21 Days of DiscipleshipSample

Don’t Miss Jesus

In John 5, Jesus continues to do things other people wouldn’t do and go places people wouldn’t go in order to love people who need to be loved. In the process, He steps on the toes of the Pharisees.

This is sad and ironic at the same time. The very people who dedicated their entire lives to studying the Scriptures for clues about the Messiah were the ones who completely missed Him. As Jesus was showing them signs pointing to His identity as the Son of God, these leaders rejected the signs, because He often did them on the Sabbath, the most holy day!

Clearly, it’s possible to know about God and still miss Jesus. Jesus Himself said: “You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me!” John 5:39 NLT 

Here’s the thing: Jesus doesn’t just want you to just know some things about Him; He wants you to really know Him. Discipleship is not about information as much as it is about formation. Formation is the process of being formed; it refers to the structure or arrangement of something. Think about it in building terms. The structure is the shape and framework of the building. So, disciples of Jesus seek to shape their lives to look like His! 

The best way to do this is to get to know Him! We can all recognize that when we spend a lot of time with someone, we start to pick up and subconsciously practice the little things they say and do. How cool would it be if we started picking up Jesus stuff to the point where we found ourselves doing things He would do and saying things He would say? That, right there, is discipleship!

Challenge: Take some time to get to know Jesus today. Seriously, strike up a conversation, ask Him to speak, and see what happens! And as we continue to read through John, look for the little habits and traits of Jesus as you would in a friend. What is He always saying? What is His go-to approach or reaction? How can you pick up on and put those things into practice?