We are as close to God as we want to be. Or, as A.W. Tozer put it, “Every man is as holy and as full of the Spirit as he wants to be.” There’s no wiggle room. You can try and rationalize, look for the gray area, or the loophole. It isn’t there. We are as close to God as we want to be. Paul tells us in Romans 8:38-39 it is impossible for anything to separate us from God: not death, angels, demons, rulers, authorities, height, depth… nothing!
There’s one thing he doesn’t cover though: ourselves. We are the “X” factor. We are the only thing that can separate us from God. We can choose to walk away. We can choose to keep Him out of our lives. Only us.
Why would anyone choose to stay away from God? In this season of my life, the very thought makes me catch my breath. Do we not realize the consequences of separating ourselves from God? Are we so short-sided as to trade all that is good and right for a moment of fleeting indiscretion? The thought breaks my heart, yet millions, no billions, are making this choice every day. Oh, how I pray you are not one of these! How I pray, I am not counted among this number!
We were created to collaborate with God in His mission to bring His Kingdom and His presence to earth as it is in Heaven. He created us in His image so we might be His true and faithful representatives here. This all means we need to know Him as well as possible. We need to be consumed with Him so we can properly reflect Him in our own lives. In other words, we need to be so intimately familiar with God that His thoughts are our thoughts, His words are our words.
I have read of many who are seeking “the deeper life” in Christ. They want to move past the shallow and into the deep things of God. Countless books and articles have been published on the topic, but most miss the obvious point of we are as close to God as we want to be. We pull back when we begin to realize the cost. Once again, we want Jesus on our terms but recoil when He gives us His own. We want the prize without the pain.
You are as close to God as you want to be, and so am I. How close we are to Christ is up to us. We can choose Him or choose to look to our own circumstances and our own selfishness. Our days will be spent pursuing Him or pursuing pleasure. We will chase after short-term experience or long-term joy. You cannot know God too much. You will never be disappointed in what the pursuit of Him brings to your life. He is the greatest treasure and the only one which outlasts even time itself. How close are you to God? How close do you want to be? What’s keeping you from closing the gap? It’s only you.