Love to hear from and know who is listening
Have you ever ran into one of those young couples that are just infatuated with each other. They stare deeply into each other eyes. They never let go of each others hands and they have no sense of personal space. They giggle and laugh at everything that is said like it the funniest thing they have ever heard. They are so focused on each other that it is like they are totally unaware of their surroundings. When you see them all you can think is, get a room people! However this infatuated phase of romance in a relationship quickly fades. Before long life, children and work come into the picture, life gets very busy and their infatuation with each other just seems to fade into the past like a distant memory.
Revelation 2: 4-5 NIV Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lamp stand from its place.
The church at Ephesus was known for their many good works. They tested teachers to see whether their professions were real; they endured hardship and persevered without growing weary. But they had lost their love and zeal for Christ, and when that happened, they began to just, “go through the motions” of good works. What was once a love relationship had cooled into religious ritual. The Ephesians had lost their way. Instead of pursuing Christ with the love and passion they once showed they were in danger of losing their passionate love for Christ and for the lost.
Can we as Christians have an intimate and personal relationship with Jesus Christ like a young newlywed couple? Yes, yes we can! The first step to developing an intimate and fulfilling love relationship with Christ is to admit that the abundant life He promises will never be found in another person... I love my wife Joyce Ellis more than any person or any thing this world has to offer! Every morning about an hour before the alarm goes off we wake up. Joyce rolls over and places her head on my shoulder and wraps her arm around my chest. I wrap my arm around her and embrace her. It is an intimate moment we share every day that I never want to loose! All that to say, true abundant life is only found in God alone! Don’t get me wrong; God created us to experience human love, and romance can add a wonderful dimension to life. But romantic love will never be able to trump an intimate love relationship with God. Some things with God are so personal, so intimate, that they cannot be described with words, they can only be felt with the heart.
John 3:16 NIV 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.
God let his only son die on the cross for my sins, so that I could spend eternity in heaven! Now if that is no true intimate love I don't know what is! When we have an intimate relationship with God; we feel that no one else can understand the bond we share with Him because it’s altogether personal. God has comforted me as when I have cried, directed me when I was confused, He has taught me, He disciplines me frequently, He guides me when I am lost and He loves me despite all my faults and sins. If you haven’t ever committed yourself to a personal relationship with God, it’s not difficult. There are no requirements or religious duties. God doesn’t ask you to change yourself before you commit to Him; He just asks that you come just as you are, confess your sins to Him, recognize your need to have your sins forgiven and accept His gift of forgiveness that He has offered to you through His death on the cross!!!
