Do You Know Me?

Matthew 16:13-17 – When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his  disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”  They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”  “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”  Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”  Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.

Heidi and I will be celebrating 24 years of marriage this June.  We dated for 9 years before that.  (I know that’s a long time, but I had to make sure she was the one!)  I believe that I know her very well.  I know her like and her dislikes.  (Hamburgers … not a chance!  Chicken … Absolutely!  ESPN … only if it’s the Saints or LSU.  Hallmark Movies and Mysteries … All Day!  The beach … not so much.  The mountains … her favorite.)  I know about her hopes and dreams … and her fears and her concerns.  (Her career … not a priority.  Her family … her greatest priority!)  We have journeyed through some amazing highs and travelled through some painful lows.  And I’ve learned something through each good time and each challenging time … they all offer the opportunity for us to draw closer together.  And while we are both still growing and our goals/dreams continue to change, I can say without hesitation that the privilege of my life has been getting to know her over the years.

I once heard an analogy about relationships and intimacy that I like.  If Heidi lost her driver’s license and you found it, you would be able to learn some things about her, but you wouldn’t know her.  You would learn that she’s 5’-3” (she’d argue for 5’-3 ½”), has blue eyes and that she lives in Panama City Beach, Florida.  But knowing that doesn’t mean you know her, just that you know things about her.  Let’s bring that analogy up to modern times.  You can follow someone on social media all day.  You can know what they post, what they say about their lives, etc.  But that doesn’t mean you really know them.  Knowing someone takes time, intimacy, accessibility, vulnerability and transparency.  Driver’s licenses give facts about someone’s life and Facebook pages offer a glimpse into someone’s life, but neither tell the whole story of someone’s life.  That requires real relationship.  

There is an interesting exchange between Jesus and his disciples in Matthew 16.  Jesus has been walking with these young men for several years at this point.  They have seen him eat and sleep, teach and pray, and perform miracles as they have journeyed throughout Israel.  They have history with Him.  And Jesus asks them the question, “who do people say that I am?”  The disciples have been hearing what people were saying in each town about Jesus as they were travelling.  Some thought He was a great teacher.  Some thought Him a prophet from God.  Some thought a powerful evangelist.  And while all of those describe an aspect of WHAT Jesus is, all of them fall short of answering WHO Jesus is.  That’s when He looked at Peter and asked, “Who do YOU say that I am?”  (You can almost see Jesus’ face turning and His eyes staring into Peter’s soul as He asks this question!). 

This question would separate those who knew about Jesus from those who knew Jesus.

And He was looking to see if those closest to Him had come to understand who He really was.  Peter’s response … the Messiah, the Son of the Living God!”  BOOM!

Like Peter, God’s desire is for us to move past an abstract understanding of who He is and into relationship with Him.  Or you could say God wants us to move past information to revelation.  Like the analogy of the driver’s license, God’s desire is our relationship with Him move from information to intimacy.   

True relationship moves past information into intimacy.

Question … do you know Jesus?  Not do you know about Him, do you know Him.  Like I wrote about Heidi, do you know His likes and dislikes?  Do you know His desires and His dreams?  Do you know His will for you and for those you love?  God greatest desire is to have relationship with you.  Not to have you try to behave and be good so He can love you.  That backwards and that’s called religious behavior.  (A topic for another blog.)  God wants to establish relationship with you, and out of His amazing love for you, you begin to change how you think, feel and act.  That’s called relationship.  Relationships change you.  You learn to discern the heart of the other person and then change to respond to it.

God isn’t into behavior modification; He’s into life change!

One of the saddest scriptures in the bible is found in Matthew 7:21-23.  Jesus is saying, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’  Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you.”’

Imagine thinking you had relationship with someone only to find that when you met them in person they had no idea who you were.  That would be heart-breaking.  Imagine that person was God!  That would be tragic!  Jesus says those who know Me AND do the will of My Father are the ones who truly know me.

Peter confessed two things about Jesus that day.  After all of the time he had spent with Jesus, he had come to understand: 

• One, that He was the Messiah, the long-prophesied liberator of the Jewish people.  Peter declared what Jesus would do.  
• Second, that He was the Son of the Living God, that Jesus is God Himself.  Peter declared who Jesus was. 

Those two statements form the foundation of relationship with Jesus.  In Romans 10:9-10, it says, “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”  

‘Declaring Jesus is Lord’ is acknowledging WHO He is; ‘professing that God raised Him from the dead’ is acknowledging WHAT Jesus did.

Let’s face it, like Peter in Jesus’ time, we are all going through unsettling times right now.  Things are changing daily and much of what we know about what lies ahead is unsure.  But in the midst of this, God is sure and He isn’t changing.  And those who have relationship with Him can find comfort in the fact that no matter what happens around us, we are safe and secure in His hands.  That’s the power of being in relationship with God.  

• He promises to be with you.  
• He promises to guide you.  
• He promises to provide for you.  
• He promises to protect you.  

My prayer today is that you have a relationship with Jesus AND that it goes deep.  That it moves past the superficial level of information and facts and into intimacy and commitment.  That you not only believe in Jesus, but surrender to His will for your life.  God wants to hear your hopes and dreams, your fears and doubts.  And in turn He wants to share His hopes and dreams for you and those around you.  This is the essence of relationship.  He is committed to you, but are you committed to Him.  

Well done Peter!  Thanks for painting such a clear picture of who Jesus is.  Not only has your confession spoken loudly over the centuries, it still speaks to us today!