Relating to Jesus

Scriptures: Psalms 139:1-18, John 3:16, John 15:9-12, 1 John 4:8, Job 40:9

Jesus Loves You for You 

I know this sounds radical, but a few years ago God visited me in a dream. In the dream, I was seated in a large auditorium similar to a theater or a church. It was filled to capacity and lively with conversation, though there was no one yet on the stage in front of us. Someone shouted, “He’s here!” My head turned to see what the commotion was all about. I couldn’t make out a physical form, but a vaporous shadow moved up the aisle from the back of the room toward the front. A field of energy and streaks of lightning surrounded the giant shape, and everyone remotely close to it shrunk in their chairs under the magnitude of its power.

As the form got closer to the stage, I could make out a person, a man. There was no question as to the identity. It was Jesus. He was at least ten feet tall. The authority and power I felt from Him was indescribable. I had the sense I was in the presence of the ruler of the world. Yet He was smiling and laughing as He walked. His joyful and confident laugh filled the room like a lion’s roar (Job 40:9).

Throngs of people ran to Him, many falling on their faces and worshipping, others just trying to touch Him. I stayed in my seat, partly because I was under the weight of His presence and also because I would never have been able to get close to Him amid the commotion.

Then Jesus turned and looked me in the eyes as if I were the only person in the room. “Jonathan!” He called, motioning for me to come.

Shocked that He knew my name, I froze.

“Yes, you, Jonathan,” He reaffirmed, His voice filled with kindness.

I stood slowly and moved toward Him with great difficulty. By the time I reached Him, Jesus had to catch me because I was collapsing. He held me close, and I could tell He loved me even more than a man loves his own child (John 3:16). I was overwhelmed with a sense of acceptance like I had never felt before in my life. It was true agape love.

In that moment, I instinctively knew it didn’t matter how hard I had worked for Him. That’s not why He loved me. Nothing I had done or ever would do could earn His love. Nothing. I desperately needed that understanding. It set me free. My whole life prior, I had worked for His acceptance. I had tried to earn His pleasure. But in this encounter, I realized He loved me just because I am His. He is love. He loves each of us before we ever love Him. 

Scriptures: Hebrews 7:25, Revelation 1:9-18

An Encounter With Jesus Changes You Forever 

As my dream continued, Jesus asked me a surprising question. “Can I pray for you?” He asked, while holding me up.

I was confused. He was God. To whom was He going to pray? Then I was reminded that He lives to make intercession for us (Heb. 7:25). Yes, Jesus prays to the Father for us.

I nodded.

As Jesus prayed, a surge of power rushed through my body, jolting me upright and onto my feet. It felt as if someone put a high-pressured air hose in me and inflated me to maximum capacity. I felt invincible! The Book of Revelation says John fell down as a dead man before Jesus and then Jesus strengthened him (Rev. 1:17). That’s very similar to what I felt. The dream gave me a new perspective of the balance between Jesus’ authority and His love. When you are His and you are with Him, you realize that power is for you and not against you. It’s working on your behalf.

Finishing His prayer, Jesus gently moved me aside, smiled, and said, “There are others who need my attention.” He stepped away and started praying for others.

After the dream ended, I went into the bathroom and sobbed. For days I was under the weight of this visitation. It is forever imprinted on my mind and will always be a reference point in my life. From the moment of that experience on, Jesus truly became my focus. Not religious performance, not programs and activity, but simply Him. Now when I lead worship, my goal is to see Jesus with the eyes of my heart and to help others see Him as well. I want them to experience Him as I did because He is the solution to everything we face. Now when I preach a sermon or lead a song in worship, He is my focus.

A true encounter with Jesus has the ability to transform you forever. If your heart is open, it’s impossible to see Him as He really is and remain unchanged. 

Are you ready for something more? Will you let Him show Himself to you? If so, you will no longer be able to see Christianity as just another religion or cozy social structure by which to live your life. Jesus will change you from the inside out. You will never be the same.

Scriptures: John 3:16-17, 1 John 2:2

Who Is Jesus to You? 

I have a question for you: Who is Jesus to you, and where does He fit in your life? This is the most important question you will ever answer. And no one else can answer it for you.

When you hear the name of Jesus, what comes to mind? Or to put it another way, who do you say Jesus is? In your heart of hearts, do you question whether the stories in the Bible are all myths? If Jesus did exist, was He just a man? Was He a prophet? A great teacher?

Or was He something more?

Your answer is critical. Your eternal soul depends on it.

Most people want to avoid the question. Sure, they might believe Jesus was an actual person, but if pressed to answer who He really was, defenses go up. Through a chuckle or a shrug, they say, “I don’t know.” They put Him in the miscellaneous box. I think at the core of this response is the possibility that Jesus really is the Son of God. If He is, it changes everything.

He said that He came to save the world from sin (John 3:16-17). For many, He evokes a sense of shame, of anger, or of feeling overwhelmed. If you pull up a YouTube video or a popular blog post about Jesus, you’re likely to find an ocean of comments about the delusion of Him and His followers. Sometimes I peruse those comment threads just to see the status of people’s hearts. It blows me away how many people hate Christians and hate Jesus, the Christ.

Some label Him as a fraud.

Others say He was simply a good person.

To answer the question of who Jesus really is, you must be hungry for the truth about Him and about yourself and be willing to follow that truth. If He is who He claimed to be, you can’t afford to deal with it later.

So, who is Jesus to you?