God prizes our intimacy with Him above everything else. As we saw in the last post, God created mankind primarily for communion. His choice to make man in His own image and likeness proves it. This is why whenever a human person draws near to Him for fellowship, He reciprocates the gesture. Therefore, James the apostle encourages you to, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you….” (James 4:8). The following are some reasons why God calls us to a life of intimacy with Himself.
    Firstly, God created mankind to represent Him on earth. One of the meanings of the word ‘represent’, according to the dictionary, is to, “act or speak officially for somebody and defend his or her interests.” God created the earth with His own interests in mind : He wanted His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven (Matt 6:10). The primary reason why the earth exists is to be an extension of God’s rule—His kingdom. However, He did not want to rule the earth directly, but through the agency of humanity. Hence, the Bible says, “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and LET THEM RULE over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”” (Gen 1:16 NIV) (emphasis mine). By the expression “let them rule”, God put human beings directly in charge of the earth. However, it was to be God’s rule through humanity. The only way you and I can effectively represent God—act or speak officially for God and defend His interests on earth—is to commune with Him always. Remember it is impossible to represent someone, effectively, with whom you are not in close contact.
    Secondly, God created mankind to function, optimally, only in union with Him. God demonstrated that prior to the Fall : “Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name.” (Gen 2:19). Note that God did not correct any of the pronouncements Adam had made about the animals he named. That was because his intimacy with God gave him revelatory insight into the mind of God. In a similar manner, Mary’s communion with Jesus gave a revelatory awareness of the need to anoint His body with an expensive perfume : “Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. But Jesus said, “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial.” (Jn 12:3,7). We can only function at our best if we learn to commune with God. Therefore, it is important for us to spend time in prayer and the word.
    Thirdly, It is impossible to fulfil God’s plans for your life without your sharing intimacy with Him. Having clearly revealed the nature of His plans for us as, “… plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jer 29:11), God, in the next two verse says, “Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jer 29:12-13). This is because it is as you commune with God that you discover what He wants you to do, where, when and how He wants you to do it. Even the earthly life of our Lord Jesus Christ proves this truth. The Bible cites several instances in which Jesus withdrew to solitary places to pray. Adam’s ability to name every beast of the field and every bird of the air per excellence was because he lived in unbroken fellowship with God—the fruit of which was a ceaseless flow of revelation knowledge from God to him. Jesus died and rose from the dead in order to restore both our relationship with God and our fellowship or communion with Him. So that, like before the Fall, we can have unhindered communion with God. The book of  Hebrews describes it as, “…having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus,” (Heb 10:19).
    Fourthly, through fellowship with God, we exchange our weaknesses for His strength. Remember that, “… the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” (1Cor 1:25). The Bible says, “…The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working].” (James 5:16 AMP). God’s power (His ability), by which the Bible tells us He rules forever (Ps 66:7), becomes available for us to meet needs as appropriate, if we “pray without ceasing” (1Th 5:17). God does not call people to live for Him or to do His work in their strength. Jesus expressed this truth when He said, “I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.” (Jn 5:30). Hence, “… He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.” (Lk 5:16). The result was that, “One day AS HE WAS TEACHING, Pharisees and teachers of the law, who had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem, were sitting there. And THE POWER OF THE LORD WAS PRESENT FOR HIM TO HEAL THE Sick.” (Lk 5:17 NIV) (emphasis mine).
    Finally, the Bible says, “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7). Satan is our vicious enemy, whose subtlety is beyond normal or mere human detection. Our only hope of successfully demystifying his craftiness and effectively resisting him is dwelling in the secret place of the most high (the place of intimacy with God). David had this insight when he wrote, “One thing I have desired of the Lord, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord, And to inquire in His temple. For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock. And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me; Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.” (Ps 27:4-6). Those who know how to kneel before God, in humble submission of intimacy with Him, will consequently know how to stand before men and withstand the Devil. Shalom.