Jesus calls each of us to fellowship with Him because He loves us. He wants to spend time with us and teach us His ways. Getting to know Jesus takes commitment and discipline on our part to spend time with Him daily. But how should we go about getting to know Him?
I once thought knowing Jesus was as simple as reading Christian literature. There is no shortage of Christian devotional and study guides, topical books, and even fiction for entertainment. As if that weren’t enough, there are thousands of web sites devoted to spreading the Gospel, and an abundance of subscription services to deliver daily prayers, scriptures, and devotionals directly to my email address.
But is reading Christian literature and media the best way to get to know Him?
In John 12:32 Jesus said “But I… will draw all men to myself.” Jesus creates a hunger in each of us for Him. Recently, Jesus called attention to the hunger I feel which is seldom satisfied by the Christian materials I read. I would have thought that ingesting large quantities of Christian literature would satisfy my hunger but it doesn’t!
Perhaps that is because Jesus is the one who creates our hunger and only Jesus knows what will satisfy it. For example, the Lord may want to do a healing work on my heart for which I need to learn about surrender, but instead I choose something more appealing like a study of Revelation and the end times. Not only would I fail to learn what Jesus wanted to teach me, but I would potentially miss out on a healing work He wants to perform.
If Jesus were to write us a letter on how He wants us to learn about Him perhaps it would say:
Dear Child,
“In prayer you ask me to provide you with ‘daily bread’ yet you prefer the bread of others. Does anyone know your nutritional needs better than I? I bake fresh bread for you every day. My bread is made with the choicest ingredients to sustain your life in Me. When you are troubled, I add a cup of reassurance to your bread. When you are sad, I add a measure of joy. When you are frightened, I add a heaping tablespoon of courage. When you stray from Me, I add a dash of correction to guide you back.”
“Is there any other baker who provides bread made especially for you? The bread of others may taste like bread but it does not provide all the nutrients you need for a balanced diet. Bread from any other baker won’t completely satisfy your hunger and may contain fillers that are harmful to you.”
“Surely you know that you can not select your bread by taste alone and expect to remain healthy? If you eat only the bread of grace, you will be ignorant of obedience. A diet of only the bread of wisdom will not develop the heart of a servant.”
“As often as you are hungry, come to Me for bread. I AM your personal baker. Only My bread will satisfy your hunger completely and provide you with the nutrients to grow in strength and maturity. I am the Bread of Life. By my own hand I will feed you.”
“Will I see you tomorrow?”
Love, Jesus
Jack Helser
I once thought knowing Jesus was as simple as reading Christian literature. There is no shortage of Christian devotional and study guides, topical books, and even fiction for entertainment. As if that weren’t enough, there are thousands of web sites devoted to spreading the Gospel, and an abundance of subscription services to deliver daily prayers, scriptures, and devotionals directly to my email address.
But is reading Christian literature and media the best way to get to know Him?
In John 12:32 Jesus said “But I… will draw all men to myself.” Jesus creates a hunger in each of us for Him. Recently, Jesus called attention to the hunger I feel which is seldom satisfied by the Christian materials I read. I would have thought that ingesting large quantities of Christian literature would satisfy my hunger but it doesn’t!
Perhaps that is because Jesus is the one who creates our hunger and only Jesus knows what will satisfy it. For example, the Lord may want to do a healing work on my heart for which I need to learn about surrender, but instead I choose something more appealing like a study of Revelation and the end times. Not only would I fail to learn what Jesus wanted to teach me, but I would potentially miss out on a healing work He wants to perform.
If Jesus were to write us a letter on how He wants us to learn about Him perhaps it would say:
Dear Child,
“In prayer you ask me to provide you with ‘daily bread’ yet you prefer the bread of others. Does anyone know your nutritional needs better than I? I bake fresh bread for you every day. My bread is made with the choicest ingredients to sustain your life in Me. When you are troubled, I add a cup of reassurance to your bread. When you are sad, I add a measure of joy. When you are frightened, I add a heaping tablespoon of courage. When you stray from Me, I add a dash of correction to guide you back.”
“Is there any other baker who provides bread made especially for you? The bread of others may taste like bread but it does not provide all the nutrients you need for a balanced diet. Bread from any other baker won’t completely satisfy your hunger and may contain fillers that are harmful to you.”
“Surely you know that you can not select your bread by taste alone and expect to remain healthy? If you eat only the bread of grace, you will be ignorant of obedience. A diet of only the bread of wisdom will not develop the heart of a servant.”
“As often as you are hungry, come to Me for bread. I AM your personal baker. Only My bread will satisfy your hunger completely and provide you with the nutrients to grow in strength and maturity. I am the Bread of Life. By my own hand I will feed you.”
“Will I see you tomorrow?”
Love, Jesus
Jack Helser
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