Knowing?

“To know the love of Christ, and to make that love known” 

This is the rich and powerful mission statement of Las Flores Church. But what in biblical terms does it mean to “know” the love of Christ?

When we see the word “know” in the Bible, it can be head knowledge but some of the time it has a deeper, richer meaning.  In the book of Amos chapter 3:2 God speaks through the prophet to the people of Israel, “You only have I known of all the families of the earth;” Now its not as if God didn’t know about other people, that was for sure, but He had a special interactive relationship with the chosen people of Israel.

When the angel Gabriel was sent to Mary to tell her that she would conceive a son, Luke records her words in chapter 1:34 (NKJV), “Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” Now again, Mary knew about other men, but her words speak to a deeper interactive knowing.

Do you want your surgeon to know about surgery?

Common sense tells us that to know about something is not the same as knowing it. The guy who knows about brain surgery, even one who has extensive breadth of information about technique and application, is not the one you want operating on your brain. This difference between knowing about and knowing is crucial when it comes to learning to know Christ.

Imagine that your British neighbor told you all about England and their life there. That may be all they ever talk about, so much and so often you feel as though you know everything about jolly old England. But would you say that you know England? That is, if you parachuted into London at two in the morning onto an empty street, would you feel confident that you knew the city, country, customs, and language well enough to build a new life there? You get to know a place by immersing yourself in it, walking its streets, hanging out with its people. It’s the same with knowing Christ: immersing yourself in his presence, doing what he does, talking over things with him, learning from Him.

When we become disciples of Jesus, (I like the word apprentice), Jesus is taking us as His students for an apprenticeship on how to live, love and know God and His kingdom.

Do we know about Jesus?

Or are we on a journey to really know Him? 

I would love to hear your thoughts on “Knowing Christ.”

email me at tim@lasfloreschurch.com