CHAPTER THREE
COME UP HITHER
The Divine Invitation to the Secret Place
" Jeremiah 33:2–3 AMP Thus says the Lord who made the earth, the Lord who formed it to establish it—the Lord is His name, 'Call to Me and I will answer you, and tell you [and even show you] great and mighty things, [things which have been confined and hidden], which you do not know and understand and cannot distinguish.'"
" Revelation 4:1 AMP After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a [war] trumpet speaking with me, said, 'Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.'"
GOD IS ALWAYS CALLING
One of the greatest truths revealed throughout Scripture is that God has always been the One who initiates relationship with man.
Long before Adam sought God after the fall, God came walking in the garden looking for Adam.
Before Moses climbed Mount Horeb, God appeared in the burning bush.
Before Samuel recognized God's voice, God had already called his name.
Before Saul of Tarsus became Paul the Apostle, Christ met him on the road to Damascus.
This is the heartbeat of God.
He is always calling.
The tragedy is not that God has stopped speaking.
The tragedy is that many believers have stopped listening.
Heaven has never become silent.
God has never withdrawn His invitation.
The Holy Spirit continues to whisper to every hungry heart,
"Come higher."
Not because God desires distance from us, but because He desires intimacy with us.
His invitation has never been to religion.
It has always been to relationship.
THE INVITATION OF JEREMIAH
Jeremiah was living in one of the darkest periods in Israel's history.
The nation was under judgment.
Jerusalem was surrounded.
The future appeared hopeless.
Humanly speaking, there was nothing encouraging about the situation.
Yet it was precisely in that atmosphere that God spoke one of the most remarkable invitations recorded in Scripture.
" Jeremiah 33:2-3 AMP Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you [and even show you] great and mighty things, [things which have been confined and hidden], which you do not know and understand and cannot distinguish."
Notice that God did not begin by promising to change Jeremiah's circumstances.
He promised to reveal Himself.
Many of us spend our prayer lives asking God to remove us from difficult situations.
Sometimes God does something greater.
He reveals Himself in the middle of those situations.
The greatest miracle is not always a changed circumstance.
Sometimes the greatest miracle is receiving heaven's perspective while everything around you remain unchanged.
When God opens your eyes, fear begins to disappear.
Confusion gives way to clarity.
Discouragement gives way to hope.
Not because your environment has changed, but because your understanding has changed.
THE SECRET PLACE IS THE PLACE OF REVELATION
God promises two things.
First,
"I will answer you."
Second,
"I will show you."
Many believers stop at the first.
They pray until they receive an answer.
Few remain long enough to receive revelation.
There is a difference.
An answer solves today's problem.
Revelation prepares you for tomorrow's assignment.
God is not merely interested in responding to our requests.
He desires to transform the way we see.
The greatest blessing of the secret place is not answered prayer.
It is renewed vision.
When your spiritual eyes are opened, you begin to see what heaven sees.
You begin to discern what others overlook.
You become sensitive to the movements of the Holy Spirit.
Your decisions become guided by eternal wisdom rather than temporary emotions.
This is why the secret place is indispensable.
Without revelation we merely react to life.
With revelation we cooperate with God's purposes.
"Come Up Hither"
John was already an apostle.
He already knew Jesus.
He had already witnessed miracles.
He had already leaned upon the Master's breast.
Yet heaven still called him higher.
"Come up hither..."
This invitation should encourage every believer.
No matter how long we have walked with God, there is always more of Him to know.
The Christian life is never stagnant.
We are either growing or drifting.
Ascending or descending.
Drawing nearer or becoming distracted.
There is no place where we can honestly say,
"I have arrived."
Paul himself declared that he pressed on.
If Paul continued pressing,
how much more should we?
EVERY NEW DIMENSION REQUIRES ANOTHER ASCENT
One lesson becomes clear throughout the Scriptures.
Every major revelation happened on a mountain.
Noah's ark rested upon a mountain.
Abraham met Jehovah-Jireh on Mount Moriah.
Moses received the Law on Sinai.
Elijah encountered God on Horeb.
Jesus was transfigured upon a mountain.
The disciples received the Great Commission from a mountain.
Mountains represent places of separation.
Places where earthly noise becomes quiet enough for heaven's voice to be heard.
God has always called His people away before He sends them back.
Before public ministry comes private consecration.
Before authority comes surrender.
Before influence comes intimacy.
The mountain is where heaven prepares earth's ambassadors.
THE PRICE OF GOING HIGHER
Every ascent demands something.
Mountain climbing is never convenient.
The higher one climbs, the thinner the air becomes.
The journey becomes more demanding.
The climb requires endurance.
The same is true spiritually.
Going deeper with God requires leaving certain things behind.
You cannot carry every weight into higher dimensions.
Some believers want greater revelation while refusing greater surrender.
Others desire greater anointing without deeper obedience.
It does not work that way.
Every new level of intimacy requires fresh consecration.
The higher God takes you,
the less room there is for pride.
The less tolerance there is for compromise.
The less attraction there is to worldly applause.
Those who dwell nearest to God become increasingly aware of their dependence upon Him.
The closer Isaiah came to God's throne,
the less impressed he became with himself.
Instead, he cried,
"Woe is me...”
True encounters with God always produce humility.
THE TRANSISTOR RADIO
I often think of the old transistor radio.
Invisible radio waves filled the atmosphere continuously.
The signals were always present.
The problem was never the absence of transmission.
The problem was tuning.
Until the dial was adjusted correctly,
the sound remained distorted.
Sometimes there was only static.
Then suddenly,
with one slight adjustment,
the broadcast became crystal clear.
Nothing had changed in the atmosphere.
Only the receiver had changed.
This is exactly how prayer works.
God is continually speaking.
He is continually directing.
He is continually revealing.
Prayer is not persuading God to speak.
Prayer tunes our spirits to hear Him.
Many believers mistakenly believe heaven is silent.
Perhaps heaven is speaking while our hearts are tuned elsewhere.
Distractions.
Busyness.
Unforgiveness.
Anxiety.
Pride.
Noise.
All of these interfere with spiritual sensitivity.
The secret place retunes the heart.
It clears the interference.
It restores spiritual clarity.
GOD IS LOOKING FOR THOSE WHO WILL RESPOND
The invitation is universal.
The response is personal.
Not everyone who hears God's invitation responds.
Many are too busy.
Others are too comfortable.
Some become distracted by success.
Others by disappointment.
Yet throughout history,
God has always found a remnant.
Men and women who valued His presence more than public recognition.
People who desired His face more than His gifts.
Believers who chose obscurity with God rather than popularity without Him.
These are the people through whom God changes generations.
The world often celebrates charisma.
Heaven looks for consecration.
The world admires talent.
God searches for yielded hearts.
The world promotes ability.
God entrusts Himself to those who remain before Him.