A couple of months ago I read a book that really impacted me: “Fresh Wind. Fresh Fire.” by J. Cymbala from the Brooklyn Tabernacle in New York.
He explores many real life examples that happened in his community, but he makes an interesting point, that I have put in my words below:
Imagine this scene happening about 2000 years ago (try to picture this in your mind):
- You enter the temple in Jerusalem or a synagogue somewhere in Galilee
- Jesus is also there
- He sits on the front row
- The priest opens the book of the law
- He reads and teaches from it
- The priest talks about Yahweh and the great things He has done for His people
- Nothing wrong there
- Yet, God Himself is present there, and He is being ignored
- The promised Messiah is with them
- Christ’s name is not even mentioned
- Emmanuel – God with us – is in the room and the service goes on as if that was not the case
Doesn’t that sound absurd?
How could the religious people ignore the presence of the very God among them? How could they miss the opportunity to have a relationship with the Son of God?
Let’s come back to today:
- You enter a church on any given Sunday
- The priest opens the Bible
- He reads and teaches from it
- The priest talks about Jesus and the great things He has done for His people
- Nothing wrong there
- Yet, God Himself is in the room, and He is being ignored
- The promised Holy Spirit is with them
- His name is not even mentioned
- The Comforter is in the room and the service goes on as if that was not the case
Doesn’t that sound absurd?
How can the religious people ignore the presence of God among us? How can we miss the opportunity to have a relationship with the Spirit of God?
The Spirit of God is with us. He is in us.
He is interceding for us. He wants to use us to do great things. He empowers us to do what we cannot do alone.
