May I Introduce You to Jesus?

 
You told me once.  You shared your heart and told me that you didn’t understand Him.  You had heard people talk about Him your whole life. You did the church thing.  You read a few stories and heard a few sermons.  You told me that you didn’t understand Jesus.  I have failed you.  I need to tell you all about my Jesus because I love you. 

 And you?  There is more than one of you, you know.  You aren’t alone.  Several of you have told me that you don’t see a need for this “religion thing,” and it doesn’t make me angry with you.  It makes me sad and rather disappointed in myself.  How have I not told you before?  Why have you done the church thing and not met Jesus?  Maybe we could all do better at this introduction to Jesus.  Perhaps I should do better.  If you aren’t seeing Jesus within me, I’m missing the mark. I want everyone to know my Savior the way I know Him: His grace, His freedom, His love, His rescue, His forgiveness, His peace, and His salvation.  I’m going to try this differently.  If you love me, please stay with me through this clumsy introduction.  Okay?

Sweet friend of mine?  May I introduce you to Jesus?  

You need to know that we are all trying to get it right but we are so flawed and we camoflauge His true goodness.  I’m no better.  I have nothing to boast in, but I can tell you all about His saving grace.  Here is my story.

I learned about Jesus from a young age in my Sunday School class and in my home.  I was advantaged to hearing about Him in every way and I am so thankful for that, but knowing about Him isn’t the same as abiding deeply with Him.  I can say the same about my husband: that knowing about Him would not be the same as knowing His heart the way I do.  

Maybe you know all about Jesus from Bible lessons and you have taken part in religious moments here and there.  Maybe your whole life has been spent in the church walls…but maybe you desire to really know Jesus.  Head knowledge and heart knowledge are so very different and it is only in knowing the heart of Jesus that we can fully trust in Him.  Then, we experience His true goodness through a relationship with Him.

Do you want to know Jesus…really know Him and His perfect love for YOU?  He really wants to be known by YOU.  Jesus loves YOU.

I didn’t meet Jesus because of religion.  I met Jesus because of His goodness and His unfailing love.  I don’t want to sound like a “Jesus infomercial,” but you can have an eternal relationship with Him too.  The churchy people you know?  The judgment you’ve felt for sins…maybe even from me?  That isn’t Jesus.  The religious practices you have witnessed?  The stuffy, pretentious, traditional junk that made you feel unloved or pushed aside?  Jesus isn’t stuffy.  He was a carpenter born in the presence of livestock.  He certainly isn’t pretentious.  He was and is the most authentic form of love ever known.  If we have made him seem fake?  If we have painted a picture of something shiny and cheap like plastic?  We have failed you.  Jesus has not failed.  He will never fail you.

My own life has been full of sin.  I’m striving to be like Jesus and I’m a terribly blemished version far from the reality of who He is.  I bet you know a whole crew of sinners striving to be like Jesus and I bet you’ve seen many versions of misrepresentation.  We are not Him.  We people called “Christians?”  Well, we’re all just a hot mess.  We are redeemed by Him.   We are a redeemed hot mess, I tell you.  You will never be Him either.  Do you know what we are, though?  The followers of Christ are people who have laid our lives at the feet of Jesus: a perfect Savior who reigns eternally.  

With God, there has been no beginning and there will be no end.  When your life is surrendered to Jesus, You can have life eternally too.  I know that this sounds like crazy talk to you.  The love of Jesus IS radical!  And even now??  I know my explanation could be so much better.  Stay with me.  I deeply desire for you to know the truth.  The truth will set you free.

How does Jesus love us?  Can I tell you more about How he loves you and me…even in our biggest mistakes, failures, and messes?

“But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

~Romans 5:8

‭‭Before we were born, before we made our messes, before we were thought of on this earth, the God of the Universe came to the world in the form of a baby in a manger.  He lived a life without sin, raised by imperfect humans named Joseph and Mary.  He had followers called “disciples.”  He performed many miracles causing the sick to be healed and the blind to see.  His disciples saw His power miracle after miracle.  He was hated by so many others.  Eventually, He was betrayed by one of His own disciples, Judas.  He prophesied this.  He could have stopped this.  Yet He deeply desired eternal salvation for me and for YOU.  While we were still sinners, unborn people who would sin against Him again and again, He chose to be beaten and tortured.  He chose to die on a wooden cross between two true criminals.  He could have ended it all.  Why didn’t He? 

His unconditional love for YOU and for me kept Him on a cross in front of a crowd of people who mocked Him.  Why did God allow this? I know you ask that. It’s a common question but I am here to tell you about God’s love for YOU, my sweet friend.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” ~John 3:16

Are there other routes to God? Is Jesus truly the only way? I will tell you the words of Jesus that I fully believe in. Jesus was without blame, you remember? We can trust His words so fully and He said this:

I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”  ~John 14:6

Please hear this, precious friends. There is NO OTHER WAY to God. We must go through Jesus. You can go straight to Jesus. He intercedes for YOU. You don’t have to go through any other person. You can go straight to Him. Run to Him! The Savior of the world is waiting for YOU, His child.  

Do you know what happened after He was crucified on a cross? I’m sure you’ve heard bits and pieces of even large amounts of information before.  Jesus didn’t stay on the cross. He was buried in a tomb of a rich man named Joseph of Arimathea. He was dead in that tomb for a few days but on the third day? He arose from the grave because Jesus wasn’t a mortal man. He wasn’t just a good teacher. He wasn’t just a prophet. He wasn’t just a kind man. He was God himself, God incarnate who lived among His people. God had lived among us in the form of His perfect son. Jesus died for us.

 Where is He now? Jesus ascended into Heaven where He sits at the right hand of His Father God. And while I’m telling you all about Him, you should know that He’s coming back again one day. The Bible tells us that no one knows the hour He will return, but we should be ready for His return. Will that happen before we die? We don’t know that. Of course, none of us know how much time on earth we have either.  Yet, I know I will live with Jesus eternally one day and that everything will be perfect because I have surrendered my life to Him. I have given my life to His will and I continue to strive to be more and more like Jesus each day.  

I’m fairly certain that I’ve done a mediocre…maybe even poor job at telling you about Jesus. By reading this, I’ve probably sounded more like the answers to an FAQ page about Jesus than a real person telling you about the way my life has been changed by the radical love of my Savior.  
I haven’t told you about the way I struggle with anxiety and how Jesus is so present in my life, sometimes overwhelming me with peace to the point of not feeling fear at all. I’ve not told you about the way my inner chatter pulls me down with reminders of comments people have made, but how God reminds me that I am His creation, His child, and that Jesus died for my very life. The world has never known a love as great as Jesus and we’ll never know a relationship that compares to His unconditional love. 

 I should tell you more about the way Jesus has overcome the world, but there is so much to tell in one short (or wordy) blogpost and this story is worth telling day after day after day.  

I know you are wondering if I have it all wrong. I know you wrestle with this. I think most people wonder these things before they come to truly know Jesus and the heartbeat of God. I’m a wordy girl and I’m not terrific at simplifying this free gift of salvation. It’s truly so simple. Please forgive my information overload. 

 May I encourage you to read more about Jesus on your own? How about the book of Luke? It tells the truth of Jesus far better than I ever will. Perhaps you like reading something fast-paced? How about digging into the Book of Mark and reading about His miracles? Seek Him and you will find Him. Ask God to reveal Himself to you through the Bible. He will not fail you. He’s waiting for you to seek Him with all of your heart. He will meet you where you are.

 I’m not sure we represent Him well. I’m pretty sure we fail miserably, but I pray that you will come to know Him. Others will fail you, but Jesus never will. I tell you, my friends who have experienced the deepest tragedies talk about the presence of God in their lives and the goodness of Jesus in their darkest hours. He is faithful.

Please get to know my closest friend. His ways are perfect. He will never leave your side. You will always have someone. Always. His name is Jesus and He is for you. He desires you. Nothing you have done can keep you from His redeeming love. Draw near.  

From my heart to yours, 

~Courtney