"That I Might Dwell Among Them"

Today's Word of Encouragement from Wayne:

"I will also consecrate Aaron and his sons to minister as priests to Me. I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God. They shall know that I am the Lord their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them; I am the Lord their God" Exodus 29: 44-46 God came to dwell among His people and it was through those who would "minister as priests to Me" that God meant for His people to know His dwelling presence among them. It is clear from this passage that this is exactly what God intended for His people to know, His actual dwelling presence among them, and He saw consecrated priests ministering to Him as a witness and testimony of His true presence among His people. In this day we have Jesus Christ, our Savior, Who has come to abide in us as our "‘Immanuel,’ which translated means, ‘God with us’" (Matthew 1:23), "and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father" (Revelation 1:6). Every Christian who ministers to the Lord knows and grows in God’s abiding presence. God is not remote or far off to those who accept the call to be Jesus Christ’s kingdom of priests to our God. Moreover, I believe a true renaissance of "ministering to the Lord" (Acts 13:2) in God’s church today will produce this same awareness in God’s people that He desired and expressed in Exodus, "They shall know that I am the Lord their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them; I am the Lord their God." God’s church today, everywhere, needs to know, acknowledge, accept, and submit (joyfully I pray) to His dwelling presence amongst us and our priesthood towards Him, for His glory to be known in us, and to this world. We need to be as present with God as He is with us, which is what ministering to the Lord produces. This is the true Christian courage needed today, that we would believe enough to be as present with our Lord as He declares He is with us. Let us, for the sake of the entire body of Christ, and for our real-time witness of God’s presence in this world, accept our consecration to "minister as priests to Me." Every minister to our Lord becomes a fountain of life and a witness of God’s indwelling presence, that God wants all of His people to know and experience. After all, He has brought us all "out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them." Oh yes, come to the living waters, the living fountain of living praises in the presence of our living God, that all may know He dwells among us. Dwell with God today, ministering as a priest to Him, even as He dwells with you. Hallelujah!