The Resurrection Life is a Relational Life
August 18, 2015
Christianity at its core is not about all the good things God gives but about the giver. Christianity at its core is about knowing this Giver of every good gift. Christianity at its core is a relationship – a relationship with God the Father – it’s about knowing Him – Our Father who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
After completing this long list of all the great gifts God gives us in Jesus, Paul shifts our attention to the Giver of our gifts: God Himself! And in so doing he points us to the pinnacle of the Christian Faith – that the resurrection life is a relational life! A life of knowing Him!
WHEN he started praying for them: “Ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.” Ephesians 1:15-16
Two identifying marks of a Christian:
1) faith in the Lord Jesus Christ
2) love for the saints
“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:35
Paul is a great example for us: Paul was a non-stop prayer warrior!
WHAT he prays for them: “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation… to know Him better.” Ephesians 1:17
So many people think of Christianity as a religion of does and don’ts. Or they think of Christianity as attending church services and living a good and moral life. Or that being a Christian means you are always opposed to those who don’t. That being a Christian means you are always looking down your nose at others, always judging, always condemning and never really living. But that is not what a genuine Christian is.
Life as a Christ follower is about knowing a person. But not just any person. Its about knowing the Creator of the Universe. It’s about knowing God. God wants you to know Him. He has always wanted you to know Him. This has always been God’s purpose in our salvation:
In Jeremiah 9:23-24 This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the Lord.
In Hosea 6:6 I want your loyalty, not your sacrifices. I want you to know me, not to give me burnt offerings. The resurrection life is a relational life, not a religious life!
In John 17:3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
And the good news is that God has made a way for you to know Him: Paul keeps asking the Father to give us what we need so we can know Him: And what He asks God to gives us is the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation! You can try to get to know God all you want. You can read books. You can take classes. You can try to get Him to open up to you. But God is a person. And knowing God can only happen when God chooses to reveal Himself to us in a relationship. And the way He does is through His Spirit: Paul shows us this. He keeps asking God to give us the Spirit of wisdom, and revelation to know Him better.
Without the Spirit, we cannot understand God. Our minds are darkened by sin. We are blind to the goodness and grace of God. But when God gives us His Spirit, the Spirit turns on the light, takes away the blinders and makes God known. We can know His thoughts, understand His ways, and experience His grace. We can know God as the Glorious Father.
We can know this Father who has always loved us. We can know this Father who accepts us unconditionally. We can know this Father who takes great delight in making us His own. We can know this Father who lavishes grace upon grace on us in Jesus – who forgives our sins, and promises never to ever bring them up again. This Father who sets us free, includes us in His plans and promises to never let us go. This is the glorious Father – our God of Amazing Grace.