We Need Jesus

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. [Colossians 2.6-7]

JESUS is what it is all about.

We must accept Jesus.

We must follow Jesus.

We must grow into Jesus.

We must be built upon Jesus.

THEN...

Our faith will grow strong in the truth of Jesus.

Our lives will overflow with thankfulness in Jesus.

How do we make our faith strong? How do we become naturally thankful? For all the complex religious solutions that have been presented throughout the history of the Church attempting to address these questions, their answer is one and the same: Jesus.

We don't need more theology or doctrine, we need Jesus. We don't need another book about faith or thanksgiving, we need Jesus. We don't need more education, we need Jesus. We don't need just the right balance of prayer, reading the Bible and worship, we need Jesus. We don't need a preacher 'who gets us,' we need Jesus. We don't need to know where we fit in, we need Jesus. We don't need to isolate ourselves from toxic people, we need Jesus.

The point is, we need Jesus. And, until we pursue Him, following Him, growing into Him, and being built upon Him, we will never experience strong faith or genuine thankfulness.

Just a couple sentences before the subject passage noted above, Paul said:

I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. [Colossians 2.2b-3]

Everything that seems mysterious and complex about Christianity is revealed in Jesus. The exhaustive wisdom and knowledge of God are in Jesus. To know Jesus is to know God. To know Jesus yields strong faith and genuine thankfulness. Faith and thankfulness are attainable only in the pursuit of Jesus. No amount of study about faith or focus on being thankful will enhance them - these come only as our own identity is lost and our lives are found "in Christ."

Jesus said,

“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. [Luke 9.23]

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [John 14.6]

Father, forgive me for pursuing the benefits of being in Christ apart from "being" in Christ. May I be found growing in Christ Jesus - may all my efforts be to that end and nothing else. I know then You will be glorified by strong faith and natural thanksgiving as Jesus lives in me!