But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works. Psalm 73:28 As we draw near to God, He draws near to us (James 4:8). Because of the shed blood of Jesus, we have been made new inside and are able to approach God with confidence (Hebrews 4:14-16). When we draw near to God, He is right there to meet us (Jeremiah 23:23; Acts 17:27).

We need to stimulate ourselves toward a deeper and closer relationship with God. David wrote in Psalms, "I have set the Lord continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken" (16:8). Since whatever we meditate on becomes our world, we must continually discipline ourselves to draw near to God. We are not waiting for God to show up; through Jesus we have access to the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16).

I am convinced that one of the main reasons we are to draw near to God is for the purpose of drawing others to Him. Jesus reconciled us to Himself and has given us the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18). We draw near to God for our own satisfaction and joy but also to make Him known. As the nearness of God is evident in our lives, others will sense His presence. In Acts, unbelievers marveled at the wisdom of Peter and John and "began to recognize them as having been with Jesus" (4:13b). God puts people in our lives every day that are just a step away from the Gospel. And the catalytic common denominator to their salvation might be our closeness to God.

None of us is cut out to be "religious." We are called to a new life in Christ. Avoid religiosity; it is an aberration. Instead, Christianity is a new life in God, stripped of all religious affectations. So focus on Jesus, and enjoy Him.

Drawing near,
Pastor Jeff




© 2007 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.