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And though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory
(I Peter 1:8)
Scriptures to explore: Isaiah 53:12; Mark 9:7; John 3:16; John 3:35; John 6:29; John 6:33; John 10:11-17; John 12:44; John 12:49; John 14:1; John 15:13; Philippians 2:6-7; Hebrews 12:2; I Peter 2:24; I John 3:16
One thing every person has in common is that we enter life not knowing Christ. It isn't long before we discover ourselves, but discovering Jesus is another story. Self-discovery starts with our needs. We are hungry and need to be fed, wet and need to be changed, tired and need to be put down for a nap, fussy and desiring attention, etc. We do not have to be taught to be self-centered, it develops and happens naturally. Love of self-reigns supreme within us, and love of Christ is non-existent.
Selfishness is evident in our acting as if we are the god of our life. But that is not God's plan or desire for us. He wants to reconcile us to Himself through Christ (Romans 5:10-11; II Corinthians 5:18-20). The good news of Jesus Christ and the kingdom of God is a message of reconciliation to God. Those who are ultimately set free from selfishness, experience freedom by coming to know and love Christ. Though we start without knowledge of him, maturing requires a point where we hear about him. Some of us grow up hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ. Others do not hear his name until well into our adult years. Some of us hear the name of Jesus but lack real knowledge of who he is, until we encounter the truth about him. Sadly, some people never hear his name or come to love him. Still others are ignorant of him, even when his name is on the lips of people around them. However we come to hear about him, it is usually through someone who loves him and is carrying out his commission to make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). The people through whom we hear are likely to be family members, friends, teachers, other students, co-workers, or neighbors. Some of us learn about the Lord Jesus Christ at church or by exploring the Bible in a group or by ourselves. Whatever the timing and the situation, our first step towards following Christ and loving him involves hearing about him. Hearing about him is not just hearing his name, it does not mean that someone simply says "Jesus", for too often his name is spoken in a hollow, empty manner or worse, as a curse. Hearing about him means we discover who he is, his having been sent by God the Father, and that we are to love him (John 8:42). We learn that he died on the cross and was raised from the dead on the third day (I Corinthians 15:3-4). We grasp that he will return to judge the living and the dead (Acts 10:42; Acts 17:31; II Timothy 4:1; I Peter 4:5). To hear about Jesus is to learn about him as a person, who is the promised Christ. It leads to our realizing that there is something unique about this man who lived in Judah over 2,000 years ago. When we really hear about Christ Jesus, we discover that it is well worth our time and effort to learn more about him.
As we grow in maturity we want to know more about Christ. We investigate his life. We do not stop with just the historical facts of his life, death, and resurrection, we are drawn to know him personally. Some people may refer to him as a good teacher, or say that he is one of many ways that lead to God, but we want to hear him for ourselves. As we listen to him, we wrestle with the claim that Jesus is the Son of God. He challenges us by declaring that all the Scriptures and prophets point to him (Luke 24:27; John 5:39; Acts 18:28; Romans 1:1-4). He confronts us in saying that he will return to earth to judge the hearts of everyone and establish his kingdom (I Chronicles 17:11; Daniel 2:44). Jesus invites us to believe what he says about himself (Mark 8:29), rather than holding to uninformed opinions of him, or what others say, or even what our culture and institutions think of him. Rather, Christian growth happens as we come face to face with Jesus and accept his claim of being the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He is not one of many paths to God, or a personal opinion, but truth itself; the truth of God. He is the promised Messiah, the Holy One of Israel, sent by God to save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).
As we accept his truth claims, we begin to listen to his teachings with open ears (Matthew 13:15-16). We realize that he is not some teacher trying to help us be moral or better people, nor is he teaching us how to enjoy life more. Rather, he claims that he is the Lord of all creation (Acts 10:36) who has all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18; Colossians 2:10). He is not looking to improve us, but to transform us and give us the life God is offering to us (John 10:10). What Christ says requires that we either believe him and do what he says, or completely ignore him. There is no middle ground. Either we build upon the solid foundation of Christ by putting what he says into practice, or find that all we have built on our own will come crashing down because we do not do what he says (Matthew 7:24-29). Jesus' claim of authority demands that we listen to him, living every day and in all situations according to his teachings. We listen to him because we trust him and find our perception of him expanding. Our priorities change as we listen to him, for a maturing Christian is someone who listens to Jesus and does what he says.
As we mature we meet with his invitation to follow him. Like Peter and Andrew (Matthew 4:18-19), James and John (Matthew 4:21), and Matthew (Matthew 9:9), we are called to follow Jesus. Initially, we step outside of our comfort zone in little ways, being faithful in little things. Following him is challenging because we still want to hold onto what we think we have gained in this life. We do not know exactly what to expect or where we are going since his call to follow him does not include details of where he plans to take us or what we will face. The call is to follow him simply because of who he is. It is an exclusive call that excludes all other options we might consider (Luke 9:57-62). Following Jesus at this point is a matter of our will and love. If we have not truly begun to love Jesus, it is hard to follow him and accept the challenges we encounter (Matthew 13:20-22). Following Christ is in itself an invitation to know him more intimately and love him more deeply. It reveals the things we consider more important than him, the idols that we let reign as our lord. But Christ alone is to be our Lord and nothing in this world is to hold a position that keeps us from following him (I John 2:15-17). Our idols must be torn down for us to mature in Christ. While it is a step of faith to believe Jesus, following him is meant to be a life style lived with faith. It is an act of love and devotion. At first we may think following him is a duty. But as he leads us day by day in situation after situation we learn to trust him at the core of our being. We know nothing on earth, not even death, can overcome God's love in Christ (Romans 8:38-39). Following him becomes an act of worship. Our confidence is greater than at the beginning of our journey, and the fear that once made us hesitant or resistant is losing its power over us. We think about Christ more and ourselves less. We do not look to him so much for what he does for us, but simply as the object of our love. We follow him simply because he is leading. We go where he goes, because he has called us to join him. We are following Jesus and there is no turning back.
Following Christ gives us frequent opportunities to discover and serve his interests in this world by serving others. Like Jesus, we go to people who are in spiritual darkness and proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God that he proclaimed. We become agents of mercy and justice since our Lord is the source of all mercy and justice. We love as we have been loved and serve in the name and authority of Christ Jesus. Sometimes service is enjoyable; other times exceedingly difficult and even painful. Some gladly receive our service; others question our motives or hate us. Yet, fixing our eyes upon Christ we embrace the opportunities that come our way. As we mature, we learn when to say yes, and how to say no. We are more concerned with people knowing Christ than our receiving recognition, so we appreciate being overlooked and forgotten so that those whom we serve may encounter Jesus and glorify God (Matthew 5:16). We serve Jesus Christ, not ourselves.
Amazed at the transformation he is accomplishing within us, we are compelled by the love of Christ (II Corinthians 5:14). There is clear evidence of the Holy Spirit bearing fruit (Galatians 5:22-23) in us such that we glorify God. Loving Christ, our priorities are drastically different from what they were. Peace permeates us, of which we are not often consciously aware. We worship him, serve him, and pray without ceasing (I Thessalonians 5:17). Our thankful heart has us lifting up praises to God in all circumstances (I Thessalonians 5:18). We know that our transformation is not our doing, it is God's power at work in us, enabling us to live as holy people in the midst of a sin filled world. Dying to our own desires, we live for Christ (II Corinthians 5:15). We do not show off, yet people close to us notice changes in us. Some do not like what they see or hear; others think we are crazy. We are not interested in what others think, but only what our Lord says (John 8:29; I Thessalonians 2:4). Our eternal perspective makes no sense to those who do not know Christ. We may have trouble explaining it, but we know the reality of our transformation; we are a new creation (II Corinthians 5:17). We stay focused on Christ, pointing to him and inviting others to become his disciples.
In the midst of growth, we come to view ourselves in the light of Scripture. We are grasping the mystery of our faith, which is Christ in us (Colossians 1:27), a truth that we may have heard multiple times but never quite understood until now. We are truly a temple of the Holy Spirit (I Corinthians 3:16; I Corinthians 6:19). Christ abides in us, we abide in him, and we know that apart from him we can do nothing (John 15:4). Like the apostle Paul we know that we are not our own, for the life we live is being lived in Christ (Galatians 2:20). The one in whom the fullness of deity was pleased to dwell (Colossians 2:9) has taken up residency in us. That Christ dwells in us and we in him is a mystery to be sure, but true nonetheless. Loving Christ enables us to see that he is not somewhere far away from us, but in us. What we do with our body matters since we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. We grasp the truth that Christ walks with us, talks with us, and tells us that he loves us. The Holy Spirit dwells within us, fulfilling Christ's promise that he and the Father would abide with us (John 14:23). That the Lord of heaven and earth would dwell in vessels such as us is unimaginable, but true!
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