What does it mean to be in the presence of God?

The presence of God should really be the home of our hearts, the place to which in spirit we continually resort. The point here is not that we resort there with our needs and present our prayers; that came before us at the end of chapter 4. It is rather that we draw near in the enjoyment of all that God is, as revealed to us in Jesus, in communion with Him, and in the spirit of worship. We draw near not to get any benefit out of Him, but because we find attraction in Himself.

God's presence is our home, and we are taken there with a nature and relationship suited to Him. Thus we have fellowship with the Father and the Son in the holy intimacy that belongs to the Divine nature the blessedness of which is beyond words to describe.

It is the outgoing of heart in delighting in God, and adoring Him for all He has done when we think of that, but flowing from what He is to us; and we are actually in His presence, never forgetting surely how we got there, for He has been manifested in that we have learned love and righteousness and holiness there, but as within, praising Him whom we have found, in our present relationship to Him.

When God is personally recognized as present, He is thus recognized in the entirety of His being. It is not merely His power that is seen, or His greatness or even His goodness, but Himself, the One in whose presence seraphim veil their faces as they cry, "Holy, Holy, Holy."

There is such a thing as the saint's dwelling in the conscious presence of God without fear. If there is anything between me and God, my conscience will be at work; but when the Spirit is not grieved, the soul is in the presence of God for joy, learning holiness, it is true, but in joy, because occupied in communion instead of in detection; and that is a great thing.

134 Verse 8. Let us "draw near to God, and he will draw near to us." In this is shewn the active dependence of the heart. Thanks be to God, we can draw near to Him! His throne is for us a throne of grace: we may come into His presence without fear, because of His love, and enter into the holiest by the precious blood of Christ. When near Him, we learn holiness, we discern His will, the eye sees clearly in this pure atmosphere; the heart is subject; the secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him. They walk with God, but as taught of God, and the whole body is full of light. Then He is with us, He draws near to us, He inspires us with confidence. "If God be for us, who can be against us?" says the apostle. It is not only that the strength of God is with us, but His presence produces liberty and confidence in our hearts, for we feel that we have the knowledge of His will, since He is with us. The sense of His presence gives joy, calmness, and courage, in presence of the enemy, and in the difficulties of the way we rest in Him. "Thou wilt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man; thou wilt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues." The presence of God, a true and real thing for the heart, keeps the conscience awake, and the heart filled with quiet confidence. Draw near unto Him.

But when the presence of God is realised, the practical state of the soul is totally different; there is then a sense of dependence, and of lowliness, and of nothingness which we only learn in God's presence.

It has been remarked, and I believe rightly, that what characterizes the presence of Christ is this: that in His presence we forget our heaviest griefs and our greatest joys. Both alike are outside. Why? Because we have then reached His presence who is greater than all. Thus it is that there is no remembrance of them for the moment. I do not say we may not return to them; but while we are there we are both abstracted and absorbed by His company; as it is said, "Lost in wonder, love, and praise." In such a moment, strange as it may seem, silence is the most eloquent expression of the soul's adoration. And when that silence gives way to an outpouring of the heart, "O Lord, we adore Thee" is its utterance. If the presence of Christ commanded all the company; if every heart were riveted and enraptured; if every soul were entranced by the greatness of the One who takes His place in the midst; what a moment it would be!

These are some of the results of our being alone with God. But, in truth, it is a term which one can hardly explain to another, for each spiritually-minded saint will have his own feelings on the subject, and will best understand what it means in his own case. This, at least, we may well crave, to be truly found in the secret of our Father's presence; to be done with the weariness and wretchedness of endeavouring to maintain our character, and to know the joy, the liberty, the peace, and unaffected simplicity of the sanctuary, where God in all His varied attributes and perfections rises before our souls and fills us with bliss ineffable.

Beloved friends, is it not important that we should listen to Him? Who could make this known but Himself? for there is no other man there. I feel that I could not presume to unfold to you what you can only learn in the Lord's presence; namely, what we find there. You must be there yourself to know what it is. But I have not the least bit of doubt that you will find that it is, first; exclusive. I think that then you will find that it is also inclusive; namely, that, in the grace of God, you are included in all that belongs to Christ, as the risen and exalted MAN, and that "as He is, so are we in this world." And what is included in God's present thought of Him as the One who glorified God? If you can put a limit to that, and only then, the finite could measure the Infinite. Though I cannot unfold then what we find when consciously in the presence of Christ, I think saints can say with Dr. Watts (though not in the way he applied it) -