Articles
A Personal Relationship With Jesus
A Personal Relationship With Jesus
ALL relationships with Jesus are personal, you either are ‘related’ to Him or you are not. As Robert Turner once wrote, “God has no grandchildren”. So how DO I relate to Jesus? Some relate to their own caricature of Him, rather than to Him.
Everything I know about Jesus has been revealed through the New Testament. I would then suggest that we immerse ourselves in the revealed story of Jesus. Be prepared: a ‘simple’ list of who Jesus is and what he has done is in fact a very long list! That doesn’t matter, for you can NOT relate truthfully to Him unless and until you KNOW HIM. For example, He IS:
LORD – Acts 2:36 36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified." (Phil. 2:10-11; John 13:13-14; 20:28; Luke 6:46, etc.)
King – Revelation 17:14 14 "These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful." (Col. 1:13)
Creator – John 1:3-4 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. (Heb. 1:2; Col. 1:16)
Savior – Luke 2:11 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (John 4:42, Acts 5:31; Acts 13:23; Eph.. 5:23; Phil. 3:20; 2 Tim. 1:10; Titus 1:4; 2:13; 3:6; 2Pet. 1:1, 11; 2:20; 3:2, 18; 1John 4:14)
Mediator - 1 Timothy 2:5 5 For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, (Heb. 8:6, 9:15; 12:24)
Advocate - 1 John 2:1 1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;
Shepherd – John 10:11 11 "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. (John 10:11, 14 – the Good Shepherd, 1Peter 2:25; 5:4 – the chief shepherd; Heb. 13:20 the great Shepherd)
High Priest – Hebrews 8:1 1 Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens. (Heb. 2:17; 3:1; 4:14-15; 5:5, 10; 6:20; 7:26)
Friend - John 15:13-15 13 "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. 14 "You are My friends if you do what I command you. 15 "No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. Matt. 11:19; Luke 7:34; John 15:13-15
Judge – John 12:48 48 "He who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day. (2 Cor. 5:10; John 5:27).
Most of us struggle with keeping ALL of these in perspective at the same time. We tend to elevate one above the other, and thus ignore who Jesus REALLY is. He is NOT the LORD without at the same time being friend and savior.
Hence, loving Jesus does not diminish the need for obedience! (1John 2:1-2; John 14:15, 21, 23). A personal relationship does not exclude following His example (John 13:15; 1Peter 2:21), molding ourselves into His image (Rom 8:29; Col. 3:10), modeling our thinking pattern after His (Phil. 2:4-11).
So then, how do you see your relationship with Jesus?
Hugh DeLong
