Good news below… But first…
“I want to know Christ… All of us who are mature should take such a view of things.”
I want to know Christ––this from the man who, along with his eleven colleagues, probably knew Jesus better than anyone in their generation!
Evidently, there’s something more to knowing him than just meeting him. Let’s say you meet someone once and then never see them again. If someone asks you if know So and So, all you can say is “I met them, we’re acquainted, but I don’t really know them
The Greek term Paul uses denotes more than head knowledge, the kind you got in kindergarten when the teacher taught you the ABC song. What Paul is talking about includes intellectual assent, but is an experiential knowledge. He’s saying, “I want to experience Christ,” not just know stuff about him.
We should want to know him like we know our best friend. That is something altogether different than what you have with most of your hundreds of “Facebook friends,” the majority of which you’ve not even met in person. I fear that this is the extent of the kind of friendship many so-called Christians have with Jesus. They don’t really know him. They only know someone who does.
François Fénelon’s phrase, “sweet familiarity” is one of my favorites to describe the kind of intimate relationship I want with God. He went on to say, “God is so good that he only awaits our desire to overwhelm us with this gift which is himself. If we feed ourselves with Jesus Christ and his word, we shall be like a vessel in full sail with a fair wind.”
Mature Christians are plagued with a holy dissatisfaction at a shallow and detached relationship with Jesus. They want to experience all of Christ all they can.
“God himself works in our souls, in their deepest depths, taking increasing control as we are progressively willing to be prepared for his wonder.” Thomas Kelly
This is the 2nd of 10ish posts on How Mature Christians Act. Click here for the 1st one.
Of course a huge component of Christian maturity is enjoying him so much that you can’t help but share him with others. That’s what Reaching Rahab: Joining God In His Quest For Friends is all about. It’s now available in paperback form and soon to be an eBook as well! I hope you’ll get it, read it, review it on Amazon, and do it––that is, join him on his quest!
PS: Half of the profits from the book go to YWAM San Francisco. They do amazing work in the Tenderloin.
barney wiget 