Knowing Jesus Christ

January 20, 2013 Background Scripture: Philippians 3:1 – 11 Lesson Passage: Philippians 3:1 – 11 How awkward it is to be thoroughly known by someone you are meeting for the very first time. You feel disadvantaged when they state how much they have heard about you and yet you have never heard about them. After the normal cordial exchanges, then the next order of business is to get to know something about this person you have just met. Why were they so interested in knowing about you? Why did they bother to remember what someone else might have said about you? And most importantly, HOW MUCH DID THEY REALLY HEAR ABOUT YOU??? These one-sided encounters can become quite uncomfortable. All who come to know Christ are confronted with exactly this type of encounter. We discover that Jesus knows EVERYTHING about us and we are just learning a few basic things about him. In fact, most of what we know about Jesus comprises the lyrics of children’s songs used during Sunday School and Bible Class. (There is that awkward moment again.) Yet those who know him far better than we do assure us that Jesus knows all about us—and still he loves us! It is being convinced of his love that prompts us to take up the next order of business; how do I come to know more about him? What kind of person is this that knows everything about us and loves us anyway? What kind of person would graciously help us in our time of need while knowing that we will soon forget about it and ignore him later on? When we hear about his great deeds, we try to imagine being around for those encounters that others testify about. What did the fish and bread really taste like? Did it taste funny and was it the best they had ever had—like the wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee? Note that all of these questions put us in a position of observation rather than in a close intimate encounter. Jesus does not beckon us to come and watch him. He does not call for spectators but disciples who will learn of him and follow him. To follow him involve walking where and as he walked and doing what he did. We are not required to figure this out. Jesus wants us to come to know him in such a close way that he can speak to us and direct our actions. How do we know when Jesus is speaking to us? We can only know that after we come to know him. Afterwards, we will readily recognize him not by the sound of his voice but by what he says. When we know Jesus, we know when he is speaking by the content of what is being said. This means that I will need to know something about his mind and his heart. This cannot be learned from a spectator’s position. I must spend some time alone with him. I must talk to him and also listen and hear his response to me. If I am to know him, then we must talk about more than just church. We need to have a sincere talk about life and, whether I like it or not, death. I need to share with him my insecurities about my mortality and ignorance of eternal life. I need to listen so he can give me assurance and tell me about things that are beyond my finding out on my own; such as death, resurrection, and eternal life. What is my greatest insecurity in life? Is it death? Well, Jesus died and rose again to live forever. If death is conquered, then what is there in life to fear? Oh! That I might know him, and the power of his resurrection… Robert C. Hudson January 3, 2013