Ephesians 4:13
“until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.”
This passage lists four goals to attain. The second one is the knowledge of the Son of God. This reminds me of the question Jesus posed, "Who do people say I am?", (Mark 8:27). This is a key question for everyone. He is God incarnate who is the savior of the world.
Some say He is a good teacher, some a good model to live by and so on. He must be accepted for who He is. This is actually the most important question for all. Jesus said in John 10:9, "I am the gate. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture."
God will ask all of us, "What have you done with my Son?" We need to decide that in this life. If we see Him as the gate and enter in, we are saved. Matthew 7:13 says, "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it."
If we don't decide for Christ in this life, we will be asked it upon our death. It will be a negative conversation. It's as if we are going to trial and am representing ourselves. The topic is do we go to heaven to be with God. We have sinned and in need of forgiveness. God and heaven is perfect. We have to be cleansed to enter. Jesus was the means of cleansing. If we don't accept His offer, we aren't clean.
To choose Christ is step one. Today's passage says we are to attain to the knowledge of the Son of God. There is much more to learn. Jesus said in Matthew 11:29, 30, "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. For My yoke is comfortable, and My burden is light.” This is a shocking realization for many. Most feel guilty and expect all sorts of penance and sacrifice. It is best to put aside all expectations and learn from Him.
The common acronym WWJD would make me feel guilty. I would do all sorts of things I thought I should do. I began to get stressed out by it. It's best to do what He says and not what we think He would do.
He gave two commands, love God and love people. That's very clear. He also said, 'Then Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me"', (Matthew 16:24). This is helpful. When we come upon a situation in which we are presented with serving ourselves or others, we put others first. We are to deny ourselves.
Jesus modeled this. He met the requests that people presented Him with. He healed people, He engaged with those who had questions about who He was (Nicodemus) and so on. We are to do the same.
God gave us His Word, the Bible. We are to read and learn. Psalm 119:9 poses a good question, "How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to Your word." We aren't to look to culture for lifestyle advise. It says to be and do what we want. God's Word tells us how to be.
God is generous. He sent His Son to die in our place. He created us and everything for us to enjoy. He gives us full hearts, good food, good friends and so on. We are to follow His example and be generous. The primary gift to give is our attention and time.
Proverbs 4:18 speaks of how our lives are to be; "But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day." As we learn of Him our lives become brighter and better. This knowledge isn't just academic, but relational. We get to know Him more.
Revelation 3:20 gives us a glimpse of how God wants to relate to us, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me." Having a meal is what family and friends do. God wants to dine with us.
Isaiah 65:2 says, "All day long I have held out My hands to an obstinate people who walk in the wrong path, who follow their own imaginations." God reaches out to us. He wants to forgive us and enter a relationship with Him. He puts people in our way, He puts thoughts in our minds and so on. We have to say yes.
Lord, thank You for wanting to be with us and wanting us to get to know You. Thank You for dying for our sins and reaching out to us.