ACCORDING TO GOD’S WORD, HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW JESUS?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
We know that we have come to know him if we keep his
commands. Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not
do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that
person. But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly
made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him:
Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.
(1 John 2:3-6)

MEDITATION:
Have you ever heard a person refer to someone else as a ‘good friend’
of theirs, but you find out later that they only know the person casually?
There is a huge difference between ‘knowing someone’ and being their
‘good friend’.

Many of us know a large number of people (some who don’t know who us),
but that doesn’t mean we are ‘good friends’ with them. When we are good
friends with someone, we usually know a lot about them (their likes and
dislikes, how they interact with others, etc.).

If we claim that Jesus is a good friend of ours, then we should know
more about Him, right? We should know His likes and dislikes, how
He interacted with others, etc. The scriptures tell us that if we know
(and love) Him, ‘we will keep (obey) His commands’. The scriptures
tell us that if we are disobedient, then we are lying when we say we
know Him.

There are a couple of things to consider when it comes to obedience.
We know that there will be times when, even though we don’t want
to disobey Him, we will sin. Of course it disappoints us when we fail
to obey His commands, but there are some who habitually disobey
Him and according to God’s Word, they do not know Him.

The second consideration is, disobedience means doing the things
He has said we should not do, but it is also means not doing what
He commands us to do. There are some things God wants us to do,
including being a part of His ministry team.

He wants us to be good representatives of Him as His children. He
tells us in His Word to ‘forsake not the assembling of ourselves together’.
In other words, He expects us to worship with other believers, but some
have decided to replace worship with other things want to do. According
to the scriptures this is disobedience.

There are times when we will be unable to attend due to an illness,
work, medical conditions or risks, etc. However, there is a growing
number of folks who claim to know Him, yet they seldom obey His
command to worship with others.

The numbers are staggering – only 17% of those who claim to know
Him, worship on a regular basis (according to survey results). When
we read 1 John 2:3-6, we have to surmise that 83% are not telling
the truth when they say they know Him. We are also told that if we
know Him, we must ‘live as Jesus did’, and worship was an important
part of His lifestyle, so it should be high on our priority list too.

ACTION:
Do you know Jesus? If you were called to prove it in a court of law,
would you have enough evidence for knowing Him (based on the Bible’s
qualifications for knowing Him)? Are there any of His commands that
you habitually disobey? Should you make some changes in order to be
more obedient?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, I regret the times whenever I fail to obey
You, because I know it damages my relationship with You. I
want to fully know You and live as Jesus did. Forgive me for
my failures (sins) and call my attention to the areas of my life
that need to be changed, so that I am not a liar when I say I
know You.”

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