TALKING TO JESUS
Several
years ago, I realized I didn’t know Jesus as well as I wanted to. I’d been
taught a lot about relating to and praying to God, but Jesus somehow got
bypassed. I’d been taught that it was Christ in us but not how
to connect with Him as a real person. I couldn’t help questioning, “If He is
our brother, shouldn’t we be able to talk to Him? We don’t have to go through
our parents to talk to our human brothers, so why should it be different with Jesus?”
In Acts
2:36, we’re told that God “made the same Jesus, both Lord, and Christ.” Hebrews
13:8 tells us it’s “Jesus Christ the same
yesterday, and today, and forever.” We read in the Gospels that
when people came to Jesus, they called Him “Lord.” When the disciples talked to
Him both before and after the resurrection (John 20:26-21:25), they also called
Him “Lord.” Should we do any less?
The
Greek word for “Lord” here means “supreme in
authority; by implication, Master (as a respectful title).”
According
to Romans 10:9, “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt
believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be
saved.”
I was
born again when I was about eight years old. But it wasn’t until I was a
teenager that I consciously realized I wasn’t doing such a great job at being
my own master. I went back to Jesus, confessed that I was a mess and needed Him
to rescue me and be my Lord in guiding me in life. He was here on earth and
experienced everything we’ll ever face, so He knows how to handle every
situation, and he can guide us through. But sometimes, we slip up a little in
that category. We direct all our prayers and communication to God Almighty and
leave Jesus out.
I was
reading Acts 7 about Stephen: “And they stoned Stephen calling upon God, and
saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (v. 59). In the King James Version of
the Bible, whenever a word is in italics, like the word “God” in this
verse, it means that the translators added it. Since the word “God” was added
to the original text, we can take it out, and the verse reads: “Lord Jesus
receive my spirit.” And guess who was standing right there? Saul of Tarsus!
“The
witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul”
(v. 58). Saul heard Stephen speak to Jesus.
Later,
when Saul was on his way to Damascus, “breathing out threatenings and slaughter
against the disciples of the Lord” (Acts 9:1), a light from heaven shone, and
Saul fell to the earth, and everyone there heard a voice. When Saul asked,
“‘Who art thou?’ The Lord said, “‘I am Jesus’” (v. 5). When Jesus Christ spoke
to Saul, it didn’t surprise him at all because he had been there when Stephen
talked with Jesus.
When
Saul got to Damascus, the Lord Jesus told a regular disciple, Ananias, to talk
to Saul.
“And
Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him
said, ‘Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way
as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight and be
filled with the Holy Spirit’” (Acts 9:17).
Isn’t
that awesome?! Many more verses in the Epistles document a real and personal
relationship with Jesus Christ. Paul tells the Corinthians: “Have I not seen
Jesus Christ our Lord?” (1 Cor. 9:1). Peter writes: “Even as our Lord Jesus
Christ hath shewed me” (2 Pet. 1:4).
I’m not
trying to direct anyone away from praying to God Almighty, our Father, and the
kind of relationship we have with Him. I’m saying that our relationship with
our Lord Jesus can also grow.
I
learned a long time ago that my secular work is directed and orchestrated by
Jesus Christ. That realization wasn’t an instantaneous revelation. It didn’t
come in a dream or audible announcement or anything flashy. I prayed to God
about it; then, one day, I just knew in my heart that Jesus was the one in
charge of my work. He would supply the jobs and money I needed to live, pay the
bills, and do what I needed to do.
Whenever
I was out of work, I consciously went to Jesus, expecting direction as to
what’s next, and I thanked Him for what He was arranging. In this category of
my life, I know that God wants me to trust in the directions of His son Jesus
Christ.
First Timothy 1:12: “And I
thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me
faithful, putting me into the ministry.”
I believe there is a
wonderful balance in our spiritual lives: things that God handles with us,
things that our Lord Jesus handles, and things the holy spirit teaches too. We
have all the help we need at our fingertips, closer even than breath itself.
Love, Carolyn
.
1. In addition to praying
to God as your Father, do you talk to Jesus Christ as your Lord? How often
would you say?
2. Name three or four
Bible figures who spoke with Jesus after He was raised from the dead. Document this
with scriptures relating to these encounters.
3. If you haven’t talked
much with the Lord Jesus, name some possible ways you might begin to
acknowledge Him more often in your daily life.
