Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? John 14:9
What’s it like to be really intimate with Jesus? The apostles were certainly closest to Jesus while He was on earth, but did they really ‘know’ Him? Certainly as One who could give them the power to heal and cast out demons, but was He really intimate with them? In John 15:15 where Jesus finally calls them “friends” we see the progression of the relationship. But that intimate relationship was to go even further. How do I know this? By the very words of Jesus in John 16:7 where He promises the “Helper” …who later (at Pentecost) would reside WITHIN them after He came upon them. Jesus told them it would be BETTER for them for Him to ‘go away’.
When it comes to spiritual things — there is now ONLY one ‘safe’ Source… the Holy Spirit. The printed Word / ie. The Bible talks about spiritual things but in itself it is not a spiritual thing. The Words of the Bible IF spoken by a Spirit-filled individual can have spiritual effect … but the actual spiritual ‘power’ is BY and through the Holy Spirit. Revelation of the ‘Word’ to an individual comes THROUGH the Holy Spirit. I’m totally sure that the enemy knows the scriptures better than 99.999% of humans, thus the power isn’t just in the ‘words’, it is the ‘one’ whom the words are spoken through by the Holy Spirit. So real intimacy with Jesus is more than just the scriptures. Real spiritual intimacy with Jesus MUST come through the Holy Spirit.
So what is the evidence of an intimate relationship with Jesus? It is the mature and plentiful fruit of His Spirit in your life. (See Galatians 5:22-23) It is the very nature of His Voice within us. It is manifested in the person’s daily walk with Him. It is displayed when under great duress and stress. By my own definition I must confess to you that I feel I still have a good ways to go yet. I know that this time in this current shadowland the lessons are to push into greater intimacy with Him. Christ is the … goal. Deep intimacy with Him is the path.
He will never judge your honest heartfelt pleas and cries to Him. In fact that is what He desires from you. Honesty. Humility. Realizing what the Holy Spirit is asking you to change within yourself … is real and important to Him. The outcome of a real intimate walk with Jesus and the Holy Spirit is ‘others centered’ and on the path / instructions He has called one to walk. One who is ‘walking by the Spirit’ does not draw attention to himself but will constantly and humbly be pointing others to Jesus Christ. Beware of those ‘ministers’ who are ‘flashy’ and always concerned with ‘bigger and better’ and are concerned about ‘looking good’. They are more about ‘their’ ministry than the ministry of Christ.
What are you doing to further your intimacy with Jesus and the Holy Spirit?
Have you asked Him how to do that?