Greetings again my Brethren. Over the last nine months we have looked at the emotions God. Who would have thought God has emotions, well He does. He has emotions just like you and I this is why God knows our frame He even knows the current tally of hairs on our head, what a wonderful God we serve. The next nature of God we will look at is His social nature. One of the most unexplainable attributes of God is His desire to have a relationship with man and this desire is seen in how social God is with those who love Him. To be honest God has little to do with people who do not love Him. But this makes sense in the natural the people who do not like me I give them a wide berth and God is the same. He is there for them with mercy and salvation (which is more than just having their sins forgiven) if they come to their senses, but until then God stands afar off. In spite of His great love for man God knows for those who do not desire to walk with God and know His ways the only things God can bring to a relationship is judgment and punishment. But now for those who do desire to know God and walk with Him the sky is the limit. All throughout the Bible the Scriptures talk of God having a social relationship with man. God walks with, dwells with, meets with, and communes with man. Let us look at some examples: In Leviticus we read where God is talking with the Children of Israel, “And I will set my habitation among you; and my soul shall not abhor you; 12 and I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be to me a people.” (Leviticus 26:11-12) This promise is for us today, “I will walk among you and I will be your God.” What a wonderful promise to us. In 2 Samuel we read, “In all my going about with all the children of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people Israel, saying, Why build ye me not a house of cedars?” (2 Samuel 7:7)
In both examples God is looking for a social relationship with man, but sadly all man seems to do is turn their backs on God. Here in 2 Samuel God is asking the Children of Israel why did you not make a great place for Him? Have you ever seen the cedars of Lebanon? Huge stately and majestic anything of value and highly prized make of wood would be made of cedar. God was staying why are you not making me a highly prized place to live? God is after our heart this is the place the throne where He desires to rule and reign, but sadly like today this was the theme that ran all throughout the Old Testament God wanting more of man’s heart and dedication and rarely getting it. God dwells with man. In Isaiah we find who God dwells with, “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, and whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, and with him that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.”(Isaiah 57:15) God does not dwell with just anyone as many Christians think oh no, God said, “I dwell in the high and holy place, and with him that is of a contrite and humble spirit.” Not too many Christians meet these requirements and I include myself sometimes. The word “contrite” means crushed and ground to powder, so God is with those who have been crushed and ground to powder. In the New Testament in 2 Corinthians we read, “and what agreement to the sanctuary of God with idols? for ye are a sanctuary of the living God, according as God said―‘I will dwell in them, and will walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be My people,” (2 Corinthians 6:16) Here is the requirement for God to be their God, “And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 17Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,” (2 Corinthians 6:17-18) Separation unto God and Him alone is always the condition for Him to be our God. In Numbers we find God meets with man, “And Balaam said unto Balak, Stand by thy burnt offering, and I will go: peradventure the LORD will come to meet me: and whatsoever he sheweth me I will tell thee. And he went to an high place. 4And God met Balaam: and he said unto him, I have prepared seven altars, and I have offered upon every altar a bullock and a ram.” (Numbers 23:3-4) Can you imagine the God of the universe coming to meet with us, but better than meeting with us God communes with us. In Genesis we find God communing with Abraham, “And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;’ (Genesis 18:1) and “And the LORD went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place.” (Genesis 18:33) One thing for sure when God comes to commune with us we are never the same. This is God’s intention to change us from the inside out.
Next month we will look at some privileges enjoyed by man in our social relationship with God.
