In His Presence

Glory to God!

We are continuing to learn what it means to fear the Lord and yesterday God spoke to us about revering His presence. This is what He showed us:

• The one thing that distinguishes God's people from the people of the world is God's presence in and with His people. Exodus 33:12-17; 2 Cor. 6:16-7:1
• To live in the awareness of God's presence and in response to Him is to fellowship with God. 1 John 1:3; 2:24,25,27; 3:6
• As King David sought to bring back the Ark of God so the Church must seek the presence of God. 2 Sam. 6:1,2
• As the Ark was carried on a "new cart," so the Church, which is created new in Christ, is the habitation of God. 2 Sam. 6:3,4; Eph. 2:22
• As David and the people of Israel celebrated before the Lord, so the Church can rejoice in the presence of God. 2 Sam.6:5; Psalm 16:11
• God's presence must be honoured and never treated as common! 2 Sam. 6:6,7
• The Church must not confuse avoiding being "religious" with irreverence! 2 Tim. 3:2
• The Church must honour what God considers holy. 2 Sam. 6:9
• In God's presence there is blessing. 2 Sam. 6:10-12
• God wants the Church to revere His presence no matter what the cost. 2 Sam. 6:13-15
• Religious people are more concerned with appearances than responding to God's presence. 2 Sam. 6:16
• Just as David prepared a tent for the presence of God, so the believer must prepare his tent to be the habitation of God's presence. 2 Sam. 6:17; 1 Cor. 3:16,17
• The believer's response to the presence of God will be generosity! 2 Sam. 6:18,19
• When the presence of God is the believer's priority, he will "dance before the audience of One." 2 Sam. 6:21,22
• The believer must remain in God's presence and revere His presence to be fruitful. 2 Sam. 6:23; John 15:4

As a church, we are pursuing the presence of God and seeking to live continuously in His presence. Consequently we are learning to live in the fear the Lord as we rely on, respond to, and revere His presence.

In the evening we had another special opportunity to minister God's presence to the poor and needy in Frankfurt at our monthly soup kitchen. Glory to God!

Quote of the week:

"God wills that we should push on into His presence and live our whole life there."
A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God

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