I am a Jesus pusher!!! The Biblical language of Jesus living in us must be brought into the language of our culture. God is not sitting on Mount Sinai, belching out His laws. He is not watching me closely to see if I “obey” His commands. Jesus comes to indwell me in the fullness of His Spirit. But His indwelling is not a simple relocation of the Old Testament God. He does not live within me to tell me what to do. Both views assume the approach of “performance” or “doing.” He is intimate and one with my very inner being. I am not living in obedience to His orders; I RESPOND to His desires and nature. He does not give me a plan, and I am to accomplish it. He fills my life with His nature; moment-by-moment I respond to His desires, which fulfill His plan. He does not instruct me on what to do to be holy; He saturates my life with His holy nature. I respond to His urges rather than mine. His feelings are now mine; His emotions saturate mine. I live a life of response to Him. We are one!
I no longer view the disciples of Jesus in the Gospels with envy. Their opportunity of physically following Jesus does not begin to compare with the wonder of my responding to His indwelling presence. Thank you Jesus for being “in” me! This is far beyond “religion;” it is intimacy with Jesus. I am “an embracing Jesus” Jesus pusher!!!