Many people define religion as man’s search for God. However, the Bible paints a beautiful portrait of God’s search for man. The mystery of it all is that God pursues man! When Adam and Eve hid from His presence, the Lord called, “Where are you?” (Gen. 3:9).
It’s a call that goes out again and again. You’ve heard it. It’s the echo of a still, small voice that is uniquely mysterious. It transcends words yet continually draws the human heart.
Over the years various books have been written to challenge people to pursue God, and there is certainly an important place in the Christian experience for wanting to encounter Him in deeper ways. But as you look more closely at Scriptures, you’ll discover that God is always the first to initiate love. It’s your role to respond.
Any passion you have in your heart for Him right now, He put there. It takes God to love God. It takes God to want God. You didn’t just wake up one morning thinking that it would be a good day to give your heart to the Lord. The Lover of your heart was pursuing you even when you didn’t realize it. He was working behind the scenes, proactive in the circumstances of your life, bringing you to a place where through His grace you could experience Him.
This is both a humbling and profound truth. How can someone who is “blind” to the beauty of God have the scales fall from his eyes and his heart awakened to intimacy apart from the Lord touching and drawing him? While some people say they’ve known God since they were children and have never really walked away from Him, most of us remember when we were lost and clueless about His love.
Even those who came to know the Lord at an early age must admit that, at times, their lifestyles weren’t what He intended for them. Think about it. If this scenario applies to you, then at those times you weren’t responding to Him as you should have been. Yet He came seeking you. He pursued you. He loved you!
If these truths are stirring something within your heart, then you’re not alone. The human heart yearns to have a relationship with God—to know Him and be enjoyed by Him!
The message of the gospel is what sets it apart from other belief systems. It’s what makes the message of Jesus so different. Religion is man’s attempt to attain a place where God will accept him; the message of the gospel is God coming down to man’s level. It’s the story about God Himself taking human form and offering His own life so you could be brought to Him, experience Him, love Him, and enjoy Him forever!
This blog is taken from S. J.’s book, ENJOYING GOD, published by Passio, Charisma Media/Charisma House Book Group.
