John 14:9 "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time?” NIV

Philip has a lot of our problems in his discourse with Jesus.  He has known Jesus for a little more than 3 years.  He must have had blinders on for some time because he didn’t recognize Jesus in connection with God the Father. “If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well.”^NIV

Have you ever told someone something and they had a mental picture that was far from what you really said?  I think the disciples were in the same boat.  They were very horizontal in their thinking.  They thought that Jesus did all those miracles by himself and the teachings of Jesus were great stories and that was all the higher their spiritual sight went.  He had raised the dead, cast out devils, healed the sick, and done those things which no one could have done who had not come from God. But, they still wanted a visible manifestation from God.

May I ask you, how long have you been a Christian?  After that long a time, do you recognize Him for who He is?  Do you know and recognize when he has intervened in your behalf?  Or do you only recognize Him when the chips are down and have to have His help? When you pray, do you know His face? Do you ever have an open ended time where you just talk to Him, as you would a neighbor next door over a cup of coffee?  Are most of our prayers petitions for something we desire?  Yes, He does say to make our petitions known and He will answer.  If that is the major part of our prayer then we have the Santa Clause view of Him,   always wanting something from Him.  If so, we are at the same learning level as the disciples.

There is the deeper life where we don’t ask God to remove the problem but we ask God to remold us in His image for the occasion.  Such as, breaking down our resistance to authority, or changing our attitude toward a person or situation, or humbling us for the Glory of God.

I am saddened when I hear people say, “The man upstairs,” referring to Jesus.  We should be saying, “Jesus is a personal friend of mine and I would appreciate it if you didn’t use His name in that way.” I would defend the honor of any friend of mine and especially the friend that is My Lord!

Do you know how he will probably answer your prayer before you pray?  Do you have, in your spiritual eyes, a glimpse of His face?  He says, “Do you really know me?”  When you pray purpose to look Him straight in the eye!!

Just a Thought

Jerry