Today our verse is from the end of Matthew, “And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20b, NLT).
Jesus doesn’t abandon His disciples. What do we need to keep Him with us? Nothing. He is ours. He gave Himself to us already. What do we have to do to keep us with Him? Nothing. We are kept in Christ by the will of God. If we wander off, He will search for us to bring us back. So, what’s our job? Just turn your heart toward Him. Choose Him. Set your heart to just love Him. Don’t seek or want anything else. You don’t need to seek what you need. He knows what you need. He meets your needs. Just desire Him and enjoy every moment that your desire is being met. He satisfies you.
The Lord will never leave you nor forsake you. If you mess up and your relationship is disrupted (because sin is a separation; sin separates us from God), and your spirit feels empty, and your prayers are hollow, and answers aren’t forthcoming, and anxiety is gripping, and confusion is filling your mind, and rest is absent from your heart… know that God didn’t leave. He won’t leave. He will never leave. Even if He has to turn His face away because of your sin, something He can’t look at (He’s Holy God), or if Jesus had to slip out to the other side of the door because you shut Him out to choose your sin (rebellion). Even in such an awful case (which should not be happening frequently!), He is still there. Jesus stays at the door knocking, trying to get your attention to let Him back in. He doesn’t go away. Even if His face is turned, He doesn’t leave. He’s right there.
The leaving and returning are ours. He is consistent. He is there. He’s not leaving. We are the inconsistent ones. We wander and return. We get distracted, we refocus. We’re lazy and then rally to diligence. He’s right there. He never went anywhere. At any moment, we just need to turn to Him, get on our face, confess anything we know to confess, ask for His cleansing, and thank Him for continuing to love you. Praise His faithfulness. Shower your love on Him and receive showers of love back. That’s all. Relationship restored. There’s no work that needs to be done. No penance. He is wanting that relationship. He gave up His life to have that relationship. You can always know He loves you.