To Believe and Know
Being a Christian is having a relationship with Jesus Christ. We confidently affirm that reality, but it seems that many people are skeptical of this. They wonder how can we have a relationship with someone we can't see. It may be hard to believe but it is true. It started with the disciples of Jesus, except for Judas. They believed Him and they knew Him.(John 6:69) We need to do both of these things, as they did.
To believe is to trust someone or something. The Greek word has the same root as the noun "faith." Therefore, it means they faithed Jesus. They decided to put their trust in Him as their Lord and Savior. It is much like a child who jumps out of a tree into the waiting arms of his or her father. The child must make a decision of the will that the father can and will catch them to save them from harm. We decide to put our trust in Jesus as the Only One who can save us from our sins.
Then, once we have taken that step of faith, God saves us completely by His grace. Once He sees our faith, He gives us the gift of salvation, (Ephesians 2:8,9) and we become a child of God. The Holy Spirit comes into our spirit, so that we can walk with Jesus and talk with Jesus, even though we can't see Him. (John 10:4,27) It is then that we "know" Him. We experience Him. It is much like Job, who had trusted the Lord before His troubles and trials, but after the trials he affirmed that he had come to see Him.(Job 42:5) We all should have that personal walk with the Lord each day in which we now Him by experience, and not just by trusting Him to be our Lord and Savior. He becomes our Friend, too. (John 15:15)
Tomorrow, I intend to read John 8-10.
To believe is to trust someone or something. The Greek word has the same root as the noun "faith." Therefore, it means they faithed Jesus. They decided to put their trust in Him as their Lord and Savior. It is much like a child who jumps out of a tree into the waiting arms of his or her father. The child must make a decision of the will that the father can and will catch them to save them from harm. We decide to put our trust in Jesus as the Only One who can save us from our sins.
Then, once we have taken that step of faith, God saves us completely by His grace. Once He sees our faith, He gives us the gift of salvation, (Ephesians 2:8,9) and we become a child of God. The Holy Spirit comes into our spirit, so that we can walk with Jesus and talk with Jesus, even though we can't see Him. (John 10:4,27) It is then that we "know" Him. We experience Him. It is much like Job, who had trusted the Lord before His troubles and trials, but after the trials he affirmed that he had come to see Him.(Job 42:5) We all should have that personal walk with the Lord each day in which we now Him by experience, and not just by trusting Him to be our Lord and Savior. He becomes our Friend, too. (John 15:15)
Tomorrow, I intend to read John 8-10.