize counterfeit
money never study counterfeit money, as the possibilities for making fake money are endless. They immerse themselves in being exposed to the right currency. Then the bad automatically stands out. It's the same with developing our senses to discern good and evil. Immersion in the discovery of
God's Presence upon us (the Spirit given without
measure) will cause anything contrary to stand
out. Generally, our heart can tell when something
is right or wrong. But we've had Him speak in a way
that only our natural senses could pick up what
He was saying or revealing. He does this intentionally to train us as good soldiers in His army to hear in all contexts in which He may be moving or
speaking. This makes us capable of being "instant
in season and out."
The first person to touch Jesus in His natural birth was obviously Mary, the virgin. But who was the first to touch Him at His second birth? His resurrection from the dead? Mary Magdalene! She's the one who had seven demons cast out of her and was healed of infirmities.
Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons. 10 She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept. 11 And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe. Mark 16:9-11
The Virgin Mary, representing purity and all that is right, welcomed Jesus into the world for His role of fulfilling the Law and becoming the perfect sacrifice.
Mary Magdalene, the one who had been sick and
tormented by devils, represents the unanswerable
needs of the spirit, soul, and body. She welcomed
Him into the world for His role of building a family out of the least pure or qualified in any way.
The Virgin introduced the One who would close
out the dispensation of the Law. The tormented
one introduced Jesus into the season of grace where everyone would be welcomed.
In the first Garden, the Presence was taken for
granted. God walked in the Garden one more time
after Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit.
Their eyes were opened to their condition and
they covered themselves with fig leaves to hide
their nakedness. Then they hid from God, Himself. It was the last time we hear of God walking in
the Garden to be with man.
In this garden, Mary would make sure that that
mistake would not be repeated. She grabbed the
resurrected Christ and wouldn't let go, until Jesus
informed her that He had not even ascended to
the Father yet. Jesus' promise of sending the Holy
Spirit would now have to take on very practical
expression for this one who had to have more of
God. She had found the one thing, the Presence
of God. By far the greatest gift ever received by us
is the Holy Spirit Himself. Those who discover the value of His presence enter realms of intimacy with God never previously considered possible. Out of this vital relationship arises a ministry of power that formerly was only a dream. The incomprehensible becomes possible because He is with us.
I will be with you is a promise made by God to
all His servants. Moses heard it when he faced
the challenge of delivering Israel from Egypt
So He said, “I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.” Exodus 3:12
Joshua received this promise when he led Israel into the Promised Land
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
When Gideon received the call of God to be
a deliverer for Israel, God sealed it with the same
promise
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
In the New Testament, this promise came to all believers through the Great Commission.
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. Matthew 28:19-20
It comes when God has required something of us that is humanly impossible. It's important to see this. It's
the Presence of God that links us to the impossible. We tell our folks, He is in me for our sake, but He's
upon us for yours. His presence makes anything
possible! God doesn't have to try to do supernatural
things. He is supernatural. He would have to try to
not be. If He is invited to a situation, we should expect nothing but supernatural invasion.
