Face-to- Face Encounters

As believers with the Spirit of God living inside us, we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:3). We have also been given everything pertaining to godliness through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence (II Peter 1:3).

Colossians 2:9-10 (NASB) says, “For in Him all the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete.” We’re told in John 1:16 (NASB) that, “Of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.”

So if we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing, have everything we need for life and godliness, and have received of His fulness, why would we want or need more? When we cry out for more, we’re hungering for more of the manifestation of His presence. We want to see Him move in power. We desire signs, wonders, and miracles. We want revival to come to our families, churches, and nation. We want not only to know the truth He is always with us; sometimes we want to sense Him with us. We want to experience all He has for us.

I don’t know about you, but I want face-to-face encounters with Jesus. II Corinthians 3:16 (MSG) says, “Whenever, though, they turn to face God as Moses did, God removes the veil and there they are – face to face! They suddenly recognize that God is a living, personal presence.” Verse nine in The Passion Translation says, “We can all draw close to Him with the veil removed from our faces.

And with no veil we all become like mirrors who brightly reflect the glory of the Lord Jesus. We are being transfigured into His very image as we move from one brighter level of glory to another. And this glorious transfiguration comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”

When the veil is removed and we have a face-to-face encounter with Jesus, we become like Him and others will see and know it. There will be something different about us. As verse nine above says we “brightly reflect the glory of the Lord Jesus.” We become transformed into His image. Our lives will be different. It is impossible to have a true encounter with Jesus and remain the same.

Psalm 42:1-2 (TPT) expresses the longing for more of God’s presence. “I long to drink of you, O God, to drink deeply from the streams of pleasure flowing from your presence. My longings overwhelm me for more of you! My soul thirsts, pants, and longs for the living God. I want to come and see the face of God.” If there is more in God to experience, I want it! I’m not willing to settle for past encounters. I want a fresh encounter with my God.

Jesus told the disciples in John 14:21 (AMPC), “The person who has My commands and keeps them is the one who [really] loves Me; and whoever [really] loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I [too] will love him and will show (reveal, manifest) Myself to him. [I will let Myself be clearly seen by him and make Myself real to him.]

They will change us forever. When Jacob wrestled with the angel, he said, “I will not let you go until you bless me.” We should have the same kind of determination and hunger for the presence of God in our lives. Are we willing to go after it? Where is our hunger level? Even though I’ve had amazing encounters and experiences with Jesus, I’m not willing to stay where I am. I want more! They will change us forever.

Bill Johnson has said, “Face-to-face encounters with God often look very different from each other…Such experiences have one thing in common – they make it nearly impossible for people to live as they did before they had them.” Let’s go after more of His manifest presence, glory, power, and life-changing experiences so others around can see Jesus and also come to know Him in the same way.