I Want To Know Jesus

I Want To Know Jesus

INTRODUCTION - Jesus brought the disciples into a high mountain. Jesus had a way separating people that questioned him from people that wanted to ask questions and people that want nothing from people who can believe Him for something. I don’t believe Jesus chose Peter, James, and John to follow Him to while He left the others behind. I believe Peter, James, and John chose to follow Jesus up into a mountain while the other chose to remain behind. Most people don’t want to go up because they did not want to grow up. I can almost hear the disciples complaining about how high the mountain was and how far they had to walk. Only those who want to go higher will follow Jesus beyond their comfort zone. Only those who want to know Him more will follow Jesus to a point that only He can lead them from. So, Jesus calls us to step out and step up to come up to another level of faith so He can reveal something new about Himself to us. It is up to us to come up and grow up to the point that we want to know Jesus more.

TEXT- Philippians 3:10

That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death

Jesus will lead out of our comfort zone so He can reveal something new to us about Himself. Jesus tells us to launch out into the deep so He can reveal something new to us about Himself. Jesus takes us by the hand and leads us out of the city blind so He can reveal something new to us about Himself. Jesus calls us up into a high mountain apart so He can reveal something new to us about Himself. The problem is that most people won’t follow Him up, most people won’t follow Him out, most people won’t follow Him over, because they don’t really want to know Jesus. Daniel 11:32b says "but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits" but most Christians don’t really want to know Jesus. There is something interesting about the word "know" in Philippians 3:10. It is the Greek word "Ginosko" which is a Jewish idiom for the word "intercourse". The same way Adam knew Eve and Eve conceived, it implies intimacy. What most people don’t know is that sex usually has very little to do with intimacy and intimacy is not always sex. The break down is “Into-Me-cy” where my wife is into me even more than she is into herself and I am into her even more than I am into myself. In other words, it’s not intercourse and it is not intimacy unless we are doing something for each other. It’s the same way with our relationship with Jesus. To know Jesus requires intimacy where I want to do something for Him because He was willing to do something for me. People want to know the power but they don’t want to know Jesus. People want to know the power of His resurrection but they don’t want to experience His resurrection. In order to experience His resurrection it requires a dying process. The power of His resurrection is the power of Jesus Christ to bring positive out of negative, right out of wrong, good out of bad, life out of death. It requires a dying process. Like a seed; nothing good will come out of it without a dying process. Everyone wants to experience the power but where are the saints that are willing to die for Jesus daily the same way He died for you and for me on a hill called Calvary.

Galatians 2:20

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

To know Him requires intimacy where I want to do something for Him because He was willing to do something for me. Turn to your neighbor and say "He did it for me!" Where are the real believers that love Him not because what He can do for them but because He first loved them? Where are the real believers at that are willing to go through the dying process because I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. "He did it for me!" I can’t experience the power of His resurrection without going through the dying process to die for Him like He was willing to die for me. My selfishness has to die. My self-centeredness has to die. I have to say, not my will but Thy will be done. Where are the real believers that will say "Nevertheless". It’s not easy but "nevertheless". It’s not comfortable but "nevertheless". It’s not pleasant but "nevertheless". It’s not my will but "nevertheless, not my will but Thy will be done."