Vulnerability: A Key to Spiritual Encounter
The Lord has been dealing with me very powerfully and personally about areas of lovelessness and lukewarmness in my own heart. It’s been painful, convicting, intimate, disruptive, and at the same time glorious. I explain some of the details here in my last blog. One of my key take-aways from this season has been Jesus’ emphasis on vulnerability.
For years, I have heard and preached that spiritual hunger is the currency of the kingdom of God - meaning if a person is spiritually hungry, they will see God move in profound ways. I stand by this today. You cannot underestimate the necessity and impact of spiritual hunger. At the same time, I’m beginning to believe that vulnerability is as much a currency of the kingdom as spiritual hunger.
Jesus wants His people to be open-hearted and vulnerable with Him. I realize that so often we have taught people (especially children) to do Christian things without teaching them to engage with God with an open, vulnerable heart. Doing Christian activities, even reading the bible and praying, with a closed heart will yield little or no impact. When we approach God with a closed heart we may gain information, but we will not receive revelation. And what is revelation but the Son of God revealing Himself to us? And when He reveals Himself to us this is Jesus being vulnerable with us.
The bible uses a variety of terms that all speak of the truth of vulnerability: Open the door of your heart, Set me as a seal upon your heart, Christ dwelling in our hearts through faith, the Spirit of revelation. All of these speak of intimate disclosure from Jesus to us and from us to Him. Jesus literally told His disciples that when He was resurrected, He was going to disclose Himself to His followers in a special way (John 14:21). When the disciples asked what this meant, He gave this shocking and wonderful answer: the Father and I are going to make our home in you so that we may always experience intimate fellowship with you. Vulnerability is foundational to intimacy with Jesus. Vulnerability is key to encounter.
When we consider Jesus’s words to the church of Laodicea, we realize that the antidote to their loveless, lukewarm state is to open the door of their heart so He may come in and connect with them intimately (Rev 3:20).
Jesus says, “I will come in to him and dine with him and he with me”. What’s evident here is that the closed door is a boundary to intimate disclosure, connection, and fellowship with the Son of God. He is literally knocking on the closed door of our hearts and calling our name, asking us to open our hearts, so He can come in and fellowship with us.
What is opening our hearts to Him? It’s sharing with Him our thoughts, feelings, pains, fears, questions, joys, desires, and affections - all the good, all the bad, all of who we are. He is not intimidated by the mess of us. Instead, He is drawn to us in our vulnerability, and He promises that He will meet our vulnerable weakness with power (2 Cor 12:9-10).
This is His posture; He is always knocking. He is always seeking us so He can be intimate with us. He is looking for sincere, open, vulnerable people that He can engage with and disclose Himself to.
I am aware that vulnerability is awkward and at times painful. At times we don’t want to face the reality of what we are carrying inside. But Jesus isn’t afraid. He already knows who you are in the depths of your soul. Open to Him and allow Him to meet you there. He will meet you with tender but powerful love and beauty.
I encourage you to sit before Him today and tell Him, “Jesus, I open my heart to you. I want to fellowship with You. I don’t want to hide from You any more. Will you come in? Will you come into my heart with your tender love and beauty? I need you Jesus. I open to You without protection, defense, or boundary.”