- God will Dwell Among
Exodus 29:45, 46 And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, that brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them: I am the Lord their God.
God promises to dwell among the Church, and He promises to be their God. The further promise is startling: that the people will know that He is the Lord their God, startling, because it doesn’t seem that He can promise that “they shall know.” He promises to make us believe. Yes, the true believers in Christ, who actually fear (believe) God, will be the ones who will know that the Lord He is God. Whenever we might have doubts we should remember our baptism and coming to faith in Jesus: the Lord really did save us and bring us forth from the world of sin and death into the kingdom of God.
He promised it, and He did it: He made us a holy people, a people who fear, love and trust in God above all things. Why did He become our God and make us to know that He is our God? The purpose of salvation is that He, God the Lord, might be able to dwell among us. This is what the Lord wanted: a people among whom He could live and love and move about. And this He did. Jesus comes to earth from heaven His dwelling place and made a dwelling place in our hearts. First, He had to justly forgive our sins. Second, He had to make us holy, for a holy God must live in a holy place. He cleanses our hearts from sin so that He could take up residence there. Third, He sent the Spirit into our believing hearts so that He could be with us unto the end of the age. God’s love for you demands a holy relationship together. He wants to dwell among us more than anything. That’s a promise.
We may grieve the Spirit with our sins and coming short of glory, but the Spirit doesn’t just leave; He stays with us prompting us to repent and believe the Gospel. So we believe the promise, and with the power of the Spirit we invite the Lord to come and dwell with us in the place He prepared in the heart. Interestingly, the Holy Spirit Himself makes the invitation for us, and Jesus responds to the “deep calling unto deep,” and comes to dwell.