And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he
said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not. Genesis 28:16
The patriarch Jacob
saw a vision of God and cried out in wonder, “Surely the Lord is in this place;
and I knew it not.”
Jacob had never been
for one small division of a moment outside the circle of that all-pervading
Presence. But he knew it not. That was his trouble, and it is ours.
Men do not know that
God is here. What a difference it would make if they knew!
The Presence and the
manifestation of the Presence are not the same. There can be the one without
the other. God is here when we are wholly unaware of it. He is manifest only
when and as we are aware of His Presence. On our part there must be surrender
to the Spirit of God, for His work is to show us the Father and the Son.
If we cooperate with
Him in loving obedience God will manifest Himself to us, and that manifestation
will be the difference between a nominal Christian life and a life radiant with
the light of His face.
It has been asked,
“Why does God manifest His Presence to some and let multitudes of others
struggle along in the half-light of imperfect Christian experience?” We can
only reply that the will of God is the same for all—He has no favorites within
His household. All he has ever done for any of His children He will do for all
of His children. The difference lies not with God but with us!
Right on Tom!
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