You can quickly tell when someone has actually met God. When a man gets close to the Lord, he doesn’t come away puffed up or arrogant. He comes away humbled. True reverence for God is impossible to imitate because it is born out of a genuine recognition of who He is versus who we are.
When we look through the Bible, every time a man truly encountered the presence of God, the reaction was the same: a total collapse of self-importance.
Isaiah: The Vision of the Throne (Isaiah 6)
When Isaiah saw the LORD sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, his immediate reaction was, “Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips.” He saw God’s holiness and realized his own imperfection.
Peter: The Miraculous Catch (Luke 5:8)
After witnessing the power of Jesus over nature with the miraculous catch of fish, Peter didn’t celebrate the profit. He fell down at Jesus’ knees and said, “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” Realizing he was in the presence of the Almighty made him instantly aware of his own sin.
Job: The Speech from the Whirlwind (Job 42:5-6)
After all his arguments and all his pain, once God finally spoke, Job’s tune changed. He said, “I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”
Saul: The Road to Damascus (Acts 9)
Saul was a man full of religious pride and authority until he encountered the risen Christ. He was knocked to the ground and blinded. He went from being the man in charge to a man who had to be led by the hand. He was completely humbled and transformed by the light of God.
The Distance of Pride
The mark of these men was a reverence that could not be faked. They weren’t trying to act humble; they were humbled by the weight of God’s glory.
Pride is the exact opposite of this experience. When we are lifted up in pride, thinking we have it all figured out or that we are “somebody,” it is a certain sign that we are far away from God. You cannot be close to the sun and not feel the heat, and you cannot be close to God and not feel your own smallness.
As James 4:6 says, “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” If you want to know how close you are to the Lord, don’t look at your accomplishments, look at your heart. If you are full of yourself, you are empty of Him. But if you are undone by His holiness, you are exactly where He can use you.
