Why Does God Seem Distant? | Galatians 5:2-6

Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace. For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love. Gal 5:2-6

It is impossible for believers to be separated from God- He is Emmanuel, God with us. He has promised to keep us, and through the Old and New Testament, despite man’s sin, God has never changed His covenant with us. (2 Cor 5:18) This is our spiritual reality, yet in our lives, we so often feel that God is distant, inactive, and dead. Why does this happen? In our ongoing study through Galatians, we see that as children of God, there is nothing that stands between God and us. Jesus is our only mediator, giving us direct access to God. (Gal 5:1) But the Galatians supplemented their faith in Christ for salvation with other means, distancing themselves from the one true and living God. As we focus on Paul’s reproof to the Galatians, let us examine whether our own hearts have aligned to the liberating truth of salvation by faith alone.

A divided heart makes God seem distant. We must have a singly-devoted heart towards God, with a love that is set apart from all other loves. (Matt 10:37, Phil 3:4-8) Jesus is worthy of our utmost devotion- He is the Lord, the Creator of heaven and earth. (Col 1:15-17) The Galatians believed they needed circumcision in addition to Christ. They had a divided heart, and therefore felt distant from God as they failed to remember to live by Christ alone. A divided heart brings no benefits to the believer- even though God works faithfully to bring us to heaven, there is no sense of being in Christ. It makes us debtors to the law, obligating us to live under the law rather than the gospel, which leaves us feeling burdened and hopeless. (James 2:10) A divided heart disconnects us from Christ, which leads to a fruitless life, for apart from Jesus we can do nothing. (Jn 15:4-5) Grace supplies forgiveness for every sin, but a divided heart will make you fall away from grace, causing you to fall back into flesh. When we fail to love Christ, the joy of God’s presence can’t be found. Let us return, go back to the Lord and repent. (Zechariah 1:3-4)

Failing to practice faith makes God seem distant. Your foundation of faith is from the Holy Spirit- we can not see Jesus today, but the Holy Spirit is our silent Shepherd. Faith from God cannot fail- our faith comes from God’s electing grace before the foundation of the world. It was brought forth by God’s Word, planted by God Himself, by the regeneration of the Holy Spirit that raises the dead to life. (Rom 8:29-30, Prov 30:5, Titus 3:5) Jesus is always with us, and it is by faith we see God. Faith is prayer- without faith, there is no fellowship. (James 4:8) By faith, we are able to experience God and obey Him.

Failing to practice love makes God seem distant. Faith and love go hand in hand. Faith is thought/prayer is action; faith is internal/love is external; faith is theory/love is practical. Sanctification is love- love for God, and love for others. Faith takes away guilt, fear, and greed, enabling us to love. With love, there is joy- the joy of giving and loving sacrificially. The early church had faith and love, enabling rich fellowship where the presence of the Lord was evident. (Acts 2:42-47) When there is little faith, there is little love, and with no faith, there is no love, no justification, no salvation. If we do not practice love, we can not enjoy the presence of God.

God is never distant- Scripture says that God dwells in us. (1 Cor 3:16) It is sin that makes God feel distant. Let us therefore repent and be near to the Lord, with a surrendered heart and a faith working through love.