The Presence of God

Rembrandt - Head of Christ

Matthew 23:25, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.”

1 Corinthians 6:19, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?”

Luke 17:21, “nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is! Or, ‘There it is! For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.” (Literally inside you.)

Randy Clark whom I have had the pleasure of spending a day with, and whom I believe is a genuine Christian and godly man, and who happens to have a globally recognized healing ministry posted on his Facebook wall the other day the following:

He wrote, “It's the hardness of men's hearts and not the sovereignty of God that stops revival.”

Now to me “revival” is when there is a significant presence of God in a corporate environment, often accompanied by signs and wonders. But where my opinion differs from Randy’s and many other charismatic, full gospel, evangelical ministers is that I believe the famous revivals like Azusa Street, Pensacola, Welsh revival and so many more were absolutely 100% the sovereign move of God. I do not think the piety nor prayers of the revivalists like Booth, Hill, Wesley, Whitefield or any other commanded the presence and move of God. Likewise I do not believe the hardness of heart ended them.

Rather the “revival”-- that uncontrolled, unorchestrated manifestation of the presence of God -- is simply a casting of the net into the sea. It is a picking of the crops of the harvest and as such must come to an end. Think of the story of Peter’s calling. It was prophetic of Christ’ ministry on earth. They fished all night and caught nothing, then Jesus comes along, they cast on the other side of the boat and the nets are full to overflowing. Did they keep fishing?

Think of Pentecost, the original revival. They waited and waited, then for one night the presence of God manifest. It did not become some long lived service complete with music and preaching. In fact the preaching was “this is that the prophet Isaiah spoke of.” Nothing more.

How about the feeding of the 5000? This was a revival as the masses gathered to hear Christ, and after a couple of days He feed them miraculously. But Jesus didn't say, ‘let’s camp here, and have service eternally, and let me feed you constantly.’ To the contrary when they followed Him He sent them away.

So what is the purpose of this manifested sovereign presence of God?

It is a taste of what every moment of every day can be like. It is a taste of what Christ lived with and by while on the earth.  

We taste the presence of God in the corporate worship of our churches because there is a style of music or a flavor of teaching that allows us to put down the rest of life and focus in on God. The presence of God is there because Christ said, “For where two or three have gathered in My name, I am there in their midst (the middle of them)” So the corporate enables our awareness of Christ presence… it is there whether we are aware or not. It is not a song, it is not a leader, it is spiritual fact. The songs, the leaders, the preaching just enables us to be aware. But the design is so that we will seek Him at all times. The design is that we begin to and grow in the awareness that His presence and His kingdom is inside us.

Look at the three passages above. Jesus criticizes the religious leaders for using an external system of church as spiritual justification without cleaning up their own heart, without acknowledging the evil that is in them.

In the second passage Paul is asking, ‘don’t you know the presence of God is inside you?’ It was not the condemnation of outwardly acts, but an astonishment that they didn’t get it, and their outwardly acts showed they did not understand or experience that presence.

Finally the third passage is Christ saying to not go from place to place, service to service, conference to conference looking for the presence of God. His kingdom is inside you and anything you can “do” or any place you can “go” is not going to compare to becoming aware of this fact, and living in it daily. Nor will it compare to what follows this awareness, which is growing in it daily.

None of which is saying stop going to church. But it is to say that when you connect with this presence through awareness, then life will become suddenly clearer. The peace that passes all understanding will manifest. Joy in unfortunately circumstance will appear. And so very much more.

Listen to what Jesus said as pointed out to me by T Austin-Sparks, “Christ is the new dispensation. ‘I am here,’ He said. You go through that Gospel of John. He is centering everything in Himself. ‘I am the Way (not church); I am the Truth (not doctrine); I am the Life (not money, fame, power, or position); I am the Shepherd (not spouse, pastor, counselor, or parent); I am the Vine (your source); I am the Resurrection (the truth that follows surrender).’ It is a Person. It is that which lies behind everything. (and in everything). Christianity is Christ. Christ is Christianity. That is where it all begins and it never departs from HIM.”

I will add that He is in you if you are in Him. There is a place in this awareness of His presence that you have beheld enough of His magnificence that you give up trying to understand because He is incomprehensible. You stop trying to explain, because He is unexplained  You have no advice for others because you see you own insignificance next to Him. And yet in it all you feel His love, and His love begins to flow out of you because it is the only thing that is right and good. Life becomes about surrender and obedience, not because you fear hell, but because you have tasted heaven. No one can take you to a place in the Presence of God because you can live there anytime you choose to be aware.

I have to wonder what would happen to church if all of Christianity became aware of and started to grow in this presence of God. I dare say those built on a human model of business would fail rapidly, and those built on Christ would see some truly glorious revival.

If you do not truly understand what I am talking about then I encourage you to taste and see that the Lord is good. Stop, close your eyes, quite your mind. When you can stare into the back of your eyelids and see only the dark, when you can contemplate only that it is dark, then in that place cry out to God. Ask Him, where are You? Ask Him to reveal His presence?

With time you awareness will be as simple as closing your eyes. With more time you won’t need to close your eyes at all, just stop. With more time you will abide in the awareness of His presence. (at least that is what I believe and hope though not there yet).

There is no longing for Christ to come, He is here. There is not waiting for the next service, or next anointed song... His presence has never left.