We all have questions and you have asked a great one! What stands between us and God? What are some of the hindrances to divine connection? Who is God? Let’s dive in and find the answer!
What are Some of the Hinderances to Divine Connection?
In one sense, because of Jesus, not as much as you might think. In another sense, because of sin, there is an uncrossable chasm:
Behold, the LORD’S hand is not so short that it cannot save;
Nor is His ear so dull that it cannot hear.
But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God,
And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hearIsaiah 59:1-2
We have rebelled against God and the consequence is death.
The basic meaning of death is separation. When we die physically, our spirit separates from our body. When God separates from us, we die spiritually.
The Apostle Paul wrote:
Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Romans 7:24-25
Enter God the Father: He sent us a solution, a “Who”, a Savior:
A voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”
Mark 1:11
Enter Jesus:
God (the Father) our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time.”
1 Timothy 2:3-6
Enter the Holy Spirit, our Helper:
Jesus sent a Helper for our Salvation:
And He (the Holy Spirit), when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.
John 16:8
We Must Believe in Jesus
The Holy Spirit came to convict us of one specific sin.
He did not come to convict us of acts of sin or sin in general: “Concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me (Jesus) (John 16:9).”
What Stands Between Us and God?
Not Believing in Jesus’s Name is the Only Hindrance Between Us and God!
The Holy Spirit came to convict us of Jesus’ righteousness:
“Concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me.”
John 16:10
We can know that Jesus satisfied the sin-debt between us and God by dying for our sins
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures
1 Corinthians 15:3-4
The Holy Spirit came to convict us about judgment:
Concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world (Satan) has been judged.
John 16:11)
For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God
John 3:17-18
