“Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”- (New International Version, 2011, James 4:8)
In Christendom today, far too many people attend church week after week, yet they go home the same. They are having experiences and not enough encounters. Experiences are those moments in God’s presence where you feel His peace, love, and power. But as soon as you leave that presence, you continue with life as if nothing ever happened. You get high on emotions and sermons but never get to the heart of worship or who God truly is. Experiences, while not bad in and of themselves, only yield temporary results that fall short of the lasting transformation God desires for you. Experiences are meant to draw you in and leave you wanting more. They are a precursor to encounter. Through experiences, in church, for instance, God acclimates you to His presence and develops in you a deeper desire needed for consistent fellowship. It is when you have learned to come into His presence that you can “stay” and develop the posture that invites genuine encounters. But if all you are looking for is a fun time in God’s presence, you will never come into the fullness of all that He is and has for you.
Judas Iscariot experienced Jesus but never encountered Him. He walked with Jesus, witnessed the miracles, heard His teachings, but never came to know or surrender to Jesus as Lord. At the Last Supper, Jesus told His disciples that one of them would betray Him. While each disciple frantically asked, “Is it I, Lord?” (Matthew 26:22, ESV), Judas asked, “Is it I, Rabbi?” (Matthew 26:25, ESV). The use of the word “Lord” here acknowledges the disciples’ submission to Jesus’s authority and divinity. It also implies a level of intimacy and obedience. Conversely, “rabbi” means “teacher.” This intentional contrast illustrates that Judas’s heart was never set on Jesus. We know this to be true because “for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:45, ESV). All the teachings and experiences never brought Judas into the life-altering revelation of Jesus because his heart was set on gain. So, it is possible to be in the vicinity or proximity of Jesus yet never encounter Him. Imagine all that you miss out on when you pursue selfish ambitions.
Encounters, on the other hand, completely transform your life. They change your appetite and interests. For example, the ungodly habits you once engaged in no longer appeal to you. The people you thought you couldn’t live without no longer hold the same value. Encounters produce a radical shift in thinking and perspective. What you once thought was important pales in comparison to the weight of His glory. You now bend to God’s purposes and begin to further His agenda. To encounter God is to surrender to Him. To encounter Him is to enter into the revelation of not only who He is and what He’s done, but what your response should be in light of this. When you have truly encountered God, you want everyone to know about it.
Encounters, however, aren’t just for the church setting. They can occur anywhere, including the “secret place”. The secret place is wherever you choose to meet with God consistently. It is where you have the privacy and space to bear your heart to your Father and seek Him face to face. This secret place could be in your bedroom, closet, your car, or even the bathroom stall at your office. Nevertheless, it is important to highlight that the physical location is not the focal point of encounters. Although a sanctified environment can set the atmosphere for an encounter, it is your heart and desire that matter most to God.
Jacob encountered God at Peniel, where he wrestled with Him until daybreak. It was after this encounter that Jacob became Israel, thus receiving a new identity. This new identity was accompanied by a new nature that led Jacob to instruct his household to rid themselves of their foreign gods, purify themselves, and change their garments (Genesis 35:2). Jacob was no longer interested in merely receiving a blessing but walking with God in righteousness. Moses encountered the Lord in a burning bush, in the tabernacle in the wilderness, and on Mount Sinai. From the burning bush to Mount Sinai, you can trace Moses’s evolution. He went from feeling unqualified and having a speech impediment to leading God’s people out of Egypt. He would later become one of Israel’s greatest prophets and is traditionally recognized as the author of the first five books of the Bible. These encounters shifted something in his thought process, behaviors, and understanding of God. On the road to Damascus, a young Pharisee named Saul saw a bright light and heard a loud voice from heaven that brought him to his knees. Immediately after, he was inflamed with the passion for Christ – something he had previously persecuted others for living out. While these encounters involved supernatural manifestations, it is important to highlight that encounters with God are not defined by such extraordinary occurrences, but by a genuine meeting with the presence of God that leaves you transformed.
You don’t have the power to change yourself, so you can be certain that transformation is something that only God can be responsible for carrying out. So, while you can create room for encounters, God’s Spirit is what makes the difference in you. You must understand that God can show up anywhere and at any time. He is omnipresent and is not limited by space or time. He delights in transforming those who continually draw near to Him. Therefore, how do you posture yourself to be a candidate for encounters? You start by engaging in the following:
- Accepting Christ into your heart (if you have never done so)
- Acknowledging and repenting of sin
- Surrendering to His will and way
- Meditating upon the Word
- Remaining in prayer
- Being expectant
This is in no way meant to be a foolproof formula that guarantees God’s move, but these are practical steps intended to help you draw near to God so that He may also draw near to you.
Today, choose not to settle for mere Sunday experiences. Long for everyday encounters that deepen your love for Jesus and His presence. Take a step and extend an invitation to the Lord. He is eager to accept and has every intention of making Himself at home in your life. So, get ready because Jesus is on the way!
Prayer: Lord, give me the encounter that will change the trajectory of my life. Transform me from the inside out until I look, speak, and live more like Jesus. As I draw near to You, draw close to me as You’ve promised.