5 Radical Statements - 1 Chapter: #2

As I begin the freedom to write and express whatever I want again, I wanted to start with the most important thing - Jesus. As I was reading today there were 5 statements in one chapter that I think would drastically change the way we live if we really wrestled with them. Luke 9:

#2 "A voice came out of the cloud, saying..." (verse 35)

Jesus goes up to the top of a mountain to pray taking two of his students and closest friends with Him. When He's there, His face changes and His clothes grow. Two other ancestors who were vital in the faith appear beside him (Moses & Elijah - further proof he wasn't either one of them because they were standing next to each other). Then a cloud enveloped them. It overtook them. Then we have the statement that made #2.

Most of the time, I had skipped over this section. This phrase is the set up to what was really important. The important part was what He said, right? Yes and no. Yes what He said is vitally important, but equally important is this fact: the Father God speaks to the ones He loves. This God that we refer to is not one who is distant, disconnected, or cold. He's one who is constantly engaging and pursuing those that He loves (which is all of us). I ask you: what do you expect God to be like? Honestly, what do you expect out of God?

Pause. Stop reading and think about this for a minute. Write down how you view God and what you expect from Him. I think I expect a creator God who was large and in control but didn't really interact with me. Who was "for me" as long as I was being obedient and if I wasn't then prepare for the smack down. God is a judge who was waiting to bring the gavel down on all of your worst punishments rather than a God who had already ruled that Jesus would take your punishment and now there's no wrath left for you once you become a believer. This God is desirous for you. He's not like other gods who "create you" then leave you to walk in what he gave you. He came to get you, and then continues to pursue you.

Look at the women who are happiest, their husbands came and wooed them into marriage, then they keep wooing her 30 years down the road because their extravagantly in love with her. It's the same idea that God does not come and pursue us until we're Christians and then leave us until after we die. He continues to seek us out and come find us. He is the voice in the cloud that comes down to us, envelops us, and then speaks to our core. He tells us about Jesus the one who is the ultimate man who would die for us. This is the God of the Bible, the God of Christianity. My question for you to wrestle with is:

What/how do you expect God to act and interact with you?