Guard Against “Distancing” From God

COVID has greatly reduced our social interactions. Whether or not there is any heightened measures, the degree of social interactions cannot be compared with pre-COVID times. For the past one month or so, when Singapore stepped back into tighter restrictions on physical social contact, it may have taken a toll on some people, to be unable to enjoy the same amount of human touch like before.

The heartening truth for we Christians is that though human closeness can be insecure due to human or situational factors, intimacy with God is always within our reach, as God is always near us. Even though right now we have to keep some distance from others, nothing can separate us from the love of God. God is always with us, especially in moments of crisis and need, He doesn’t abandon us, but he draws near to each of His children, particularly those who are weak and broken-hearted. 

Some people keep a distance from God for various reasons.

Perhaps they fear that it is dangerous to get too close to Him, as He may see through their falsehood and expose the sins in their hearts, or He may demand them to do things they are unwilling or afraid to do. They may be afraid that God may even ask them to give up precious possessions, habits, or relationships that are not right in His sight.

In the Bible, we see God’s people keep a distance from Him for various reasons. Adam tried to keep his distance from God, and hid himself after he sinned <Gen 3:8>. His sin made him afraid of God’s presence. Then in the Old Testament, the Israelites also kept a distance from God for fear of His might. <Ex 20> 18 When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance 19 and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.” 20 Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.” 21 The people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness where God was. In the New Testament, we also see that after Jesus was arrested, Peter “followed him at a distance” (Mt 26:58). Clearly, Peter loved Jesus but was afraid of what might happen to him if he stayed too close. 

For the people mentioned above, it was their own personal safety that prompted them to keep a distance from God. Today, some people too, may be following Christ at a distance, for various reasons. On the one hand, they desire His blessings and protection; on the other hand, they do not like Him to interfere too much in their decisions and affairs. Perhaps they truly believe God is real, but they were distracted by other delights of life and thus drift from God. Or they were simply too lazy to keep up with following God closely. Whatever the reasons, when we are only following God at a distance, we will not enjoy the best of His presence.

We will not be able to flee from God’s presence anyway.

The psalmist says:

<Ps 139> 7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
    if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
    your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.

Whichever corner we turn, God is right there. If we have hoped to keep God out of our lives, or try to stay away from His intervention, that is a futile thought. We can neither keep the righteous God from finding out our sin, nor can we make the loving God abandon us; He will keep guiding us with His righteousness and love.

There is no “safe distance” from God.

For man is not created to live and flourish apart from God. Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” <Jn 15:5>

Being created to remain in God, we are not safe if we are far from God, just as the sheep is not safe anywhere else other than being with the Shepherd or the sheep-fold. As we live on earth, it is most important that we can hear God’s voice clearly. For God’s voice is the voice by which we can find wisdom when we obey it; it is the voice by which we can find peace; it is the voice by which we find strength to stand against the devil, against stresses of life and against temptations; it is the voice by which we find liberty from our accusations and find assurance in who we are as God’s beloved children; it is the voice that tells us God’s perfect will in various situations. God’s voice and presence are what we cannot do without. Our souls are designed to be satisfied and secured only when we enjoy intimacy with God.

Dear friends, more than one year into the pandemic, I’m not sure if you have unconsciously distanced from God? You may not have wished for such distancing from God, but you find yourself helpless due to the COVID measures that restrict church worship and your spiritual growth. Initially, you may think it is just going to be a brief lull period, but the longer the pandemic drags, the more you may feel your spirit starts to grow cold and numb toward God, such that you gradually get used to having little contact with God, or is content with worshipping Him online and find going to church a hassle or even a risk.

If that describes your situation now, God is telling you to return closer to Him, for following at a distance is still not full allegiance to Him. His presence has never left us, but have we allow our hearts to drift from Him? Especially at such a time when it is hard to have physical contact with the faith community, we should cherish the chance to meet when we can, set aside intentional time each day to get close to God through His word and prayers, and pray too for the situation to ease so that we can resume normal church worship again. We are not safe apart from God. Pray that we do not distance ourselves from God especially during a pandemic crisis when we need Him more.