Daily devotional, 17 July 2024
Fan girl
"You are my friends if you do what I command you."
John 15:14
Almost everyone has a favorite public personality. The personality could be a singer, an actor, a musician, an athlete, an author, an online influencer, or even a politician. When they perform, fans line up, eager to get a closer glimpse, or interact with them even for a short time. But not all fans could get a backstage pass, or gain entry in a common room with the star. Bodyguards will prevent them from getting near, unless the personality himself will tell his guards that he personally knows the fan, and it is ok to let him draw close to him.
And this is why followers of Jesus like us should not be content with knowing and believing that the Messiah exists. We should have a personal relationship with Him.
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.”
John 10:27–28
We must go from “believing” to “belonging” to Jesus. Why? Because even the devil believes that there is a God. In his letter to the Hebrews, James, the brother of Jesus said that:
"You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!"
James 2:19
So, would we be content with just believing that Jesus Christ is the Messiah and not endeavor to know Him personally? So how do we know if we really know Jesus? Here’s a test:
"And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected."
1 John 2:3-5
If you do not know Jesus yet, then it is not yet too late. After all, He has a standing invitation for us to come to Him.
How do we build a relationship with Him? Well, once you have decided to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, and you repent from your sins and step away from them, you can start building your relationship with Jesus.
Building a relationship with Him is much like making a friend. When we try to get close to someone, we try to talk to him or her everyday right? We make time with the person and get to know what his thoughts are on things, what he likes and dislikes. It is the same with building a relationship with Jesus, we talk to Him everyday through prayer and quiet time. We try to get to know Him more by reading the bible, and studying and reflecting on His words.
We also spend time with him alongside his other followers. And we just do not hangout with other believers, we study Jesus’ teachings with them. We also worship Him every Sunday at church, and endeavor to introduce Him to our loved ones who have yet to know Him.
There is no greater relationship we could ever build in this lifetime than the one we can have with Jesus. He is the greatest friend we can ever have because He will never betray us, He will never talk badly about us, He will walk through the fire with us, He will rebuke us when we are wrong so that we will not go astray and hurt ourselves in the process, and most of all He will take care of us.
"But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one." 2 Thessalonians 3:3
Take the time to build your relationship with God, and stop fangirling because even before you knew Him, He already knows you by name, and He is just waiting for you to come to Him.
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me." Revelation 3:20
Thank you for reading through our devotional today. I invite you to ponder on 1 John 2:1-6 and John 15:12-17 to dig deeper on today’s topic.
Reflection Question: Are you Jesus’ fan or friend?
Conversation with the Lord: Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for inviting me to be your friend. Give me the confidence to hold your hand in friendship and be faithful to you just as you are to me. I want to be close to you, My Lord. Amen.
