Mark 8:27-30 Then Jesus and His disciples went out to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way He asked His disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” They answered Him, “John the Baptist; and others say Elijah; but others, one of the prophets.” And He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter replied to Him, “You [in contrast to the others] are the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed).” Then Jesus strictly warned them not to tell anyone about Him.

It isn’t enough to know what others say about Jesus. We must know Him for ourselves and there is only one way to get to know Him. Our relationship with Him is just like any other relationship. It takes time and dedication to make it grow and get to know Him on a personal level. We must get in the Word of God and spend time sitting with Jesus if we want to really know Him on a personal level. It is not enough to go to church on Sunday and only hear what someone else says about Him. There is a huge difference in knowing about Him and knowing Him on a personal level. It is all about a personal relationship with Him. We can only be changed by Him when we open our hearts and lives to Him.

We must also guard against viewing Him through the lens of any past pain, hurt, trauma, rejection, or abandonment. When we view Him through the lens of anything other than the truth found in the Bible we run the risk of assigning character traits to Him that are not even His. We also run the risk of believing a lie and basing our relationship with Him on a lie. The enemy (demons) are constantly whispering lies to us about who Jesus is and about His love and care for us. If we do not pull down those lies and guard against them we can easily begin to live our lives based on those lies and accept them for truth. The only way we can recognize the lies is if we know the truth. The only way to know the truth is to get in the Word and have a personal relationship with Jesus. Someone could tell me a lie about my husband of twenty years, but I will immediately know if what they are saying fits his character because I know him. I have spent time with him, I know his habits, I know his struggles, I know where he is with his relationship with God. I know what fits his character and what doesn’t. It is the same way with our relationship with Jesus. If we know Him and are in a personal relationship with Him as soon as we hear a lie about Him we will reject it because we will recognize it as a lie. However, if we do not know Him personally we can be deceived by all kinds of doctrines that are not even based on truth. We can also be susceptible to falling for every single lie of the enemy. That is also why we cannot base our relationship with Him on our feelings. Our feelings will often lie and many times they are not based on truth. There is one source of infallible truth and that is the Word of God.

Practical Steps to Getting to Know Jesus

Reading the Word of God (Bible):

Find a Bible plan that works for you and stick with it. There will be days you don’t want to read and days that it feels like a chore, but I encourage you to discipline yourself and read it no matter how you feel. Sometimes we just have to push through our feelings and do the things in our lives that we know are part of our daily walk with the Lord. If you want to get to know Jesus through the Word of God (Bible) the best place to start is in the gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed [given by divine inspiration] and is profitable for instruction, for conviction [of sin], for correction [of error and restoration to obedience], for training in righteousness [learning to live in conformity to God’s will, both publicly and privately—behaving honorably with personal integrity and moral courage]; so that the man of God may be complete and proficient, outfitted and thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and full of power [making it operative, energizing, and effective]. It is sharper than any two-edged ^[a]sword, penetrating as far as the division of the ^[b]soul and spirit [the completeness of a person], and of both joints and marrow [the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and judging the very thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Sitting at the Feet of Jesus:

There are different kinds of prayer. There are times we intercede for others, times we make our request known to God, and warfare against the enemy, but there are also times that we just need to sit at the feet of Jesus. It is in these times that we need to just sit and pour our hearts out to Him and talk to Him just like we would our best friend. We should tell Him about our feelings, victories, struggles, our day, things that hurt us, things that bring us joy, things we are sorry about (repentance) and anything else that is on our hearts. As we pour our hearts out to Him we must also get quiet and listen to what He wants to speak to us. We must let Him teach us, grow us, and change us. It is at His feet where we grow in Him and where our intimate relationship grows. It is where His anointing flows and where we become more like Him.

Luke 10:38-42 Now while they were on their way, Jesus entered a village [called Bethany], and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who seated herself at the Lord’s feet and was continually listening to His teaching. But Martha was very busy and distracted with all of her serving responsibilities; and she approached Him and said, “Lord, is it of no concern to You that my sister has left me to do the serving alone? Tell her to help me and do her part.” But the Lord replied to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered and anxious about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part [that which is to her advantage], which will not be taken away from her.”

A Few Scriptures About Jesus:

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the [only] Way [to God] and the [real] Truth and the [real] Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is [eternally changeless, always] the same yesterday and today and forever.

Isaiah 53:5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was crushed for our wickedness [our sin, our injustice, our wrongdoing]; The punishment [required] for our well-being fell on Him, And by His stripes (wounds) we are healed.

John 8:12 Once more Jesus addressed the crowd. He said, “^[a]I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”

Philippians 2:8-11After He was found in [terms of His] outward appearance as a man [for a divinely-appointed time], He humbled Himself [still further] by becoming obedient [to the Father] to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also [because He obeyed and so completely humbled Himself], God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow [in submission], of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess and openly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord (sovereign God), to the glory of God the Father.

Blessings,

Nichole Henson, Fullness of Joy Ministry

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