Know

I like being loved quietly. What I mean is my husband will bring me home a burrito from my favorite place without asking how I want it made. He will occasionally get up early on a weekend while I’m still asleep to get me a special coffee drink that I like or bring me home a treat anytime he goes to Rural King. So, how does he know those things would be something I wanted? He knows me. He has studied me and accurately concluded I love Moes burritos, white chocolate lattes with caramel added and double dipped chocolate peanuts. My social media account apparently doesn’t know me so well. Recently I was bombarded with ad after ad online trying to convince the man in my life all I could ever want for Valentines day was dancing in my kitchen with him. If he would just buy these lessons to “show off his gal” (that’s legit their pitch)  I would be incredibly happy and thankful he picked the perfect gift. Well, here’s the truth, Facebook you’re wrong. Frankly I’m surprised at this. Why?  All social media, your internet and your phone have become really good at studying you. It’s this fancy system called an algorithm. It’s programmed to study you. To find out what you want so it can bring it up on screen for you. Over and over. Your clicks, your lingering views, your search engines, all these things compile to study who you are and what you want. They know you. It’s perfect marketing until it’s not. I have zero desire to attend dance lessons or dance in my kitchen and I would be a little hurt if Kyle bought into that. Why? Because he’s supposed to KNOW me. How do you truly KNOW someone? What If I know of someone? Is that the same as KNOWING them? Certainly not.

In Matthew chapter 7 Jesus is giving his Sermon on the Mount. This is right after the beginning of his public teachings. He teaches on many topics during this passage ; fasting, anger, judgment, serving, loving your enemies and nearing the end of his teaching he says “Not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in Heaven. On that day many will say to me Lord, Lord did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name? And then will I declare to them, I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness”.

This passage has at times frightened me a bit. How can someone who cast out demons, prophesy and do mighty works not enter the kingdom of Heaven? Seems like it computes, but I believe you can know of someone and maybe even do things for them but not really KNOW them. Jesus calls us to be in relationship with him, not action or just bible trivia knowledge. He wants to KNOW you and you to KNOW him. So, let’s ask ourselves how. How can you truly KNOW someone? How does Kyle know I like what I like? The answer is time. Time spent with Jesus and time in the word relays his character to you.  His story. Church people say the bible is living and active. What does that mean? My best way to describe it is that “aha” you get when you read a scripture you have read so many times before but it just hits you differently this time. That is the Holy Spirit working through God’s word to reveal God’s heart to you. The bible is new everytime you read it. Another way to KNOW him is prayer. When you think about who you KNOW the best I would imagine it’s the people you verbally communicate with regularly. The thing about prayer that gets missed is that it’s a conversation. It’s not just you talking endlessly, sometimes you should just listen. To sit in silence and draw your complete focus to Jesus. He will reveal himself to you. He wants you to know him. You can know of Jesus without KNOWING him. I think my phone knows that historically women like romance and dancing. However my phone didn’t study me well. It thought it was doing something for me, a favor, but clearly it hasn’t spent any real time with me. It knows I’m married and a female but it doesn’t really KNOW me. We may know Jesus is the son of GOD and someone we are supposed to worship on Sunday but we should ask ourselves do we really KNOW him? We should be searching his word and talking to him like we are an algorithm, zealous to KNOW him more intimately. Jeremiah 29:13 says “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” I pray he will make himself more known to me in new, deeper ways. As for my phone and facebook, they would do better to send Kyle messages for unique coffee mugs, hiking boots, cozy blankets or journals.

1 Has Matthew 7:23 ever hit you with fear? Why?

2. Have you had any “aha” moments during your bible readings lately? What were they?

3. How real is God’s presence in your life right now?

Dear Heavenly Father, you knit me together in my mothers womb before I was known to anyone, please draw me closer to you and make yourself more known to me. Speak to me as I walk through my days and help me to be an aroma of Christ to those around me. In Jesus name, Amen.