"To Know Him is to Love Him"
Part One


There is definitely a difference between knowing someone and know about them.

In life, there are many different ways to gain knowledge about people. Sports stars for instance. You can read the sports page in the newspaper and find out a their stats, their records, gain information about their personal lives, financial status, and much more. The same thing goes when it comes to celebrities. There are tabloids, magazines, television, etc.. And with the internet at our fingertips, it is possible to pretty much dig up information on just about anyone.

Yet, that does not mean that we know them. We merely know about them! We've only heard or read about them. They've never actually communicated face to face with us, and we have never communicated in the same way with them.

When you know someone, there's a point in which you personally come to know them. When it comes to Jesus, the same rules of relationship apply. Many people have read the Bible, heard the stories, and know about Him, and maybe even believe in Him. That is a good thing!

Jesus told Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God!" (John 3:3) The book of John tells us, "For God so loves the world, that he He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever should believe in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16)

Romans 3:23 tells us, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" and Romans 6:23 says, "The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

However, to believe in Jesus and to know about Him is not enough,. That simply means we believe in and know about Him. The Word tells us in James 2:19, "Thous believest there is one God, thou doest well: the devils also believe and tremble." It is not enough to simply believe. We must act on that belief! We must confess with our mouth and accept in our heart and mind what Jesus did for us.

1 John 1:9 tells us that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And Romans 10: 9-10 brings all of this home by saying, "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus Christ, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

And for those of you who think that your sin is too great; that you have crossed the line and done too much to ever be forgiven, the words of the apostle Paul in 1 Timothy 1:15 tell us, "This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief . "

Unless you decide to accept in your heart and life what Jesus has done, and make confession of it with your mouth, your relationship with God is broken, and in need of repair.

There is a void:

Your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins
have hid his face from you, that he will not hear. (Isaiah 59:2)

But because of God's great love (Jeremiah 31:3) and the fact that He came to earth in the form of a man, Jesus Christ, and shed His own blood to pay for the remission of your sin (Acts 20:28 and Hebrews 9:22), a relationship between you and your God is possible once again! 2 Corinthians 5:21 tells us, "For He hath made Him (Jesus) to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be the righteousness of God in Him." Praise God!

We once again have access to God. Because of Jesus' completed work (Ephesians 3:9-12), we have been reconciled to God the Father, and a relationship with Him is now possible (1 Corin. 1:18-23).

This relationship is, or at least should be, the most important relationship in our life. One in which everything else in life revolves, and takes second place.


Look for Part Two: The Abiding Reciprocating Love
which tells us how this relationship with God our Father looks and functions.