[Biblemat] A) INTIMACY WITH GOD

[J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com]

Brethren and Friends, Jim Sasser here.  A very good Wednesday
morning to each and everyone.  May God bless y ou and yours.  Here
is an article from my files:

INTIMACY WITH GOD

       "When Israel was a child, I loved him, And out of Egypt I call-
ed My son" (Hos. 11:1).  The constancy of God's love should 
have been strong motivaiton for Israel to love their Creator in re-
turn.  But it wasn't.  In spite of God's constant overtures of love,
grace, and mercy, His own children turned away.  Israel pervert-
ed their relationship with God by worshiping idols.  God loved
His people, even when they were rebelling against Him.  Yes, the
Israelites had to suffer the consequences of their sin; this did not mean, 
though, that God had ever stopped loving them.  Even
when He was seeking to correct their way, God loved them.

       The word love evokes pleasant and comforting thoughts.  Or, at least 
it should.  The Bible speaks often about God's love
for His creation.  His love was present in the lives of His children
-- those  who had responded to Him in obedience.  Early in their
history Israel wanted to be God's children; they longed for an in-
timate relationship with God (Exo. 19:5,6).  God called Israel "My
firstborn son" (Exo. 4:22,23).  God told Pharaoh, "Let My son go!"  Israel 
was Jehovah's special people.  Yet, the fact that God
loved Israel did not prevent them from rebelling.  God's love was
not an insurance policy that would always keep Israel from harm
-- a harm that was many times self-inflicted.  Over and over again, God 
enabled His people to see that He still loved them.  He wanted them to come back to 
Him.

       The word love evokes thoughts of intimacy.  The intimacy
shared between a husband and wife is a special bond.  That
unique relationship is special.  It mirrors the relationship God de-
sires to have with His children (the book of Hosea; cf. Eph. 5:22,
23).  This relationship is so special that severe, harsh conseque-
nces are meted out to those who fail to cherish the bonds of love and 
intimacy.  "For the Lord God of Israel says That He hates divorce, For it covers 
one's garments with violence, Says
the Lord of host, Therefore take heed to your spirit, That you do
not deal treacherously" (Mal. 2:16).

       The bond of love between brethren should be viewed as a 
special kind of love -- love that is peculiar to the in-Christ relation-
ship we share as members of the same spiritual family.  Instead
of living in isolation, we need to cultivate a sense of dependency
a sense of family among our fellow Christians.  Loving each other is a matter 
of spiritual life or death.

       Sin destroys the intimacy of love.  This was true of Israel's 
alienation from God.  It is true in human, earthly families.  It is
true in the spiritual family of God.  The alienating consequences
of sin can only be overcome by God's love. God through Christ
seeks our reconciliation.  What God desires for us cannot be ex-
perienced when we refuse to return to Him.  It that is so, then why do we 
stay away?   ----- Randy Harshbarger via Gospel Pow-
er, Vol. 15, No. 24, June 15, 2008.   </HTML>
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