I wrote an article for a Christian website which was a series of testimonies from people who had become Christians as middle-aged adults. I called the article, The many ways Jesus finds us. However, somewhere in the editing/publishing process, the title was changed to, The many ways Jesus meets us. I felt it changed the whole emphasis of the article.
Jesus comes looking for us. The stories were about people who found God, not because they were looking for him, but because he was looking for them.
In Luke 15 Jesus tells three parables, the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son. In these stories, God is portrayed as the Shepherd who looks for the missing sheep, the woman who searches for the lost coin and the Father who seeks his lost son. It’s not the sheep who is looking for the Shepherd. The coin isn’t looking for its owner. And the son isn’t looking for restoration. At best he hopes to be a hired servant.
God is portrayed as the One who looks for us, who seeks us out, who searches for us. He is the One who leaves the 99 to find the one who is lost. He takes the initiative.
The title, The many ways Jesus meets us, is a more comfortable option because it suggests that we contribute something to our relationship with God, that we put in some sort of effort to meet him.
When we meet a physical person we agree to be somewhere at a mutually convenient time. We then make an effort to be where we said we would be, at the time we said we would be there. But when Jesus comes looking for us, it may not be at our convenience, because he is the one taking the initiative.
Communion reminds us that first God comes looking for us and second that he will go to extraordinary lengths to find us.
God took the initiative and sent Jesus to be our Saviour. We simply respond to Jesus’ invitation. We don’t contribute. We only meet Jesus because he is first looking for us.
Let’s pray…
Thank you Lord, that you didn’t wait for us to come looking for you but rather you let us know that you were seeking a relationship with us. Thank you Lord, that you are the One who finds us.
Thank you for the bread which reminds us that you took the initiative to come to earth. You allowed your body to be broken for us.
Thank you for the cup which reminds us that you willingly chose to deal with the sin problem. You created the way for our relationship with you to be restored.
Thank you for the new life we have in you. You are the author and perfector of our faith. I pray that we will respond to the initiatives you take in our lives.
In Jesus’ name
Amen
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