Jesus Is Really Immanuel!
I was thinking this morning…What does God really want from us more than anything else?
Does He require sacrifice? Well, the writer of Hebrews says, “Sacrifice and offering You have not desired…” (Hebrews 10:5)
Does He want acts of righteousness? Isaiah said that all of our acts of righteousness are like filthy rags to the Lord (Isaiah 64:6)
Does He want our obedience? Jesus said that the only works required is to believe in Him (John 6:28-29).
Does He want us to be holy? Perfect?
The Lord spoke to me and said that the one thing He wants from us is a relationship. He wants intimacy! Since the creation of the world, God’s desire has been to be intimate with His ultimate creation. And when we broke that fellowship through the fall and by turning our backs on Him, He had an answer for that too. He created a bridge by sending His Son to bring us to Him (1 Peter 3:18).
So what can this relationship look like? Sure, I know that we will be with Him for eternity in Heaven. But I’m not satisfied with living that way. There must be something more. Something available to us here and now. I believe that He has given us human relationships to show us a glimpse of what is available to us in our relationship with Him.
So what does a great relationship look like to us? Maybe it’s a marriage, a great friendship, or a family relationship. It probably involves spending a lot of time together. Talking, listening, touching. Sharing our deepest places. From fear to joy. Struggles to victory. Through the good times and the challenging days.
I believe that the Lord allows us to experience these senses and emotions here in the flesh so that we can know what is available to us in the Spirit. I believe that all that is available in the flesh is also available in the Spirit. All of our natural senses and emotions can also be experienced in the Spirit to truly experience Him. We can “Taste and see that the Lord is good…” (Psalm 34:8). We can see Him as He truly is and become like Him (1 John 3:2). We can ask Him to open the eyes of our hearts (Ephesians 1:18).
The Immanuel Approach / Immanuel Prayer is geared towards pursuing intimacy with Jesus. In the Immanuel Prayer process, we look to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). We see Him as He really is and as we do this, we are transformed (1 John 3:2). Wounds healed by the one true Healer. Words of life spoken by the one Truth. Peace, strength, freedom and joy discovered even in the toughest of circumstances because we come to experience the One who never leaves us or forsakes us.
So, take a risk. Risk giving up some of your time and some of your comfort to encounter the living Jesus. Enter into the intimacy that our Jesus desires. I guarantee you will never be the same.