Intimate is a word that is commonly misunderstood in certain contexts, such as when talking about God. Jesus wants to have a close relationship with his people, this is what an intimate relationship with Jesus means. Think of it as the relationship with your best friend: you know what they think about most topics, you know a lot about their personal life, and you would trust them with your life. That is an intimate relationship.
God created you and he knows every single thing about you, but He still desires for you to talk to Him openly. Openness is the only way to demonstrate to someone that you trust them and it’s the same way with God. He won't interrogate information out of you, so you must be willing to open up to Him. Now, I will explain some methods to have an intimate relationship with Christ.
The first thing you can do is make God your top priority every day. I’m going to call your attention to Jesus’ feeding of the five thousand. After this miracle, Mark 6:45-46 says, “Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.” Jesus made God a priority in his life, therefore you should do the same. He should be the first one you talk to when you wake up and the last one you talk to before you go to bed. Remember, the Lord is a jealous God. There are many things in the world that we allow to take precedence over God, but it’s a sin to do so.
After His resurrection Jesus had breakfast with his disciples and he asked Peter (he called him Simon this time) three times, “Do you love me?” (John 21) When Jesus asked Peter the first time he phrased it, “do you love me more than these?” (John 21:15) Some scholars take "these” to mean the other disciples, but I understand “these” to mean anything in the world. Peter should put Jesus first in his life and the same is true for us. For, Deuteronomy 6:5 says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”
Another thing you can do is study the Bible. To clarify, I used the word study instead of read. One of Merriam-Webster’s definitions of study is: “a careful investigation or examination of something.” You can read the Bible all you want and learn nothing, but if you desire to truly learn from scripture you must study. You must make “a careful examination.” Joshua 1:8 says, “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”
D.L. Moody said, “Merely reading the Bible is no use at all without we study it thoroughly, and hunt it through, as it were, for some great truth.”
To study the Bible, you also have to ask God for wisdom. And it is as simple as asking God. According to James 1:5, “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” Proverbs 2:1-5 puts it beautifully:
My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you,turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding—indeed, if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding,and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure,then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.
Yet another way to have an intimate relationship with Christ is to obey Him. In John 14:23-24 it’s recorded that Jesus said, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.”
Obeying God demonstrates that you trust that His commands and rules are important, even if you don't understand their purpose. Once you give your life over to Jesus, you are abandoning your obedience to sin and replacing it with obedience to God; no one can serve two masters, Matthew 6:24. Paul, in Romans 6:16, wrote, “Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?”
To recap: a few ways to become closer to, or, rather, more intimate with Christ are prayer, study of the Bible, and obedience to God’s commands. God desires to have a relationship with you, but you have to meet Him halfway. He’s already done His part (1 John 4:10), so will you do your part too?
