WE CAN’T HAVE BOTH

While pondering what to write this week, I thought about my brothers and sisters in Christ, I heard were striving desperately to “get closer to God” by all of their activities. Wow! Really? Doing things will get us closer to God? When pondering those words, I remembered Luke 10:38-42, the story of Martha and Mary. The passage below is taken from the Amplified Bible.

38 Now while they were on their way, Jesus entered a village [called Bethany], and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. 39 She had a sister named Mary, who seated herself at the Lord’s feet and was continually listening to His teaching. 40 But Martha was very busy and distracted with all of her serving responsibilities; and she approached Him and said, “Lord, is it of no concern to You that my sister has left me to do the serving alone? Tell her to help me and do her part.” 

 

 

 

 41 But the Lord replied to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered and anxious about so many things; 42 but ONLY ONE thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part [that which is to her advantage], which will not be taken away from her.” (TO REALLY KNOW JESUS’ HEART)

 

There is no doubt Martha loved Jesus and wanted to spend the evening serving Him, making Him feel comfortable, and meeting His physical needs. However, she was insensitive to His heart, His desires, and His purpose of being in her home that evening. Jesus chose to have an intimate evening with the two women He loved but one was distracted by the “doing of things.”

 “The Bible is where I met Him… My heart is where I KNOW Him!”

 Religion is all about rules, rituals, and demands. Religion requires you to “Do” in order to “Be.”

To BE closer and ACCEPTED by God, You must:

• Read your Bible every day
• Go to church
• Have daily devotions
• Pay your tithes
• Attend home groups or Bible Studies
• Serve in the church in some capacity
• Pray every day, etc.

 

Please don’t get me wrong, reading my Bible, going to church, having my devotions, going to home groups, serving others,  work, family, and friends are all “good things” however, we often forget the primary purpose for why Jesus Christ came into our hearts in the first place; “ THE ONE THING NECESSARY”… FOR AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP WITH US!  

 

When we die and leave all these things and activities behind, the only thing that will satisfy our Father’s heart, is what we did with His Son Jesus Christ who died so that He could live within us and BE OUR LIFE.

 

• He wants to ENJOY life with us and in us
• He wants to TALK to us and we talk to Him
• He wants to LAUGH with us
• He wants to CRY with us
• He wants to HEAR our hearts
• He wants to SHARE His heart
• He wants to TAKE care of us
• He just wants to LOVE us and remind us each day how much we are loved AND ACCEPTED BY OUR FATHER.

 

To all who have given their lives to Him; Jesus Christ, by His Spirit, is an Amazing Person who lives within our hearts.

 

Religion and all of its demands can never and will never substitute for the intimate relationship with our Lord. The enemy of our souls, the flesh, is the counterfeit that uses religion to deter us from the most glorious relationship we were created for…INTIMACY WITH OUR LORD!

 

 

WE CAN’T GET ANY CLOSER TO GOD THAN WE ALREADY ARE…

HE LIVES WITHIN US!

 HOW AWESOME IS THAT!!

  ENJOY HIM!!