And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- John 1:14
Imagine with me for a bit: if you could go to Heaven now and found out that Jesus wasn't there, but you could still enter... is it worth it?
What does it really mean to "believe" in Jesus?
Is it a confession? Uttering and admitting you believe? We often view Christianity as a religion where you "study" a guy: Jesus. You learn a lot about Him. Maybe even quote some of His teachings. But is that what He desires of us? To view Him as a historic person we admire?
John 1:14 often causes me to stop and think. If God merely wants us to believe or quote or study Him, there may have been other ways. Perhaps the Laws were good enough. Why go through the trouble of sending His Son?
We see in this verse that God's intention for us is clear. When God created us, He did it in order to have a relationship with us. Adam broke that intimate relationship with God. Sin divided us from the divine.
Jesus came to undo what Adam did. Like the Garden of Eden, God is once again dwelling with man through His Son, Jesus. Like Eden, we can see His glory again, full of grace and truth.
This means that God doesn't just want you reading your Bible/ memorization/ study of His Son. He wants to dwell with you-- with me.
How do I know you have a new regenerated heart that is no longer dead in sin? There is a genuine desire to spend time with Jesus. It is from this desire that your spiritual disciplines become genuine.
- You read your Bible because you love hearing Him speak.
- You memorize His Words because they are important to you.
- You study Him because you want to know more. (After all, if you don't really know the Jesus of the Bible, you may very well be in love with a Jesus you made up in your head. Yikes!😱)
- You love His Bride (your church) because He loves her enough to die for her.
Those who call themselves "Christians" yet have an apathetic view of the Son is in grave danger (Psalm 2:12). To look at Jesus and shrug, "meh" spits on His sacrifice and angers a just and holy God.
If you don't like spending time with Jesus while you're on earth, what makes you think you'll like spending time with Him for eternity? However, if you cherish moments with Him and intentionally dwell in His presence here on earth, Heaven will be infinitely, and unfathomably beautiful because you will see Jesus face-to-face (1 Corinthians 13:12).
Do we believe in Jesus to get to Heaven? Or do we look forward to Heaven to meet Jesus?
Charlie Hall sings,
"Finally the voice I have followed for life
Has a glorious face that is lit up with lights
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