REMAIN IN ME - John 15:7

‘MYSTICALLY LIVING IN RESPONSE TO A BEAUTY THAT SURPASSES ALL ELSE’

The words of the angel ricocheted around my being, “ Michael! Haven’t you learnt that all this time Jesus has been looking for just a lover in you?” Not a worker, a preacher, an employee or a servant, but a lover.

Could He really be looking for a spouse in me? A wife in me, a lover in all of us? Yes! you and me, to live a life of a constant intimate exchange of His beauty; embracing the caresses from our Beloved, being still enough to let His nail pierced hands touch us. The caresses from the hands that have holes; the hands that were beautified by his wounds. Oh His precious nail pierced wounds, which gushes out all the gold, the rubies and the treasures! Will we not rest our heads within the palm of His hand and let Heaven rock us, like little children, awestruck at His Beauty?

Lovers are made and found in intimacy. Intimacy is that sweet enjoyment of euphoric, ecstatic raptures, that stills one’s soul when one sits silently with Yeshua, receiving His kisses and His sweet embrace. God wants to find us in His chambers of intimacy, so that we can live a life of a constant reception of Himself in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is christianity, the mystical path of truly understanding that our God is not an employer but a Lover. A great kisser whose lips drip honey.

Let Him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than wine Song of Songs 1:2. I am most certain that if we heed His invite to intimacy, we would find ourselves in a room, on top of a tower situated at the beginning of a vast endless Kingdom. For a certainty, the ambiance of the room would clearly suggest that these are the chambers of intimacy.

Jesus would spread open the curtains of eternity and look at you, with watery eyes, welling up with a vehement love for you. He would try to compose Himself, as tears of joy and love cascade down His face. How can my King, your King, our King, who is all powerful and all consuming, be overtaken and overwhelmed with the excitement of being with you in this place?

With the most beautiful smile of pure delight over your life, He would continue to stare at you, gently and lovingly appreciating your beauty. In this moment He would not call you son, or brother, or friend. He would hold your hand in giddiness and excitedly say, " Honey! My spouse, my lover, my wife, Mrs. Jesus Christ.” He would eventually fling His hand towards the opened curtains and you would notice the scars in his hands. Its a nail pierced hand, perfectly adorned by a wound; the beauty of his hands perfected by the nail scars.

With his hand extended toward the open window, He would joyously say, “ Behold the splendour of my beauty, portrayed in my Kingdom. Our Kingdom! I love you.”

In this room you would notice our King is shirtless, and you would gasp, “I have never seen Him like this.” Yes, they are revelations of Himself that are only found in this secret place. He doesn't unveil Himself to a casual seeker.

You would notice the wounds on His back, the scars and the stripes that He bears on His back have gloriously beautified Him; He is perfectly adorned in His wounds. But how you wonder?

The Father sent His precious lamb to us who had to stand before the Father, magnificently adorned as the slain Lamb to take His rightful seat on the right hand of the Father. God adorned His son by the stripes that He bore in His body. No wonder John the beloved says -“And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.” - Revelations 5:6

He was a bloody Lamb that day; the rightful and worthy lamb to unveil the seven scrolled seal; the seal which concealed the Revelations of the Father. This is Jesus the Christ, in whom the Father was pleased to show the fullness of the beauty of His son gloriously displayed through sufferings.

“But Lord, you have done so much for me, what service can I do for you? Should I go on the mission trip, join the choir, preach, write books? Surely I have to do some work in return. How can you just love me for me?” The consciousness of the age catches up with you in this place, evidenced by the thoughts to do something. This is the natural manner of all men, that without works I am unaccepted. It’s a fast paced environment full of noise so you feel like you have to do something to be accepted.

Jesus smiles and He steadily looks at His feet. You follow His gaze and you look intimately at His feet which appears as if they were wearing His nail pierced wounds as crowns. The beauty of His feet overwhelms you and you gasp, “Your feet Lord, I see them! Your glorious feet!” He graciously steps back from you to give you the option to venture through the window to do exploits for Him or to stay with Him in glorious intimacy in communion with sweet beauty.

His feet are more beautiful, surpassing even the most glorious of beauties and all exploits, so you intimately whisper, “I don’t want to leave Lord. My King, Your feet my treasure. My King, Your feet my gold. My King, Your feet my pillow.”

So here in the midst of all this noise, in the hype of the moment; emotionally charged atmospheres, when others look to You for employment, let me set Your feet as my resting place. Beautiful Jesus, Your feet are my pillow and I will forever lay my head on your feet.

An excerpt from, ‘Beautiful Jesus’ - Michael Aviel