Getting to know Jesus

Good day

Today we are going to have a further look at the 1 John 2:3-6: “And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. Whoever says "I know Him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps His word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in Him: whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked.”

If a child copies his parent he will become very much like that parent. It is said: “Don’t tell me, show me.” This is exactly what Jesus came to do. Everything He told us to do, He did Himself. If we therefore do what He tells us to do, both in the Bible and on a daily basis through the Holy Spirit, we will have firsthand experience of what He is like and will have understanding of how He thinks, what He exactly wants and of His nature.

It is also said that we should not judge anybody until we have walked in their shoes for a while. Why is it so? Because then only can we have understanding of what such a person is like and goes through. If an expert in an interest similar than yours, comes to you offering you the opportunity to spend a few days with her while she shows you the ropes, giving you the chance to follow her actions and do things yourself, would you not learn much in the process about her and the interest?

Can you see why the church is weaker than it used to be during the time of the book of Acts? The apostles were fresh from a three year period of seeing Jesus in action. He allowed them to do some of the things He did, and by the time they were filled with the same power of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, they knew Jesus so well that they literally did the same miracles and taught with similar power. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever,” (Hebrews 13:8), but we have allowed certain theologies to enter our hearts and minds that weaken us. We tend to follow authorities that do not teach what Jesus taught, and that keep the majority of soldiers in the pews as passive listeners to impressive messages. Many Christians are satisfied to simply follow the religious duties of going to church and giving a little in order to sooth their consciences.

We have all received at least one gift from Romans 12:6-8, of which Jesus had all. The only way to know how to use your gift effectively is to seek opportunity, in obedience to the Holy Spirit, to learn from Jesus how He did it. This happens through obeying the teachings of Jesus that relate to your gift. The church leaders should actually set up opportunities for everybody to learn to use their gift effectively. Not everybody is gifted to for example teach, but to those who can, Jesus gave guidance in the Bible on how to, and the Holy Spirit empowers them whilst they do what Jesus asks of them.

These teachings of mine are not pre-planned or researched. The Lord told me to write, so I enquire what the Lord wants me to write about. I then sit down, start typing and voila, an hour later I am finished, ready for editing. There have been times that I thought it a good idea to write about something, which was not the Lord’s will, and I sat in front of the keyboard with a proverbial mouth full of teeth, not knowing what to write. You see, I just obey and the Holy Spirit does the rest and in the process I get to know Jesus and receive more to give.

The same applies to each gift mentioned in Romans 12:6-8. We need to get to know Jesus by obeying His commands regarding our gift and walk in our gifting as He did in His, and do what He tells us today. If a team works together, they get to know each other so well that they don’t even have to communicate much. They just have to glance at the other to know what to do next. How about you and Jesus as a team?

The ideal church will equip their members (Ephesians 4:11-16) to do what Jesus did so they could get to know Him so well, that they would harmonise with Him as He moves along by the Holy Spirit, reaching out to the souls He dearly loves. If all Christians aim to do the above, each one only within his or her gifting, learning to know Jesus and walking as He did through obedience, pew warming would be of the past and every Sunday worship will become rejoicing due to the testimonies of God’s greatness that obedient people, who teamed up with the Holy Spirit during the week, brings.

Lord, please use me to help transform your body.

The Self Test

Good day

We read in Psalm 139:23, 24: “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”

Ping, the test is on and your motives and attitudes are being monitored and gently you receive feedback through the spirit channel:

1.   This is why you go to church.

2.   This is why you are a pastor/elder/church leader.

3.   This why you use your money like that.

4.   This is why you have this attitude towards your spouse.

5.   This is why you have this attitude towards the government.

6.   This is what you know about Jesus:

a.   This is what Jesus’ commandments tell you about His character.

b.   This is how Jesus and the Holy Spirit feel in your company – uncomfortable or pleased.

c.   This is how Jesus experiences your attitude, obedience or disobedience.

d.   This is how Jesus feels about your attitude towards poverty, riches, sexuality, money etc.

We can go on and on. Can you see that the answer to the above could be either positive or negative? We can either have a right or wrong attitude and motive. What is right and wrong therefore? When do you sin and when not? In the last few discussions we have talked about sin and last time we have seen that, when it comes to sin, Jesus is our Advocate who covers for us with the Father, but in turn disciplines us to keep us in line with His standards.

We are not Christians so we can go to church, or to feel good about our good deeds, or to accomplish certain dreams and ideals or ambitions. Right and wrong is not established in our perception or that of our communities. The purpose of Christian life is to know Jesus and His idea about right and wrong.

We read in Jeremiah 9: 23-24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD,’” and in John 14:21 Jesus said Himself: “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him,” and then we see in our passage of this week, 1 John 2:3-6: “And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.”

What is the Lord like? The trend of Jesus’ parables such as the shrewd manager, the talents and so on indicates that God has a businesslike thinking pattern. This also comes out in His making covenants with man, and the many times it is written “if you do this, I will do My part...”

If we look at all my messages from the first epistle of John during the last few weeks we see that our fellowship with God is important to Him, but that sin blocks that relationship. Jesus suffered much in order to obtain a position of Mediator and Advocate on our behalf and therefore, thanks to Him, we have been forgiven the sin of eternal damnation and have access to the Father through Him. By doing that He has kept His part of the bargain or the covenant. Now He expects of us to obey His commandments, as He obeyed His Father’s.

It is by grace that we are saved and we cannot work for it (Ephesians 2:8-10), but according to various passages, including these above, we cannot know and understand Jesus and thus share in His victory, if we do not obey everything He told us to do and walk like He did. There is no such thing as just getting saved and happily riding along on the glory train.

Once again we need to remember what Jesus said in Matthew 7:21: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”

Lord, help me to keep your commandments.