“The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth.”

Psalm 145:18 NKJV

One of the most amazing things about the Lord Jesus is His longing to be near us!  Sin separated us from God.  Because of our sin,  His holiness would not permit Him to have close, intimate fellowship with us!   Yet He longed for us to experience His nearness!  Through His sacrificial death and powerful resurrection, He satisfied the just demands of a Holy God and bridged the gap that had separated us from Him!  He dealt once and for all with the sin problem on the cross and reconciled us unto Himself! (Col. 2: 13-15).  Now, it is possible for anyone who truly desires to know Him and fellowship with Him to enter into His Presence.  He has made it possible for anyone who truly wants to be near Him!   

 The Lord makes it clear that the experience of His nearness depends on whether one truly wants to be near Him!   He has already demonstrated that He longs to be near us!  So the question is do we really want to be near Him?  Unlike the false, secular, and pagan gods, He is not distant!  He is near.  But His nearness is only revealed to those who truly desire to be near Him!   (James 4:8).

His promise is definite, specific, and sure!  He is near to all those who call upon Him in truth!   To call upon Him in truth means that we truly repent of our sin, turn from our sin, and turn unto Him with the desire to know Him, follow  Him,  honor Him, walk with Him, and obey Him.  His will for us is clearly laid out for us in His Word. (Micah 6:8 & Ex. 20: 3-17).  Through the Person of The Holy Spirit, He empowers us to obey (Rom. 8:9-11), which means that His nearness is as close as our next breath! 

Rev. James W. Black