God’s Closest Friends

Old Treasures on Tuesdays 👑

“He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him” (Dan. 2:22, NIV).

How vitally important it is to come to know the Lord’s nature more and more! This verse divulges one of His attributes: that He is a Revealer of mysteries. However, He doesn’t go sharing His secrets freely or lightly. Like any of us, He has a circle of more intimate friends. He loves to share His heart with those who cultivate close relationship with Him.

The other day, I was reading the story of the thief crucified with Jesus, the one who asked to be remembered by Him. As Jesus is ever overflowing with compassion, He was even ministering to others as He was enduring torture worse than we can imagine. He cared so deeply for that that wretched criminal. Wanting to ease the man’s suffering soul, He assured him earnestly that he would be with Him in paradise.

That story reinforces the truth that salvation itself is absolutely free, already paid for. However, that crucified thief never enjoyed the immense privilege that the twelve apostles did: that of walking in intimate communion with Jesus. They were the ones to whom Jesus said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you” (Matt. 13:11, NIV). In that same verse, He said, “but not to them.” Not everyone gets in on His secrets. Only His inner circle does.

Do you long to be His intimate friend? From my childhood, this has been my deepest longing. How do we pursue “inner circle status” with God? This works just like it works with any person: by eagerly investing our time and our hearts in the relationship.

Holy Spirit was whispering to me today about the imagery God uses to describe Himself, that of being shrouded in darkness. For example,

“He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him — the dark rain clouds of the sky” (Ps. 18:11, NIV).

“The people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness where God was” (Ex. 20:21, NIV).

Why is this? This is what He explained to me about it. Darkness symbolizes mystery. Therefore, He surrounds Himself with this covering of darkness to reveal another aspect of Himself: that He is a God of mystery. There are infinite depths of mystery in Him. We could spend the rest of eternity discovering more and more of what He longs to reveal about Himself.

But again, this is not a simple matter; it does not come without a price. Whereas salvation is a gift given “without money and without cost” (Is. 55:1), intimate knowledge of God is costly. It requires a lifetime of devoted discipleship; a lifetime of pursuing His heart. The shroud of darkness around Him symbolizes His protectiveness of His innermost self; the part of Him that He only discloses to those who are the hungriest for Him.

Friend, all of that to say this: here is the reason I diligently write down my God-given dreams. I want to show Him how much I treasure His communication to me. I understand that He yearns to reveal Himself to friends who will truly pursue Him…

…Friends who will show themselves trustworthy of His secrets…

…Lovers of God willing to take the time to ponder at length His symbolic communication…

…Reliable companions who take immense delight in lingering in His company…

…Consistent confidants who prize His every word as more precious than their daily bread…

…Selfless listeners who enthusiastically memorize every detail of His self-disclosure…

…Passionate worshippers who want His closeness more than anything else in this world…

How about you? He’s longing for you. What can you do, today, to pursue deeper communion with Him?