2 Chronicles 15:2 He went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.”

This prophecy seems very simple, yet it is profoundly so. It is so obvious as to be overlooked. The whole point of being a disciple is to be close to God. Of course, in a physical sense we are all close to God, because He is infinite, which logically means that we exist inside Him, just as it says in Acts 17:28. However, as many are aware, there is a wide range of experiencing closeness to God. Frankly, you have to taste it to know how good it is, (Psalm 34:8) and quite a few people really don’t want it. Most people at least have the concept that being close to God brings protection and blessing, but their daily lives show no understanding of the basic truth of this verse. If we want God to be close to us in protection and blessing, we need to draw close to Him in humility, gratitude, and obedience. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is good news because He is the way to God the Father (John 14:6), enabling all who will to draw close. “Post Christian” societies, like much of Europe and America, have forgotten the reality of this verse, thinking they can enjoy protection and blessing without humility, gratitude, and obedience. It doesn’t work that way!

I’ve certainly experienced this on a personal scale, and I see it all around me. God is a God of grace, certainly, or none of us would stand a chance, but we must not forget that attitudes and actions have consequences. That truth in itself is widely ignored these days! I need to keep watch over my own attitudes and actions, and I am called to help others recognize what they are doing as well, so that they may repent and turn to God. I am not to let fear of bragging make me draw back from expressing my closeness to God, because most people really don’t know that it’s possible. I missed a good opportunity Wednesday afternoon for precisely that reason. I am to make the most of the opportunities the Lord gives me to let people know that He is real, personal, and cares about them, because most of them simply don’t know that.

Father, thank You for pointing this out to me this morning. The lady I was talking to Wednesday has been touched by such things as our Christmas caroling, so her heart was prepared, but even though I recognized the opening I didn’t take it, not wanting to say that You talk to me. If I don’t tell people that, how will they expect You to talk to them? Forgive me for being worried about how I would be perceived. May I express Your Gospel in fullness, with no hesitation for any reason, so that as many as will may receive, repent and believe, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!