Drawing Near To God (1)

A well-known Bible fact is that Jesus was a Jew, and it was therefore through the Jews that He came into world. Historically, the Jews had many advantages that the Gentiles did not have. Ephesians 2:11 paints a bleak picture of the Gentile: That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world. In other words, as commentator William Hendrickson summarizes, the Gentiles were Christless, stateless, friendless, hopeless, and Godless. But verse 13 changes all that: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

As we vividly recall, back in verses 1-3 Paul paints a bleak picture of man, but then writes in verse 4, “But God.” He does the same thing in verses 11-12. He paints another bleak picture—a picture of the Gentiles by position and the whole world by extension—but then says, But now. Once far off, the Gentiles, not to mention the whole world, is now made nigh by the blood of Christ.

To put it simply: The blood of the Lord Jesus Christ has changed everything. The words far off comprise an old term in Rabbinical writings that was used to describe Gentiles. But Gentiles are now made nigh, that is brought near, by the blood of Christ. The words made nigh (or “to come near”) also comprised a “technical expression in Rabbinical Judaism” that referred to “the recruiting of a proselyte.” The Jewish Rabbinic writers, for example, tell how a Gentile woman came to Rabbi Eliezer. She confessed that she was a sinner and asked to be admitted to the Jewish faith. “Rabbi,” she said, “bring me near.” The Rabbi refused and shut door in her face. But now the door is open. Those who had been far from God were brought near; the door was shut to no one. We each have, indeed, been “made a proselyte,” not by religion or works, but by the Savior’s blood. Where once there was this great division between Jew and Gentile, there is now unity in Christ.

As I meditated on this verse, another verse came to mind, James 4:8: “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” Let’s ponder a moment what it means to be near to God. In the Old Testament the term “drawing near to God” was a general expression for one who sincerely approached God in humility and repentance. Hebrews 10:22, also written in the light of the Old Testament, is a verse we should examine closely: “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.” We find here four principles of what it means Biblically to draw near to God.

First, and foremost, drawing near to God means having a sincere desire for Truth. The words “true heart” are alethines kardias. As we saw 1:13, both the English word “truth” and the Greek behind it speak of that which is absolute, that which is incontrovertible, irrefutable, incontestable, unarguable, and unchanging. If something is true, it is always true and can never be untrue, no matter what the circumstances. The specific form of the Greek used here also refers to “sincerity.” Kardia (“heart”) refers not just to the emotional nature, but also to the reason and faculty of intelligence.

In syrupy sentimentality and with a sweet little lilt in their voice, many today say such things as, “I want to be near God” or “I want to get close to God,” but when confronted with the absolutes of God’s Word, they rebel. That is a staggering contradiction. They don’t want to draw near to God at all. They are like the Israelites, of whom Isaiah wrote, “Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men” (29:13). Yes, they say the words but when it comes down to real Truth, they reject it and live according to their own ways. The most important thing that drawing near to God means is that we sincerely want to hear, receive, and obey His Truth. We’ll continue next time.