"In the midst of this great chill there are some, I rejoice to acknowledge, who will not be content with shallow logic. They will admit the force of the argument, and then turn away with tears to hunt some lonely place and pray, 'O God, show me Thy glory.' They want to taste, to touch with their hearts, to see with their inner eyes the wonder that is God."

-A.W. Tozer

A while ago, someone who I respected for their apparently strong faith in God told me that they no longer believed themselves to be a Christian. Why and how could they suddenly doubt what they claimed to base their whole life upon? 

But then I look around and feel that perhaps this person's realization is not the most concerning thing I have encountered. Perhaps what should concern me much more are the many in exactly the same spiritual state as them who never realize or admit what this person did.

It made me wonder how many more people at my church are merely going through the motions, performing, pretending who simply don't know it. It made me wonder if I could possibly merely go through the motions, perform, pretend and perhaps convince myself that my faith is as genuine as it should be.

It made me wonder at how little our churches of this day resemble the early church as described in the Bible. Many will point out that their church does take some likeness to the church of Corinth, or other less favorable descriptions of professed believers in the Scriptures, but resembling in sin, in apathy, in lack is no proof of belief in or fellowship with God.

To the Corinthians, the apostle Paul wrote: "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you — unless, of course, you fail the test?" (2 Corinthians 13:5) He didn't give them false assurance, but exhorted them. 

The question is not, "Are we like this or that church?" or "Do we appear to be like this or that person appears to be?" The question is, are we like Christ -- do we walk as Jesus did? Is His truth ours, do we know Him to be real and alive, do we abide in Him and put our faith in Him and follow after Him as He said all genuine disciples must?

Many say that the religion we know by the name of Christianity in America is saving. I am impressed by the intellect of some and the logic can sound reasonable enough on the surface -- were it not for the Bible and the history of God's Church.

I admit the force of your arguments, but I must turn away with tears, alone, and pray.

"In this hour of all-but-universal darkness one cheering gleam appears: within the fold of conservative Christianity there are to be found increasing numbers of persons whose religious lives are marked by a growing hunger after God Himself. They are eager for spiritual realities and will not be put off with words, nor will they be content with correct 'interpretations' of truth. They are athirst for God, and they will not be satisfied till they have drunk deep at the Fountain of Living Water. . . .

But this hunger must be recognized by our religious leaders. Current evangelicalism has (to change the figure) laid the altar and divided the sacrifice into parts, but now seems satisfied to count the stones and rearrange the pieces with never a care that there is not a sign of fire upon the top of lofty Carmel. But God be thanked that there are a few who care. They are those who, while they love the altar and delight in the sacrifice, are yet unable to reconcile themselves to the continued absence of fire. They desire God above all. They are athirst to taste for themselves the 'piercing sweetness' of the love of Christ about Whom all the holy prophets did write and the psalmists did sing.

There is today no lack of Bible teachers to set forth correctly the principles of the doctrines of Christ, but too many of these seem satisfied to teach the fundamentals of the faith year after year, strangely unaware that there is in their ministry no manifest Presence, nor anything unusual in their personal lives. They minister constantly to believers who feel within their breasts a longing which their teaching simply does not satisfy. . . .

Sound Bible exposition is an imperative must in the Church of the Living God. Without it no church can be a New Testament church in any strict meaning of that term. But exposition may be carried on in such way as to leave the hearers devoid of any true spiritual nourishment whatever. For it is not mere words that nourish the soul, but God Himself, and unless and until the hearers find God in personal experience they are not the better for having heard the truth. The Bible is not an end in itself, but a means to bring men to an intimate and satisfying knowledge of God, that they may enter into Him, that they may delight in His Presence, may taste and know the inner sweetness of the very God Himself in the core and center of their hearts."

"The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One. Many ordinary treasures may be denied him, or if he is allowed to have them, the enjoyment of them will be so tempered that they will never be necessary to his happiness. Or if he must see them go, one after one, he will scarcely feel a sense of loss, for having the Source of all things he has in One all satisfaction, all pleasure, all delight. Whatever he may lose he has actually lost nothing, for he now has it all in One, and he has it purely, legitimately and forever.

O God, I have tasted Thy goodness, and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more. I am painfully conscious of my need of further grace. I am ashamed of my lack of desire. O God, the Triune God, I want to want Thee; I long to be filled with longing; I thirst to be made more thirsty still. Show me Thy glory, I pray Thee, that so I may know Thee indeed. Begin in mercy a new work of love within me. Say to my soul, "Rise up, My love, My fair one, and come away." Then give me grace to rise and follow Thee up from this misty lowland where I have wandered so long. In Jesus' Name, Amen."

"When the eyes of the soul looking out meet the eyes of God looking in, heaven has begun right here on this earth."

-A.W. Tozer, 'The Pursuit of God'

Copyrighted material, used with permission.