“Hearts unfold like flowers before Thee
Hail Thee as the sun above
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness
Drive the dark of doubt away
Giver of immortal gladness
Fill us with the light of day”
The Hymn of Joy (Joyful Joyful), Henry van Dyke
“The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them,
And the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose;
It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice,
Even with joy and singing.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
The excellence of Carmel and Sharon.
They shall see the glory of the Lord,
The excellency of our God.”
Isaiah 35:1-2, NKJV
The Psalms and the Prophets teach us that God delights in His children (Zephaniah 3:17, Psalm 147:11-12, Psalm 18:19, Isaiah 62:3-5) – even at the very beginning of the world, at the dawn of creation, God looked at what He had created and it was good.
He enjoyed Adam and Eve, in the Garden – He walked with them, and He talked with them. He delighted in them. They delighted in Him.
Past tense.
Delighted.
God’s desire has not changed. He wants to walk with us and talk with us in the Garden of His Presence. He longs for communion with us as a Bridegroom longs for His Bride.
We have been, in many cases, an adulterous Bride. We have, time and time again, strayed… We have been unfaithful.
But His desire has never changed. His love for us has not changed.
It is then no wonder that in Jesus writes to the Church of the last days: “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” (Revelation 3:20, NIV)
Repentance is a turning back to God. It is the opening of the door of our hearts to Jesus so that He might come in – that He might come and eat with us, feast with us – that He might come in and make manifest the festivity of His presence. Jesus wants to fill us with Himself – His presence, peace, love and joy!
The Psalmist writes: “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart!” (Psalm 37:4)
Our delight and our desire is Jesus, and in pursuing our desire of Him He gives us more of Himself.
The adulterous and idolatrous Bride finds herself, in this current dispensation, in need of a turn – she needs to repent.
We need to repent and turn back to God. We need to open the door and let Him back into our churches.
Why are so many believers dissatisfied and falling away from the Hope of Glory? Why are so many of us still being cast asunder by every new wind of doctrine and philosophy? Why do our hearts still pang, hunger and thirst for more when we have, at hand, the Bread of Heaven and source of Living Water? Why do we still feel so empty, impoverished and lacking when we have, at our disposal, the innumerable and incorruptible riches of His Kingdom?
It is because we have removed Christ from His Christendom.
We have made apostles and prophets the centre of our faith and we have removed the Cornerstone. We have made prosperity, rather than His presence, our priority.
But the Lord says this today: “I stand at the door of your heart and I knock, and if you open up I will come in and feast with you. If you open up I will come in and bring Living Water to the dry places, hope to the desolate places, light to the dark places and life to the barren places of your heart!”
We have been an idolatrous and adulterous Bride. We have set the eyes of our hearts upon material things, quick fixes and promises of temporary power and esteem.
Psalm 147:11: “But the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.”
God is calling us to set our eyes upon Him again. To desire Him. To delight in Him. To enjoy Him.
God is calling us to open up our hearts to Him once again, so that He may shine His face upon us, that our hearts might unfold before Him like flowers hailing the sun above – He wants to melt away the clouds of sin and sadness – drive out darkness and doubt – and restore us! He wants to fill us with the light of day! He wants to make the desert and the wilderness glad again! Blossoming and in bloom – brimming with life in abundance! He wants to move in our midst again!
He desires us. He delights in His children – those who fear and love Him.
He wants to delight in us. He wants us to delight in Him.
And all it takes from us is a yielded yes.
All it takes from us is surrender.
All it takes from us is a turning of our eyes, away from the things of this world and the promises of men, towards Jesus, His Kingdom and the perfect will of God!
All it takes is a decision right now to turn to Him. To open the door and let Him in.
Prayer: Jesus, be my desire. Be my Bread and Water. Be the One Thing I long for above all else. Remove any and all double mindedness from my heart and let me run wholly after You. Let me dwell in Your house forever, my eyes set upon You and You alone. Be the center of all of my coming and going, the center of my life. Be in every breath I take. Jesus, be my desire. Show me what it means to find perfect peace and contentment in You. Through Your Holy Spirit draw me deeper, deeper into prayer and the study of Your Word. Draw me deeper into communion with You. In the Mighty Name of Jesus. Amen.