For
I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift,
so that you may be established-- that is, that I may be encouraged
together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. (Romans
01:11-12, NKJV).
One
of the most powerful human emotions in existence is longing. It can
be described as the soul-deep, poignant (tinged with sadness and
regret) desire for something that is heartbreakingly out of reach,
like the company of a loved one who has died.
Or
the missing of a child who has been taken away or is no longer
present.
It
is a powerful human emotion because it is a powerful divine emotion,
for we are made in the image of God in the realm of emotions perhaps
most of all. We are emotional beings because He is. We love because
He is love.
We
long for the company of those we love because He does, and it is that
depth of feeling that the Apostle Paul expresses here, bearing his
deepest thoughts so that the recipients of this marvelous letter can
know the depths of his love for them; and by extension, the depth of
God's love for them (and us), as well.
For
our Heavenly Father longs for our company and fellowship, as
amazing and incomprehensible as that may seem. He created us for His
good pleasure, the Bible tells us, and He desires for us to be with
Him.
That
is why Jesus came to die so horribly on the Cross for our sins, so
that afterwards, where He is, there we may be also... forever.
As
your earthly father, I understand a bit more of this godly longing
for your presence than I ever could before God gifted me with you and
your sisters, and I have a far greater appreciation and depth of
astonishment for how God expresses His love for us.
Think
of it!
He
who made all things and has all power and majesty and honor and glory
is not satisfied until we miserable sinners are members of His
family. To make that possible, He sent His Son to cleanse us and make
us worthy of existence in Heaven; to transform us from our lowly
earthly selves into creatures fit for an eternity in His presence in
the new Heavens and new Earth.
It
is impossible not to be utterly amazed at that truth if viewed in the
light and clarity of Scripture.
There
is something about us that God will not do without.
I
cannot say with authority what that thing is, but I can with absolute
assurance tell you that the Father sees us as a great and special
treasure, a pearl beyond price, and as worthy inheritors of all the
blessings that are His to bestow. And since He is God, He can (and
will) give to us irrevocably (without possibility of loss), and for
all eternity, all that is just and good and lovely and pure and
joyful.
This
is true not because of who we are, but because of who He is, and
because of what we are in Jesus, His Son. The Apostle Paul
affirms repeatedly in His Holy Spirit-inspired writings that for us
to be recipients of God's grace and mercy, to enable Him to fulfill
His longing for us, we must be transformed.
He
must change us from sinners into saints.
We
are completely helpless in this regard. There is no amount of good
things that we could do to make us worthy of Him, for it is in our
inherent nature (part of our essential make up) to sin, and God
cannot abide nor look upon sin.
Yet,
His longing for us has provided a means to overcome that helplessness
and to take away our sin, but only at that great price of the death
of His Son in our place.
Jesus
sacrificed Himself to enable us to be with Him, not as sinners in the
hands of an angry God, but as beloved members of God's family.
There
is something indescribably noble and heroic about Christ's
willingness to pay the price of our sin; for He who knew no sin to
become sin for us so that we could become His righteousness.
In
that one act of filial (family) obedience to the Father, He has
brought us to God as a gift that satisfies the divine longing for our
fellowship.
Unlike
our own human longing, which is tainted by our selfish sinful nature
no matter how pure we may think it to be, God's longing is solely for
our good. He desires for us to be with Him, not because He needs us,
but because we need Him.
And
that is the motive behind Paul's expression of longing in the focus
verses above. His longing for the believers in Rome was for
their benefit.
We
will look at what he specifically desired to give them in the next
study. For now, just reflect upon the wondrous truth that God's
longing for us is so powerful that He sent His only begotten son,
that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting
life.
Love,
Dad
