- Jan 1, 2024
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DO YOU KNOW JESUS or Just KNOW ABOUT JESUS?
"That I may know him...." (Philippians 3:10)
Reading Horatius Bonar last night, and I was slammed with conviction, like the hammer of the Word that breaketh the rock to pieces. (Jer 23:29) It is dealing with selfishness, and when I read the following I realized I tend to get sidetracked into this problem: in fact I think a lot of us do. I will let it explain itself:
"The person and work of Christ
There are not a few who are so occupied with truth that they forget “the true one,” so occupied with faith that they lose sight of its personal object, so given to dwelling upon the work of Christ that they overlook His person. They seem to regard the latter subject as a matter, if not beyond them, at least one about which it will be time enough to concern themselves when they see Him face to face. What He is seems a question of small importance, provided they know that He has accomplished a work by which they may secure eternal life. “We are forgiven,” they say, “we have peace—all is well.” They take but little interest in the person of Him Who has purchased these blessings. The redemption is all, and the Redeemer is nothing or, at least, very little! The sufficiency of His work is all; the glory and excellence of His person, nothing! What is this but selfishness? We get all the benefit we can out of the work of Christ, and then leave Him alone!
And this selfishness introduces itself everywhere into the actions and thinking of this class. We can trace it in the mold of their doctrines. Their views of the atonement are selfish, being framed not upon the principle of how God is to get His purpose fulfilled and His glory displayed, but simply of how a sinner is to be saved. Their views of Jehovah’s sovereignty and electing grace are selfish, being just so many devices for taking the sinner out of God’s hands and placing him in his own. Their views of the Spirit’s work are selfish, being just an attempt to make His aid appear less absolutely indispensable and man’s own skill and strength of very considerable avail in the matter of salvation. But even where those selfish views of doctrine have not been adopted, there is a latent tendency toward selfishness among many, which can only be ascribed to their neglect of the person of Christ.
But what has chastisement to do with this? Much every way. Chiefly in this: that it throws us more entirely for consolation and strength upon the person of the Saviour. Never do we feel more brought into contact with a living personal Saviour than in our days of sorrow. It is Jesus—Jesus alone, Jesus Himself—Whom we feel to be absolutely necessary. The truth is precious; His work is precious; but it is with Him that we have chiefly to do. It is to Him that we pour out our sorrows.
Thus by creating a necessity for our leaning on the person of Jesus (blessed necessity!), affliction strikes at that which was the root of selfishness. By bringing before us another and far more glorious self, it absorbs our own miserable self, till in the person of Jesus we lose sight of our own selves altogether. There is nothing that so makes us acquainted with Christ Himself as sorrow; and hence, there is nothing so efficacious (effective) in eradicating self. It is God’s cure for selfishness. It is His way of making us seek, not our own, but the things that are Jesus Christ’s. It is His way of carrying us beyond truth even to “him that is true” (1Jo 5:20). Truth is precious, but in itself it is cold. But the glory of the gospel is this: that it carries us up beyond truth to its living Fountainhead. Nay, it brings us into the very bosom of Him Who came out of the Father’s bosom and has now returned to it, carrying with Him all those whom the Father hath given Him—there with Him to abide in happy fellowship, world without end."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When I read that (and I had to stop halfway through just that portion to pray!), I immediately thought of how I got saved. Not when I said a sinners prayer but there was no change. I'd done that a few times between 1979 - 1984. Seed by the wayside, or on stony ground, and no repentance.
It was when I was at the end of the line and wanted to commit suicide. Right there when I prayed into the void, into the universe, into the Spirit (because I was seeking at this time, the supreme Creator God, and was 100% serious about it, though I really had no clue who or what that Creator God, or Force might be): It was then that the still small voice spoke clearly in my mind "I am Jesus, you can turn to me."
I did not know Jeremiah 29:13-14 but I learned it experientially or experimentally as the ancients say. "And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the Lord.." I was saved by knowing HIM, not knowing ABOUT Him!
Philippians 3:8-11, "Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead."
Look at right in the middle there: That I may KNOW HIM. Then it says "the faith OF Christ," not faith IN. And it's "OF" in Greek. His faith - the faith He gives us, for we have the mind of Christ, and let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus (1 Cor. 2:16 & Phil. 2:5)
John 10:14, "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine"
John 14:16-18, "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you."
Several verses in John 17 stand out:
6 "I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
9-10 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
19-20 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
25-26 O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.
And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them."
The disciples are given to Christ by the Father, and He prays not just for them but for all who believe on Him through their word - so that comes right down to us: we are reading their word! Which is His Word: Christ's Word, which is God's Word! HalleluYAH! Further, note there is an intimacy here: Jesus prays not for the world: he's not praying for the lost - He's specifically praying for all believers.
He's given us the Fathers Word, but we know that means He has given Himself, because John 1 is clear He IS the WORD! Amen. He also sanctifies Himself, that they: those who believe, might be sanctified through the truth; but we know He IS the Truth according to John 14:6. And Christ IS our sanctification. There's just so much here, it could go deeper and deeper, but the focus here must be Christ, KNOWING HIM - not just knowing the Bible, or knowledge about Jesus, but knowing Him directly. Now pray: speak to Him, get to know Him.
I could go on here about how the LORD spoke to Moses as a friend, Exodus 33:11, "And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend," or Isaiah 41:8, "But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend" - and Galatians 3:29, "And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise," so this is a blessed things, for a friend KNOWS you. He is not a God afar off.
And of course John 15:14-15, "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.'
Just one last word: please don't take this as an open door license to sin, or to consider God just a really cool dude, with a lot of power, that you're gonna run up to and shake his hand. According to Revelation you and I will probably more likely fall flat on our faces in awe and wonder, and a even a little terror, perhaps only for a moment, until He makes the move to welcome us into His kingdom.
"That I may know him...." (Philippians 3:10)
Reading Horatius Bonar last night, and I was slammed with conviction, like the hammer of the Word that breaketh the rock to pieces. (Jer 23:29) It is dealing with selfishness, and when I read the following I realized I tend to get sidetracked into this problem: in fact I think a lot of us do. I will let it explain itself:
"The person and work of Christ
There are not a few who are so occupied with truth that they forget “the true one,” so occupied with faith that they lose sight of its personal object, so given to dwelling upon the work of Christ that they overlook His person. They seem to regard the latter subject as a matter, if not beyond them, at least one about which it will be time enough to concern themselves when they see Him face to face. What He is seems a question of small importance, provided they know that He has accomplished a work by which they may secure eternal life. “We are forgiven,” they say, “we have peace—all is well.” They take but little interest in the person of Him Who has purchased these blessings. The redemption is all, and the Redeemer is nothing or, at least, very little! The sufficiency of His work is all; the glory and excellence of His person, nothing! What is this but selfishness? We get all the benefit we can out of the work of Christ, and then leave Him alone!
And this selfishness introduces itself everywhere into the actions and thinking of this class. We can trace it in the mold of their doctrines. Their views of the atonement are selfish, being framed not upon the principle of how God is to get His purpose fulfilled and His glory displayed, but simply of how a sinner is to be saved. Their views of Jehovah’s sovereignty and electing grace are selfish, being just so many devices for taking the sinner out of God’s hands and placing him in his own. Their views of the Spirit’s work are selfish, being just an attempt to make His aid appear less absolutely indispensable and man’s own skill and strength of very considerable avail in the matter of salvation. But even where those selfish views of doctrine have not been adopted, there is a latent tendency toward selfishness among many, which can only be ascribed to their neglect of the person of Christ.
But what has chastisement to do with this? Much every way. Chiefly in this: that it throws us more entirely for consolation and strength upon the person of the Saviour. Never do we feel more brought into contact with a living personal Saviour than in our days of sorrow. It is Jesus—Jesus alone, Jesus Himself—Whom we feel to be absolutely necessary. The truth is precious; His work is precious; but it is with Him that we have chiefly to do. It is to Him that we pour out our sorrows.
Thus by creating a necessity for our leaning on the person of Jesus (blessed necessity!), affliction strikes at that which was the root of selfishness. By bringing before us another and far more glorious self, it absorbs our own miserable self, till in the person of Jesus we lose sight of our own selves altogether. There is nothing that so makes us acquainted with Christ Himself as sorrow; and hence, there is nothing so efficacious (effective) in eradicating self. It is God’s cure for selfishness. It is His way of making us seek, not our own, but the things that are Jesus Christ’s. It is His way of carrying us beyond truth even to “him that is true” (1Jo 5:20). Truth is precious, but in itself it is cold. But the glory of the gospel is this: that it carries us up beyond truth to its living Fountainhead. Nay, it brings us into the very bosom of Him Who came out of the Father’s bosom and has now returned to it, carrying with Him all those whom the Father hath given Him—there with Him to abide in happy fellowship, world without end."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When I read that (and I had to stop halfway through just that portion to pray!), I immediately thought of how I got saved. Not when I said a sinners prayer but there was no change. I'd done that a few times between 1979 - 1984. Seed by the wayside, or on stony ground, and no repentance.
It was when I was at the end of the line and wanted to commit suicide. Right there when I prayed into the void, into the universe, into the Spirit (because I was seeking at this time, the supreme Creator God, and was 100% serious about it, though I really had no clue who or what that Creator God, or Force might be): It was then that the still small voice spoke clearly in my mind "I am Jesus, you can turn to me."
I did not know Jeremiah 29:13-14 but I learned it experientially or experimentally as the ancients say. "And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the Lord.." I was saved by knowing HIM, not knowing ABOUT Him!
Philippians 3:8-11, "Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead."
Look at right in the middle there: That I may KNOW HIM. Then it says "the faith OF Christ," not faith IN. And it's "OF" in Greek. His faith - the faith He gives us, for we have the mind of Christ, and let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus (1 Cor. 2:16 & Phil. 2:5)
John 10:14, "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine"
John 14:16-18, "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you."
Several verses in John 17 stand out:
6 "I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
9-10 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
19-20 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
25-26 O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.
And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them."
The disciples are given to Christ by the Father, and He prays not just for them but for all who believe on Him through their word - so that comes right down to us: we are reading their word! Which is His Word: Christ's Word, which is God's Word! HalleluYAH! Further, note there is an intimacy here: Jesus prays not for the world: he's not praying for the lost - He's specifically praying for all believers.
He's given us the Fathers Word, but we know that means He has given Himself, because John 1 is clear He IS the WORD! Amen. He also sanctifies Himself, that they: those who believe, might be sanctified through the truth; but we know He IS the Truth according to John 14:6. And Christ IS our sanctification. There's just so much here, it could go deeper and deeper, but the focus here must be Christ, KNOWING HIM - not just knowing the Bible, or knowledge about Jesus, but knowing Him directly. Now pray: speak to Him, get to know Him.
I could go on here about how the LORD spoke to Moses as a friend, Exodus 33:11, "And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend," or Isaiah 41:8, "But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend" - and Galatians 3:29, "And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise," so this is a blessed things, for a friend KNOWS you. He is not a God afar off.
And of course John 15:14-15, "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.'
Just one last word: please don't take this as an open door license to sin, or to consider God just a really cool dude, with a lot of power, that you're gonna run up to and shake his hand. According to Revelation you and I will probably more likely fall flat on our faces in awe and wonder, and a even a little terror, perhaps only for a moment, until He makes the move to welcome us into His kingdom.
