Fully Loving Jesus

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him. (Colossians 2:6)

The Bible elevates Jesus more, exalts Jesus more, and extols Jesus more than anything ever created. The walk of a lifetime should be centered around Him. A Christian is someone who has walked to Jesus and now walks with Jesus and always walks for Jesus.

Therein lies a big problem that we as Christians and as a church face greatly today. Too many people who call themselves Christians have either never truly walked to Jesus or they have quit walking with Jesus and for Jesus, and now they are walking in the wrong direction.

Thankfully we have the words of Paul in the book of Colossians to help make sure we keep walking with and for Jesus, even when we’re tempted to stray off the path. Paul reminds us of what a true Christian looks like and what a Christian does with their lives. They take the walk of a lifetime, and this walk always involves three steps. We’re going to cover the first step today and look at the other two steps tomorrow.

First, to take the walk of a lifetime, a Christian must fully love Jesus. Paul talks about this in the first part of Colossians 2:6 when he writes, “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord.”

Practically every word in that partial sentence is tremendously important. It is the perfect definition of someone who has become a Christian. A Christian is someone who has received Christ Jesus as Lord. That word “received” means “to take with you” or even more “to take into you.”

Let me make this as plain as I know how to make it. You can believe in Jesus, but never receive Jesus. There is a difference between believing that Jesus is Lord and Jesus as Lord. Harvard Religion Professor Harvey Cox said there is a difference between believing in Jesus and receiving Jesus. There is a difference between believing in Jesus in your head and placing your faith in Jesus with your heart.

We can believe something to be true without it making much difference to us, but we place our faith only in something that is vital for the way we live. That’s how we know we fully love something. My prayer is that as we walk out our faith, we will first and foremost fall fully in love with Jesus and receive Him, not just believe Him.

Dear Lord, I don’t want to just believe in you in my head. I want to place my faith in you with my heart. I want to fully love you so that I can take the walk of a lifetime with you and for you. I’m asking for your help. Give me a heart that loves you wholly and completely as I continue to grow in my relationship with you. In Jesus’ name, amen.