response. . .

There seems to be a common response when people, who are prepared in some way, see the real Jesus. The people I'm thinking of specifically are from the Old Testament - Daniel, and from the New Testament - Peter and John. Their response seems to include a sense of being overwhelmed in some way to the point of physically falling at the first sight of Jesus. Where does this response come from? There were thousands of people who had contact with Jesus -- some even traveled with him daily. Yet we only read of a few key people who were moved enough by their encounter to have this response. I would guess that the response comes from a combination of elements being present at the same time. For instance, Daniel 10, Luke 5, and Revelation 1 tell us that Daniel constantly lived in extreme obedience to God and that he had fasted for 3 weeks prior to the encounter; Peter did what Jesus said even though he was tired and doubtful; John was obeying God and was close to His Spirit. The first element present in this response was that of close obedience to God. Each man had a willing heart -- there were no distractions of selfish profit or of personal comfort. Their hearts were ready to see the real Jesus (or to see him differently than the thousands of others who encountered him).

I'm sure there may have been several other elements present to produce this physical response to the sight of Christ -- perhaps Jesus' willingness to unveil this sight or the overall purpose of the encounter in God's work (he showed himself in this way to Daniel in order to prepare him for the news he was about to receive). Further study may help to uncover more of this process (and maybe even other people in the Bible who experienced something similar), but we may never fully understand what triggers this overwhelming response.

I believe that this response can still take place today. Jesus may not be walking on earth in physical form (nor was he with Daniel or John in Revelation), but we certainly have encounters with him. Perhaps the only time I can remember responding to him in this way was about 2 years ago. I was spending 5 days alone in the wilderness of the Rocky Mountains. After 3 days of fasting I was growing very tired of the whole experience. I couldn't think of anything else to pray about or to read about. It felt as if my mind didn't even know what its next thought should be. As I sat by the bank of a small river, I asked God to use this experience to take me to a new place with Him. His answer came in the form of thought. I thought about my life -- particularly my past. It was as if all of my mistakes and sins were before me. I felt like I could remember each one with explicit detail. It was painful to think and "live" through these mistakes again, and it seemed to go on for hours. At first I didn't like God's answer to my prayer. But that's when the encounter came. Just after seeing those grotesque sights, I saw my life today. My encounter with the real Jesus was not a physical image or conversation, but I encountered his actions and his love. There in the mountains, I was brought face to face with the healing power of Jesus Christ. I was overwhelmed with the realization of who I am in comparison to a holy God. I wept for at least an hour -- not just tears, but true weeping. In a sense, I physically fell before God as a response to this encounter.

I don't think this sort of thing can happen very often, but when it does, you can't help but be changed forever. Thank you, Jesus.