BUILDING AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD.

BUILDING AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD.
An intimate relationship with God is a relationship that every child of God must have with the creator our lord saviour Jesus Christ. It is a growing developing unity with the creator of all things. It is a relationship on all levels of our life. it is intimate,loving,respectful,honouring and unifying. It is personal, it is enduring, and it is honest. It is giving over self to gain Jesus. It is a relationship of the creator and his own children whom he has created in his own image, father and child, husband and wife. It is passionate, compassionate, rich, uplifting, healing, strengthening and satisfying. A relationship with God builds unity with God.
Oneness with the creator, where an exchange takes one into divine life. We therefore exchange our weakness with his strength, our sorrow for his joy, our loneliness for his unity and belonging, our ignorance for his knowing, our foolishness for his wisdom, our anxiety for his peace, our frustration for his completion, our hopelessness for his hope, our brokenness for his togetherness, our problems for his solution, our slavery for his freedom, our pain for his love.
There are many people who have come to God for salvation but only know of God and do not enjoy a personal, intimate, and living relationship with him. They understand that Jesus died on the cross but fail to understand why. Understanding what he did does not necessarily imply an understanding of why he did it and therefore, does not necessarily translate into life experience.
When Jesus took the punishment for our sins he did not do it so we could escape hell and go to heaven. Jesus came and died so that we could have an intimate relationship with the Father. Of course having a relationship with God means that we live with him, where he is, which is heaven.
Eternal life in heaven is a by product of being involved in a relationship with God. As we grow and develop into the image of our father, everything that comes from God is because of a relationship with God. A relationship that is based on trust, honor, respect and communication.
The word’’ intimacy’’ carries with it the aspects of a relationship with someone where you are vulnerable,loving,trusting,etc.To have an intimate relationship with God means that the deepest part of you is having a relationship with the deep part of God.
Of course, we cannot fathom the deepest part of God, but he condescends to our level and reveals a part of himself that only the Christian (through the cross of Christ) can enjoy.
The model of true intimacy is the trinity. God is a trinity of persons: father, son, and Holy Spirit.
Therefore, our intimacy with God (and with each other) is ultimately a reflection of Gods intimacy within the members of the Godhead. This means that intimacy is an essential part of the very nature of God and because we are made in His image, it is natural to us as well. This is why we are capable of intimacy with others and With God.
Our intimacy with God first began in Garden of Eden with the first man Adam and his wife Eve, when God walked with them (Gen 2:3).it was something that God desired. AS we know Adam sinned and the intimacy with God was lost.
But God had a plan by sending his son Jesus Christ to die for the world to be able to restore the broken relationship with Man kind. This was realized at the cross where Jesus became sin on our behalf (2 Cor 5:17) and bore our sins in his body (1 peter 2:24).Therefore, we are able to come to God through Jesus our mediator (1Tim 2:5).
Infact we are called into a fellowship with Christ according to 1Cor 1:9.The word ‘’fellowship’’ in the Greek is “Koinonia,” which is translated in the KJV as “communion” in 1Cor 11.
It is interesting that communion is the place where we accept the ultimate vulnerability of God in Christ who humbled himself to the point of death .in this I think, is a clue to true intimacy with God which is total humility. As Christ was humble to the point of death, so we too must be humble to the point of dieing to self, our selfish desires, our personal wants, our pride and boast.
When we are talking about building an intimate relationship with God, it should not just be based on what we want to get from him or what we want him to do for us. It should be to glorify him and to love him with our total heart without reservation, whereby God can trust us.
Intimacy with God is a priviledge freely given to us by Christ in his sacrifice on the cross. He removed our sins so that we might dwell with God. Therefore if there is sin in your life it could hinder your relationship with God.
The following are basic steps in building an intimate relationship with God.
1-Develop a worshipful, and thankful lifestyle John 4:24.
2-Learn to hear Gods voice and follow him. Many Christians have been so busy looking for the things of this world, riches, fame, money, achievement, thinking all this are the greatest fulfillment. But the greatest fulfillment in life is to hear the voice of God. John 10:4, Psalm 95:7.so we must spend quality time to hear his voice.
3-Learn to discern Gods call for your life.
4-Learn to study his word daily Psalm 119:105.The more you study and chew the word of God the more intimate you become to him.
5-Have a powerful and effective prayer life: prayer is acts of communicating to God.i have always said, that is either you are praying or you are playing.
Most Christians are playing instead of praying.1Thess 5:17 encourages us to always prayer without ceasing.
It is at the place of prayer that we establish a warm relationship with the father not when we are busy with the affairs of this world.
6-Learn to grow in faith, love, devotion, and passion for Jesus. Learn to know God and his ways.