How do I know you?

 

I have a unique spiritual outlook on the subject of "knowing someone".  I have never lived in one place, until recently, more than five years at a time. It's really hard to get to know anyone like that.

My instinct was to tell the new person everything about me, weaknesses, flaws, failures...my hope was that they would realize those places were bruised and leave them alone. I couldn't be more wrong. Even those who have gentle hearts can puncture a soul unintentionally. Those who are evil puncture souls for pain's sake. 

It takes time to get to know someone. Why should it be any different with Jesus? I've heard so many sermons on "Knowing Jesus". I've been led to believe that I should just "know Him.," because I'm born again. 

How do we get to know someone? Well, first we do what is called "bidding". "Relationship Cure"( by Dr. John Gottman). I say something, you say something, we watch each other respond to different situations and decide, based on the evidence, how much of ourselves do we "unmask." 

This is all new to me. I now see that "unmasking"myself is not simply allowing people to get to know me, it is simply making myself vulnerable to attack. So, why have I been surprised when people have taken advantage of that knowledge in order to hurt me? It's no surprise.

To know someone is to see them in every circumstance, to watch the way they handle those circumstances, to see what their priorities are, to see what kind of decisions they make and to be comfortable enough to risk them hurting you in order to have a relationship.

The Bible gives us history. We see how he reacts to every situation imaginable. We see his heart. We learn about what he does and does not accept. He walked on this earth to seal those words and plant them forever in our hearts. To say "I know Jesus" is to say that I understand how electricity works, times one hundred. I know enough about Jesus to trust him. I know enough about electricity to turn on a light switch. I don't know enough about electricity to touch wires and put them together to make light or power; that's for an electrician. 

How do we get to know him? Well, we read about him. We become vulnerable and learn to trust him. We adore him through worship. This all takes time. It's a process. 

I know enough about Him that you can not sell me a Jesus I do not know. No one can convince me he is not who he says he is. I don't understand all the facets of him...I don't even know all the facets of myself.  

It's not about religious facts, or quotation marks, it's about relationship. You can argue against information, but you can't argue against first hand knowledge. The scriptures are the information that leads us to first hand knowledge.

Take time...read his word ,not out of duty but out of curiosity. Who are you Jesus? What plans do you have for my time on this earth? We can't know those things in an instant. We have to develop a relationship with him as Savior, Father, Creator and then Friend. (Not necessarily in that order) . My goal is to know him as my friend, my very best friend.