What Will You Hear When You See Jesus?

Read pages 9-22 of Stephen Canup's book, "Knowing Jesus Intimately: A Relationship of Love-motivated, Spirit-empowered Obedience," which is available for free reading in Pando Books and Edovo.

TAKEAWAY HIGHLIGHT

It is not enough to “know about” Jesus.

It is not enough to say you know Jesus, but continue to live rebelliously

and defiantly in disobedience.

Knowing Jesus in an intimate way will be evidenced by a life of Spir

it-empowered obedience. This is an obedience that is motivated by

increasingly understanding and receiving God’s love

Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow

Me.” (John 10:27)

Live your life in such a way so that when you get to Heaven, you will

hear Jesus say, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been

faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things

Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:23)

You do not want to hear Him say, “I never knew you Away from me,

you evildoers!” (Matthew 7:23)

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

What does “an intimate relationship” look like? Let’s say we wanted

to pursue a deeper relationship with someone. There are a number

of things we would do to cultivate and foster that relationship. Here

are some methods we would employ in our daily life with the other

person, and how they might then be related to cultivating an intimate

relationship with God:

• Practicing daily communication – Do I have an attitude of ongoing

prayer/conversation with God?

• Desiring to spend time together – Do I want to be alone with

God daily?

• Trusting the other – Do I trust the Father to lead me daily by His Spirit?

• Accepting direction, guidance and correction – How do I respond

to advice and chastisement?

• Wanting to learn more about the other – Do I desire to study what

He reveals about Himself in the Bible?

• Desiring to please the other – Do I have a heart that always tries to

please the Father?

• Loving the other deeply – Do I love Him enough to want to do my

best to always obey Him?

• Sacrificing for the other – Will I lay my own life down for my Father

and put Him first in everything?

• Committing to the other forever – Do I operate daily with eternity

uppermost in my mind?

Certainly, we should pursue an intimate relationship with God with the

same strategies and even more dedication than we would with another

person. As we have seen, it can make an eternal difference for us.