God Wants Us Up Close and Personal

God wants our relationship with him to be close and personal. He wants us to be in close, daily contact with him. In Jeremiah, chapter 13, God used the illustration of a loincloth, or belt, to show his desire for intimacy with us. In the New Living Translation, God said he wanted his people to ‘cling’ to him. The Hebrew word for “cling” is dabaq, which means to cling, stick, cleave, keep close, stick to, stick with, follow closely, join to. Knowing this really helps us understand this passage of scripture at a deeper level. When we make choices in our lives that lead to a closer relationship with God, we are blessed beyond measure. His love envelopes us and he  advises and encourages us. This is his gift of the Holy Spirit, which is available to us if we accept Christ as our Savior. The deeper our relationship with God becomes, the more connected we are to the Holy Spirit and his counsel.

In Jeremiah we learn that the sin of pride rots our heart and we lose our usefulness to God. The people in Jeremiah’s day were not able to enjoy real intimacy with God because of the sin of pride. They focused on tangible things they could touch and smell instead of God. Those tangible things became idols to them. They allowed the sin of pride to rob them of an up close and personal relationship with the Lord. People in today’s world are suffering from this same fate. That’s why the Bible is such a great resource to us, IF we use it. The more we read and learn, the more we grow. The easier it becomes to determine right actions and behaviors. The more fully we develop in our walk with The Lord, the more fulfilling our relationship with him becomes.

Jeremiah 11:9-13

New Living Translation

"The LORD says: This illustrates how I will rot away the pride of Judah and Jerusalem. These wicked people refuse to listen to me. They stubbornly follow their own desires and worship idols. Therefore, they will become like this linen belt -- good for nothing! As a belt clings to a person's waist, so I created Judah and Israel to cling to me," says the LORD. "They were to be my people, my pride, my glory -- an honor to my name. But they would not listen to me."

New International Version

This is what the LORD says: 'In the same way I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. These wicked people, who refuse to listen to my words, who follow the stubbornness of their hearts and go after other gods to serve and worship them, will be like this belt--completely useless! For as a belt is bound around a man's waist, so I bound the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to me,' declares the LORD, 'to be my people for my renown and praise and honor. But they have not listened.'

Deuteronmy 10:16 says, “Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and do not be stiff-necked any longer.” If our hearts are right with God, then our relationships with other people can be made right too. When your heart has been cleansed and you have been restored in your relationship with God, you will begin to see a difference in the way you treat others.