The Implications of Intimacy

Why walk in intimacy with God? What's so great about that, anyway? I mean, things aren't so bad in my life. I got a good church, I've got a good ministry. Got a good family? Got a good income? Things seem to be going pretty well. Why is it I need to walk in intimacy with God? Why is it I need to deeper my communion with Him? What is it that I have not learned that I can still learn? And so, therefore, I have to ask myself the question: well, what are the implications of intimacy? By understanding the implications.

Hopefully, they'll motivate us to want to walk closer with the Lord Jesus Christ. To do that, I want to just quote to you what Charles Spurgeon said. Listen very carefully. He says, I can say concerning Christ's religion: if I had to die like a dog and have no hope whatever of immortality, if I wanted to lead a happy life, Let me serve my God with all my heart.

Let me be a follower of Jesus and walk in his footprints. If there were no here, I would still prefer to be a Christian. To being a king or an emperor. For I am persuaded that there are more delights in Christ, yea, more joy in one glimpse of his face, than is to be found in all the praises of this harlot world. and in all the delights which it can yield to us in its sunniest and brightest days. That is the implication of intimacy. Spurt said, If there was no guarantee of immortality, if there was no life in the hereafter, I would still be a Christian.

Today. How many of you could actually say that? How many of you could actually say, you know what? If there was no, if the grave was it, that was it. I would serve God with all my heart. I would honor Him and I would love Him because that is the only life that makes a difference. Spurgeon says, Look, the most fulfilling days in this harlot world, the happiest, the most brightest days, can never be compared to walking with God and serving Him. Folks, until you get to that point. You don't understand what it means to walk in intimacy with God.

That's where Spurgeon came to in his life. I'm not sure I'm there yet. I wish I was. I want to be there, though. To make sure that if there wasn't a life here, and it's easy to say that because we know that there is, but if there wasn't, Would you still be a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ? Would you still endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ? Would you still discipline yourself as an athlete disciplines himself to run the race as Christ would have you run the race? The implications of intimacy.

To find them, I would like you to turn back with me to the book of Exodus. The book of Exodus, the 33rd and 34th chapter. And I want to give you four of them this evening. Four implications, and there are probably many more, but these four I want to give you because they center around the man Moses, his life. A man who had gone through the desert experience 40 years on the backside of the desert, and God used him in a powerful way as he led the nation of Israel out of bondage. And we pick up the narrative in Exodus chapter 33.

The Israelites have already worshipped the golden calf. Moses has already come down from Mount Sinai, broken the Ten Commandments. God is furious. God wants to destroy them all. And Moses stands up for the people and pleads. The people's cakes and ask God to forgive them. And so God, in His wonderful grace and mercy, Bestows forgiveness upon the nation as a whole. But there are certain ones who will still die, some of the rebellious ones who will still die. But as a whole, the nation will not be wiped away.

God forgives them. And so you come to Exodus chapter 33, and the Lord speaks and says, You know, this is what I'm going to do. I'm going to send my angel before you, and he will guide you into the land of Canaan. But for Moses, that wasn't good enough. He didn't want an angel. He wanted God him to lead them. And so it says down in verse number 12 of Exodus chapter 33: Then Moses said to the Lord, See, thou dost say to me, Bring up this people. But thou thyself hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me.

Moreover, thou hast said, I have known you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight. Now, therefore, I pray thee, if I have found favor in thy sight, let me know thy ways, that I may know thee, so that I may find favor in thy sight.

Consider too that this nation is thy people. So here you see Moses pleading again on behalf of a sinful people who have rebelled against their God. In verse number 14, God says, My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest.

Then he said to him, If thy presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here. Moses says, What? I appreciate you wanting to send the angel. That's the next 33, verse number 2, by the way. I appreciate you wanting to send the angel. We don't want the angel. We want God. We want you to lead us, Lord. And God says, Okay, my presence will go with you.

If your presence doesn't go with us, better to be in the desert with God than be in Canaan without God. That's the point. It's better to be anywhere that's as bleak as we can possibly think of with God than to be in the happiest place in the world without God. And Moses says, Look, I'm a lonely man. And I believe that Moses was a lonely man. Leadership is a very lonely position. In fact, I believe that he was more lonely leading two million Jews. That he was on the backside of the desert leading Jethro's flock.

I believe that he was so lonely that he needed the presence of God in his life. Because when you lead and you lead God's way, you've got to stand alone many, many times. And Moses found himself standing alone on many occasions. He found himself standing alone pleading the case for the people. But here's the point: you need to understand. That's very important. Moses could do that because here's point number one.

He enjoyed a personal communication with God. That's implication number one of intimacy with him. When you walk with God, you enjoy a personal communication with Him. It says back in Exodus 33, verse number 7. Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, a good distance from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And it came about that everyone who sought the Lord would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp. And it came about whenever Moses went out to the tent, that all the people would arise and stand, each at the entrance of his tent, and gaze after Moses until he entered the tent.

And it came about whenever Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent, and the Lord would speak. With Moses. When all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, all the people would arise and worship, each at the entrance of his tent. Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses. Face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend. Moses had something that no one else had. He had the chance to speak with God face to face. It says over in Numbers chapter 12.

The whole situation with Miriam and Aaron, when they tried to usurp his authority, and God called them all together to 10 and says, I got to have a meeting with you. We got to talk. God says to Miriam and to Aaron, I speak with him face to face, even plainly.

I speak with him different than any other prophet. Why is that? Because Moses walked in intimacy with the living God. That's why. He had a relationship with God that nobody else had. Sure, he was the leader. But there was a special relationship between God and Moses. The relationship is offered to you and me as well, by the way. A relationship where we can actually enjoy a personal commun. With God. Let me ask you a question.

Do you enjoy your time with God? Do you enjoy speaking? With God? Do you enjoy listening to Him speak to you? Those who walk in intimacy long to hear Him speak. They want to hear the word of the Lord. They want to do all they can to get more from him. Remember years ago, when I was traveling with a team from my college, there was a young lady who used to sing. She's now married, got eight kids, homeschools all eight of them. She's a remarkable woman. But she used to sing a song. At the different camps we went to, about prayer.

It was entitled, I Just Came to Talk with Your Lord. It goes like this. I'm not going sing it for you. I just going to read the words. Hate to disappoint you. I didn't come here to ask you for anything, I just came to talk with you, Lord. Maybe tomorrow there will be sadness and sorrow, and maybe a thousand teard may fall. But until I face tomorrow's tasks, I have no special favors to ask. I just came to talk with you, Lord. How many times do we do that? How many times do we just come to talk with God?

You see, those who walk in intimacy with Him enjoy a personal communication. With him. When you are with your wife and you love your wife, you go to dinner, you love to commune and talk back and forth. Of course, if there's not intimacy in a relationship, if there's tension in a relationship, you're not going to be going to dinner anyplace, you know, let alone speaking together. Let alone sleeping in the same room together. Okay? But when there's that intimacy that's there, you enjoy that communication with her.

The same thing is true in the spiritual realm. We enjoy a personal communication with the living God of the universe. I'm afraid that we too often succumb to the demands of ministry. And sacrifice the delights of intimacy. We succumb to the demands of ministry. Ministry weighs so heavily upon us as people, whether it's in our home or whether it's in our church, and we succumb to those demands: going here and going there and being here and being that. That we sacrifice the delights of intimacy. Moses didn't do that.

He enjoyed his personal communication with God. So much so, he could speak to him at any time about things that concerned him. So much so. That he went beyond speaking to him. He wanted more than just a chance to speak to God. He wanted to see God. So he asked him. And that leads us to our second point.

Not only do you enjoy a personal communication with God, but listen very carefully. When you walk in intimacy with Him, you will experience You will experience, I got to be very careful how I say this, a special revelation. From God. Now, don't brand me a heretic yet. Listen to what I have to say. Or, better yet, listen to what God has to say. You don't have to listen to me, just listen to God. Exodus 33. Verse number 17. The Lord said to Moses, I will also do this thing of which you have spoken, for you have found favor in my sight, and I have known you by name.

Then Moses said, Moses gets really bold. He says, I pray thee, show me thy glory. Lord, I appreciate the chance to talk with you. That's a good thing. But give me all you got. Show me yourself. I want to see you. If we had this intimate thing going on, if we are really close, as you say, we are. Then I want to see you face to face. Show me your glory. Show me all that you got. And I'm ready to receive it. Read on. And he said, I myself will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the Lord before you.

And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion. But he said, You cannot see my face, for no man can see me. And live. Then the Lord said, Behold, there is a place by me, and you shall stand there on the rock, and it will come about while my glory is passing by that I will put you in the cleft of the rock. And cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take my hand away, and you will see my back, but my face shall not be seen.

God says, okay, Moses, this is the way it's going to be. God doesn't cut deals with anybody. God kind of just tells you how it's going to be. You can't see my face and live. How do we know that? Well, number one, because God said it.

Number two, 1 Timothy 6 says that God dwells in what? Una light. God is so bright that to stand in his presence would totally consume you. God is so bright that the city of the New Jerusalem will not have any electricity because you won't need it. God will light that city because of his presence. So, because he dwells in unapproachable light, he spared Moses' life. Moses, no man can look at my face and live.

But this is what I will do: I will put you in the cleft of the rock and I will cover your face. And when I walk by, I'll let you see my hind parts. That's very significant. Because what God is saying is that He's saying this: that although you can't see me face to face, you may see. Where I have passed by, and so know me by my past doing. That 's important. You will see the effect of my life. You will see what nobody else sees. You will see why I do what I do, how I do what I do. And where I do it.

Because you will see my hindparts. You will see where I have been. Nobody else will. But you will, Moses. Moses experienced a special revelation from God, and I want to let you know something, so can you. So can you. Turn with me to John chapter 14.

John 14, listen to the words of our Lord. Verse number 21: He who has my commandments and keeps them. He it is who loves me, and he who loves me shall be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will what? Disclose my to him. I will manifest myself to him. That is the same word used in Matthew 27, verse 53, to describe those who were dead, the saints that were dead, and were resurrected. At the resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord, and walked among those in the city of Jerusalem. It's a word that means to disclose that which has been previously hidden.

Those saints in the graves were hidden until they were resurrected, and they were no longer hidden. They were disclosed for all to see. Jesus says this: that if you love me, it will be manifested in the fact that you keep my commandments.

And if you keep my commandments and love me, I will disclose my to you. I will manifest myself to you. Those things that have Been hidden from you, you will now see. You will be able to understand God. Not that you'll fully grasp Him because He's infinite and we are fin. But as Moses experienced a special revelation from God, my friends, so too do we. Not extra-biblical revelation. But they will begin to see and understand God and his ways. And even though Moses walked in intimacy with him, he knew who God was and when he saw him.

And he saw the glory of the Lord, he fell down on his face and he began to worship his God. Which leads us to the third point.

When you walk in intimacy with Him, not only do you enjoy a personal commun with Him. And not only do you experience a special revelation from him, but you execute the radical directions of God. In other words, you carry out what he says. You execute the radical, and I do mean radical, directions. God. And those who walk in intimacy with God execute those directions. They follow out those radical directions. They know that the world around them does not agree with what they do. They know that the world around them does not agree with who they are.

They know that the world around them will not agree with how they speak and how they live and the places they go. But they care about what God thinks about what they say and where they go and what they do. And so by living in obedience to God, you execute the radical directions of God. Because God says you obey me, not the world.

You see, you find people today who don't follow what God says in His Word, you have two. Two conclusions. One, they're not born-again believers. Or number two, they don't walk in intimacy with Him.

For those who walk in intimacy with God obey what God says. To the hilt. They want to do exactly what he says. Never waver to the left, never waver to the right, but be obedient. The Bible says in Matthew chapter 5 that you love those who hate you.

The world says if they hate you, bag them. Who needs them? Right? But God says, Look, here are my directives.

You love those who hate you, you pray for those who persecute you, and you give yourself to those who can't stand you. That's the radical direction of God. And those who walk in intimacy with God not only enjoy a personal communication with God, and not only experience a special revelation from God, and not only execute the radical directions of God. But this last one's really good. They exude an influential reflection of God. Isn't that good word? Exude. I like that word. It means to ooze out, to discharge.

They exude an influential reflection. Of God. Back to Exodus chapter 34. Our man Moses. Exodus 3. Verse number 29. Moses has listened to the word of the Lord. He has given him those ten commandments one more time. Moses, in verse number 29. Coming down from the Mount Sinai, and the two tablets of the testimony were in Moses' hand as he was coming down from the mountain. That Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because of his speaking with him. So when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid.

To come near him. Then Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the rulers in the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke to them. And afterward, all the sons of Israel came near, and he commanded them to do everything that the Lord had spoken to him on Mount Sinai. When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face. But whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, He would take off the veil until he came out. And whenever he came out and spoke to the sons of Israel what he had been commanded, the sons of Israel would see the face of Moses and the skin.

Of Moses' face shone. So Moses would replace the veil over his face until he went in to speak. With him, Moses was reflecting the gl of God. He would go in and speak with God as a man would speak face to face with his friend, and the glory of the Lord would so touch his life that when he came out of the tent to speak to the people, They could see the glory of God. The reflection of God was visible. They knew he had been with God. And my friends, people know when you have been with God. Because it seemed In your life, you just exude God, everything oozes out of you, and all it says is God.

And that's what happened with Moses. And so the writer, Paul, in 2 Corinthians 3, verse 18, would say this: But we all With unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord the Spirit. Paul says, Look, Moses was the only one who had that sh. But we all, every one of us, with unveiled face, behold in the mirror. The glory of God. Folks, this is the glory of God. And when we read about the glory of God, and we hear about the glory of God, and we begin to do what God says in order that He might be glorified, we reflect God.

And every around us is influenced by God because it's Him who works in and through our lives. And, folks, that's why intimacy with God is so important. That those around you will see the glory of God in your life. And as we read the Word of God, we are changed from one level of glory to the next level of glory, to the next level of glory, and to the next level of glory. How? By the Spirit of God who works in our lives. That's how. And everybody around us begins to see. Remember Acts chapter 4, verse 13?

They marveled at Peter and John. And they knew, it says, they realized that they had been with who? Jesus. They knew that these apostles had been with Jesus. How did they know? Because from them exuded that influential reflection of God. Everything they did, everything they said, spoke of God. As God was bold before them, the Son of God was bold before them, so too these men were bold before the Sanhedrin. As the Lord would receive abuse and persecution without retaliation, So these men would receive abuse and affliction without retaliation.

And then, when they looked at these men, they knew they marvel because these men had been with Jesus. That's what's important. That's why we walk in intimacy with God. We are as close to God today as we want to be. The closer you want to be with him, the closer you can be with him. But you are as close to God today as you want to be. If you are not carrying out those radical directions of God, if you don't enjoy that personal communication with God, if you're not experiencing a special revelation from God, then you'll never, never.

Give off an influential reflection of God. And my friends, that's why we walk in int with Him. That He might be glorified. And that everyone else will see the glory of God.