He Values My Personhood

What does God want for us?  So many people I know are afraid of God, afraid to approach Him, because they are afraid that, if they do, He will send them to Africa as missionaries -- or worse still -- begin to accuse them of crimes committed in weakness and ignorance.

It was because of this fear that Jesus came, "the exact image of the invisible God, (Col. 1:15) ...in whom all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form" (Col. 2:9).  Jesus came to rescue us from the dominion of darkness by revealing to us the immense, insane, love of God for us.  He always and everywhere reflected Who-God-Is toward us.  If we can keep our eyes focused on the way Jesus received all who came to Him, we will comprehend God's attitude toward us also.

No one ever needed to be afraid to come to Jesus, no matter how weak, how ignorant, how sinful.  He said, "He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty"(Jn.6:35), echoing in a way the passage from Isaiah:

 You have been a refuge for the poor,

a refuge for the needy in his distress,

a shelter from the storm

and a shade from the heat (25:4).

 

Who among us would not run to a God like this, if we could only believe it to be true?  Maybe we are not yet poor enough, needy enough, to want a refuge and a shelter.  Maybe we are not yet hungry or thirsty enough to want to be filled with the fullness of God's love and mercy toward us.  Jesus said, "I will never turn away anyone who comes to Me."  So why are we afraid to come to God, just as we are--not 'good' people, but needy people; not 'strong and sleek,' but weak and helpless?

 

The Lord sent Jonah to the Ninevites, an extremely cruel and insensitive tribe, because, as He said, "These people do not know their right hands from their left hands."  If YHWH could care for people who abused and tormented anyone not of their own tribe, could He not also care for us?  But the Ninevites were free to respond to the message of the Lord or to turn away.  They chose to respond and were blessed. 

 

As much as God loves us and wants fellowship with us, He will not intrude on our free will.  He appeals to us, but will not invade us.  The Holy Spirit never violates our free will; He, like all of the Trinity, has supreme respect for our personhood.  He will never take us further --ie, Africa -- than we are willing to go.  The Holy Spirit patiently waits to see how much welcome we will accord Him; how open we are to His help, so that through us, He can help others also (The Helper, p. 126).

 

When Jesus met the rich young ruler in the Gospel, He offered an invitation: "Go and sell what you have..."  Even though Jesus loved the young man, He left him free to follow or not.  We also, whenever we choose, can walk away. 

 

How much of the Holy Spirit are we willing to receive?  What limitations are we placing upon Him?  Here is Catherine Marshall's prayer to the Holy Spirit, in part:

 

Lord, thank you for always knocking on the door and never crashing it down.  Lord, Helper, it is my will to open the door wide to You.  Enter, Lord, and be my honored Guest.  What joy to welcome and receive You!  Amen.