Staying connected to the Vine
In part one of our study, we started taking a deeper look at our relationship with God, and we saw how this divine relationship goes farther than simply religious activity.
Now in part 2 today we’ll continue exploring our relationship with God, through the lens of Jesus Christ, empowered by His Spirit.
If you have spent any time studying scripture, or even just listened to sermons preached over the years, the topic of marriage to God – being the bride of Christ – will eventually come up. And this is very interesting terminology, and can jump-start the imagination in a bunch of different ways. Countless pastors and theologians have gone in many different ways regarding this single idea of a marriage to God; and some have gotten into deep trouble with it as well. Yet since Jesus was the one who taught on this topic and used this terminology, and the Father even spoke along the very same lines back in the Old Covenant, we can make a couple of conclusions:
First, that it is not out-and-out wrong to think of our relationship with God in marital terms. It is not high-minded, or presumptuous.
And secondly, there is something very important about this perspective of our relationship with God, that He wants us to see and receive.
So today in this study, we will be examining our relationship with God, from the perspective of marriage, and what this means for us today in Christ as part of the New Covenant.
What does it mean to “Spend time with Jesus”? You may have heard that phrase before, and wondered the same thing. After all, Jesus is up in Heaven, seated at the right hand of God the Father, according to Colossians 3:1, and many other verses.
Of-course we also know that God is a Spirit, and those who worship Him must do so in spirit and in truth (John 4:24). How does this inform us regarding our time with Him?
Many times, I have heard people say that spending time with Jesus is engaging in religious activity, such as attending church services, or Christian conferences; completing reading plans, or any of the other things that we generally consider to be religious behaviors.
In this study today, I would like to share with you a different perspective… one that may be a bit uncomfortable at first, and may require you to take a step back from the common idea of what spending time with Jesus is, and see it in a different light – a light not based on a religious checklist, but instead based on relationship, with a God who gave everything to restore you.