Bob Slosser
Seeking the Presence? The Spirit Says
'Get Peaceful'
By Bob Slosser
CBN.com
CBN.com - So you say to me,
"How do I know the Presence of God?"
And I say, "You don’t have to look far."
And you say, "What do you mean?"
And I say (I’ll stop this silliness soon), "My favorite verse,
Galatians 2:20, says, ‘I have been crucified with Christ and
I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in
the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave
Himself for me.’"
"So," I say, "if you have truly placed your faith in Him and are
born again, He lives in you. Galatians 4:6 says, ‘Because
you are sons [lower case], God sent the Spirit of His Son [upper case]
into our hearts . . .’ And you know that the Spirit of
Christ is God. And, lastly, you know also that Jesus said in John
14:23, ‘If anyone loves Me, he will obey My teaching. My Father
will love him, and We will come and make our home with him.’
You know whether you obey him, I trust."
So Christ may be in you, which is pretty close. We’re told
He’s in our hearts, which is our essence. That means all we
have to do is shut up awhile, be quiet and still (Psalm 46:10), and
believe that by grace through faith, the creator of the world, the
Sovereign Lord of the universe, is in us, desiring very much to commune,
fellowship, talk to us by grace through faith. You will feel a little
stupid at first, but if you’re where He said you should be –
"in your closet [or room]" (Matthew 6:6) – nobody but God will
see you. So do it, but get quiet, very quiet, even in your mind. Be
patient, very patient; wait, in peace. Let the images come, but don’t
conjure them up. Relax. Breathe. You will hear Him, inaudibly,
but in your thoughts. You don’t often (almost never) hear His
voice audibly. Don’t panic. Tell Him you love Him. Love is central
to everything, and don’t forget it. Praise Him, thank
Him, worship Him. Always loving Him and receiving His love.
A number of patriarchs would say that you don’t have to stay
quiet. I do not quarrel with them on the point since I am pretty noisy
myself when praying in a group. But I am more aware of the Presence
of the Lord when I quiet down, especially alone. Psalm 46:10 may refer
to movement as much as to sound, but I usually think of disruptive
noisiness. The verse is introduced by an invitation to "come and see
the works of the Lord, the desolation he has brought on the earth."
So I advise approaching the Lord soberly, reverently, and even a tad
fearfully sometimes. It’s good to be prayed up on sin and obedience.
One thing about the Presence of the Lord is that you be, beyond question,
fully prepared to do anything he might tell you or ask of you.
This is not just some guy off the street you’re talking to,
you know. He loves you and wants deeply for you to love him, but he
doesn’t deal in cynical, sarcastic nonsense or trash.
The following is an interpretation of a message in tongues given
just now:
Little children, I say come to me in peace. That is the prerequisite.
Your love means more to me than you can imagine, for I have yearned
and wept and laughed for you in all your trials and joy. Sometimes
you have loved me. Always love me. And always come to me. We can visit
and observe together. That’s why you can sit with me in the
heavenlies. Our Father is delighted. Don’t forget that I am
with you always even to the end of the world. We have so much to see
together.
I said "quiet"; the Spirit said "peace." Obey the Spirit. Remember
those words, my friends, in all the days and nights ahead. Meanness,
threats, and hellfire cannot blunt their power. You are the salt of
the earth and the light of the world. You are the saints. You must
stand your ground, and after having done everything, stand (Ephesians
6:13).
More on the Holy Spirit
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