Searching for Atlantis
In 360 BC, the Greek philosopher Plato wrote a story about an ancient city that he said existed 9000 years before his time. In the city there were divine beings, beautiful architecture and immeasurable wealth. One day there was an earthquake. The city fell into the sea and was never seen again. And in the 2,300 years since Plato wrote that story, people have been searching for the lost city of Atlantis.
Think about that word for a moment. Atlantis. It has been used in a hundred different stories and movies and everything else in our day, and it still carries a sense of wonder, a sense of awe, a sense of the unknown. To our culture, Atlantis represents glory that has been misplaced, a beauty that has been lost, and wealth that cannot be quantified. Treasure hunters are still searching and seeking for this elusive, mysterious enigma.
I want to suggest that your soul has an Atlantis. Your soul has a lost city that you’ve been searching for--a place where you feel you belong, a place that is home, a place that has things that the current landscape does not provide for you. Your heart is aching, longing, looking for Atlantis--a place where you are fully loved and fully known. A place that quenches our deepest desires and fulfills our greatest wants. I would call that city, intimacy.
In Revelation 3:20, we see a stunning image of Jesus in which we get insight into his heart. Jesus says, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”
What is Jesus doing? What is he after? Jesus is knocking and calling out to you and to me. And he's been waiting at the door of your heart. He is after a deep, intimate fellowship with us. He is the Atlantis that we have been longing for and have been hoping to find. He offers through himself the riches and wealth that our hearts and soul always desired. This goes beyond mere religious principle and religious duty. Religion is a response to God that allows us to treat God respectfully, but not intimately. This is what can make religion seem hollow and even shallow, because it’s only a substitute for what God ultimately wants.
God has always wanted your heart. He wants to satisfy the longing of your heart with a deep, close and intimate relationship with Him. Yet, he is a gentleman. He doesn’t blow the door down, or force his way in. He could; but that would not be love. True love cannot be coerced. However, when you respond and open the door to his calling, you find the immeasurable wealth and beautiful satisfaction that is Atlantis. Your soul is satisfied as your deepest longings and desires are met. To be fully known and deeply loved.
This is what the Psalmist meant when he said, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want... He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness...” (Psalm 23:1, 3) What do our souls ultimately need? Satisfaction and sustenance. We have both when we find this sort of intimacy. Notice we don't need anything else, because nothing is missing. There is nothing more that we need when we have this type of intimacy. Furthermore, notice this about his sustenance. He doesn't drive us (like cattle) or manipulate, coerce and belittle us (like some earthly bosses). Rather, he "leads us." It's his love and kindness that sustains us.
Intimacy is satisfaction and sustenance, and IT’S HERE! Atlantis is available to you. Stop searching for it in all the wrong places. Listen to the knock of Jesus, on the door of your heart. Open the door to him, and you will find everything you always wanted and needed.
Think about that word for a moment. Atlantis. It has been used in a hundred different stories and movies and everything else in our day, and it still carries a sense of wonder, a sense of awe, a sense of the unknown. To our culture, Atlantis represents glory that has been misplaced, a beauty that has been lost, and wealth that cannot be quantified. Treasure hunters are still searching and seeking for this elusive, mysterious enigma.
I want to suggest that your soul has an Atlantis. Your soul has a lost city that you’ve been searching for--a place where you feel you belong, a place that is home, a place that has things that the current landscape does not provide for you. Your heart is aching, longing, looking for Atlantis--a place where you are fully loved and fully known. A place that quenches our deepest desires and fulfills our greatest wants. I would call that city, intimacy.
In Revelation 3:20, we see a stunning image of Jesus in which we get insight into his heart. Jesus says, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”
What is Jesus doing? What is he after? Jesus is knocking and calling out to you and to me. And he's been waiting at the door of your heart. He is after a deep, intimate fellowship with us. He is the Atlantis that we have been longing for and have been hoping to find. He offers through himself the riches and wealth that our hearts and soul always desired. This goes beyond mere religious principle and religious duty. Religion is a response to God that allows us to treat God respectfully, but not intimately. This is what can make religion seem hollow and even shallow, because it’s only a substitute for what God ultimately wants.
God has always wanted your heart. He wants to satisfy the longing of your heart with a deep, close and intimate relationship with Him. Yet, he is a gentleman. He doesn’t blow the door down, or force his way in. He could; but that would not be love. True love cannot be coerced. However, when you respond and open the door to his calling, you find the immeasurable wealth and beautiful satisfaction that is Atlantis. Your soul is satisfied as your deepest longings and desires are met. To be fully known and deeply loved.
This is what the Psalmist meant when he said, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want... He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness...” (Psalm 23:1, 3) What do our souls ultimately need? Satisfaction and sustenance. We have both when we find this sort of intimacy. Notice we don't need anything else, because nothing is missing. There is nothing more that we need when we have this type of intimacy. Furthermore, notice this about his sustenance. He doesn't drive us (like cattle) or manipulate, coerce and belittle us (like some earthly bosses). Rather, he "leads us." It's his love and kindness that sustains us.
Intimacy is satisfaction and sustenance, and IT’S HERE! Atlantis is available to you. Stop searching for it in all the wrong places. Listen to the knock of Jesus, on the door of your heart. Open the door to him, and you will find everything you always wanted and needed.
Posted in Notes from Pastor Adrian
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