You see, the difference here between the two is tricky, because knowledge can be and often is gained within the growth of relationships. However, I see Christians (myself included) repeatedly content with head knowledge rather then knowledge of the heart. We often don’t realize how meaningless all of the church attendance, Christian book reading, and dare I say- even Bible reading is, when the words only sink into our heads and fail to pierce our hearts. Most of the time we don’t even realize how fruitless this knowledge is until it's too late and tragedy strikes.
As I was considering what I would blog about today, I began to review in my mind some of the stories I have read, about the life of Jesus in the past few days. He healed the lame, had compassion on the sick, and he loved the unlovable. He said, “follow me” and broken people followed with confidence, leaving everything they had behind.
Not surprisingly, some of the best human minds can't fully understand all that Jesus was and all He accomplished during His short life here on earth. We can’t even begin to wrap our minds around the unconditional love that radiates from His character- especially not in today's culture where we are so busy judging, living our own lives, and ignoring the needs of those around us. But what we often forget, is that we have the unthinkable opportunity to not just know about Jesus, but to know Him intimately. To be on a first name basis with our Savior!
Honestly, I forget this unbelievable privilege of Christianity far too often. Sometimes my prayer time gets pushed to the bottom of my overwhelming daily “to-do” lists. Sometimes, I hurry through my Bible reading, trying to digest the passages quickly like fast food eaten in the car on my way to the next thing on my agenda. I get so busy in my own little world, that I stop listening, or rather stop caring, about what His plans may be for that day for my life. My day turns into "oh, I'll spend time with him later, I'm just so busy right now.." or "I'll do my devotions first thing tomorrow, I promise!"
I was thinking this morning about my friendships. I’ve been blessed with some really awesome, lifelong friends. When I'm with my close friends, I love to be with them. I love to laugh at inside jokes. Love to talk about the new celebrity gossip. Love to enjoy movies, concerts and food with them. I love to experience both the mundane days and the adventurous days. Would I be content with reading a book about them without the actual experience of being around them? Absolutely not. I would be devastated if my only means of getting to know my friends relationally was by reading a few brief pages documenting their days, what they said, or where they went. In other words, a Facebook style relationship with my best friends would leave me feeling miserable.
So then why as Christians, do we live as if such a relationship with Jesus is acceptable or even beneficial? It’s not knowing about Jesus that leads to a changed life....it’s real authentic encounters with Him that does. It’s a daily personal encounter with a magnificent God who knows all about you and me, and yet chooses to still love us more than we can imagine, that takes our messed up lives and makes them something God-glorifying. It's that kind of relationship that changes lives. Investing in an authentic relationship with Jesus brings us hope in despair, peace beyond understanding, and a wellspring of joy! It simply begins with a hungry heart, a sincere cry out to Jesus to know Him intimately, and an investment in quiet, solitary time with His word and prayer. Jesus died so that you could know Him, not just to know about Him.
