Friday, 29 October 2021
“The sheep that are My own hear My voice and listen to Me; I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:27 AMP
“Do not banish me from Your presence, and don’t take Your Holy Spirit from me” – Psalm 51:11 NLT
The definition of an accessory is, “A thing that can be added to something else to make it more useful, versatile, or attractive”. An accessory is something that is not necessarily of utmost importance but its inclusion, as my wife would say, brings the outfit together. So most people can survive without it and only use it when and if it’s required.
Moses, in Exodus 33, used to pitch a tent outside the camp and used it as a meeting place with GOD. Anyone who needed God’s audience was more than welcome to go, yet only Moses and Joshua frequented it. The Bible describes how the Israelites would stand at their tents and look at Moses entering the meeting place. They were happy with Moses interceding on their behalf, happy with only Moses having an intimate relationship with the LORD. Sadly, thousands of years later nothing has changed even though the veil was torn. We still have Christians who are content with others interceding on their behalf. Though the invitation has been open for thousands of years for them to enter the presence, they are still refusing and only admire and celebrate those who know GOD intimately (This is heard when they brag about who their spiritual father is).
Holy Spirit to these “Israelite type” Christians is an accessory, and they can survive or get by without Him. He is not an integral part of their lives and they are not bothered if they have not heard from Him in months. They are very happy to stand at their tents, encourage and celebrate those who frequent the meeting place. John 10:27 highlights the point that not everyone can hear the Holy Spirit and hence not everyone is guided/led by Him. Only the true sheep hear His voice because like Joshua, they too frequent and rest in the presence of the Holy Spirit. To them, GOD isn’t an accessory but the epicenter of their whole existence. David in Psalm 51:11 is pleading with GOD not to take away His Holy Spirit because he knows that he can’t survive without Him. This is the kind of attitude we ought to have concerning our relationship with Him. In the same way a deer pants for water, we also need to thirst and hunger for the presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit. It’s this hunger for Him that leads to intimacy, which eventually leads to being led by Him.
The problem is most of us are not desperate because it hasn’t personally been revealed to us how crucial He is, because if it had been revealed then we would be spending every waking moment seeking Him. Like the stubborn girls we used to pursue growing up, He comes closer the more you pursue Him. Our pursuit of Him, like the love letter that we used to write and pass along in class till it gets to its intended recipient, should be persistent and determined. The growth, effectiveness, and success of our walk are directly proportional to our intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit. He leads and we follow. Like Moses, we must get over our fear of the outdoors and pitch our own tents to meet our LORD.
The growth, effectiveness, and success of our walk are directly proportional to our intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit. He leads and we follow.
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