What do you enjoy in life? What are the top three things that bring you joy?
(If you haven’t chosen three things, please do so before reading on. It will help if you’ve considered your answers.)
Do you make those things a priority in your life?
Last week, I expressed the opinion that Jesus’ primary goal in coming to earth was to bring glory to His Father, rather than just to save us from our sins—as we tend to think. In that post, I quoted the Westminster Shorter Catechism, which says, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.”
I only discussed the first part of the answer. I ignored “Man’s chief end is to enjoy God forever,”
But God didn’t ignore it. I was challenged as the Lord led me to look at what I enjoy, and to consider how my choices in life reflect my idea of what brings me joy. Doesn’t it seem that one would pursue what brings them joy?
The Lord’s been wooing me this past year, calling me to a closer relationship and deeper intimacy with Him. And yet, I confess, when making a list of my goals in life, enjoying Him was not the first thing I thought of.
What about you? Was enjoying God high on your list? Do your daily activities and choices in life show that you enjoy God?
Too many times, I’ve chosen responding to e-mail and shallow cruising of Facebook when I could have made time for real fellowship with the One who loves me most. That’s sad. I could do without many posts, but I like keeping up with family and friends. Through them, I also run into some thought-provoking and challenging articles that I wouldn’t otherwise see.
However, when compared to intimate, face-to-face time with the Lord, time spent on social media is empty and of no account. And that’s just one of the activities that I too often put before enjoying the Lord.
This past week, I had a peek into what it means to enjoy the Lord.
At their Last Supper, Jesus closed His intimate time with His disciples with prayer. John recorded that conversation with His Father, and we get to listen in. We’re privileged to hear Jesus’ heart as He wraps up His earthly ministry before going to the cross.
As He prays in John 17, He speaks lovingly about His disciples, recounting His love for them, that He has given His glory to them, that He prays for them (and for all who will follow Him), and that He wants us to be one as He and the Father are one.
He closed the prayer with a picture that describes for me what it’s like to “enjoy Him forever.”
Jesus said, “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” (John 17:24, 26).
As I read that, I saw the picture of the perfect father—the kind that is always loving and patient, spending time with him because he delights in being together. I can see him sitting in the overstuffed chair with son in his lap, reading a book to him. Giving him a lap-ride on the tractor or lawn mower, holding his hand as they walk through the woods, or sitting quietly on the bank fishing.
He pleasures in his son’s company and longs to share life with him. He makes time to play in his son’s world, but also brings the son into his world to share his life too.
That’s what Jesus wants with us. He delights in being with us, in sharing life, He wants us to be with Him, to experience His world to experience first-hand His relationship with His Father. He desires that we experience the Father’s love and glory so that we will love Father as He does, and that we will be one with Him.
In return, the young son delights in being with his father. He watches for him to come home from work, and runs to greet him. He drops whatever he’s doing to be with his dad. Furthermore, he watches his dad closely and copies what he’s doing. He feels his father’s love and responds with his whole heart.
We all need and long to be loved, to belong, to feel secure, and to know someone cares about “me” and wants to share life with us.
Jesus longs to fellowship with us. I ask you, as He asked me, is knowing Jesus’ love and enjoying Him high on your to-do list?
Indeed, He’s knocking, inviting us to such a relationship.
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne” (Rev. 3:20-21).
We can glorify Him enjoy Him forever, beginning now.
But we have to open the door and invite Him in.
“You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Ps. 16:11).