Christianity is all about Jesus. That’s not the most controversial statement! And yet Jesus can seem strangely absent from our lives.
We celebrate His character. We talk about His work. We’re grateful for His love. But Jesus Himself can feel far away, and His work can feel as if it belongs in the distant past.
Yet Jesus is alive and well today, and He relates to us in the here and now. The risen body of Jesus may be in heaven, but He’s present with His people through the Holy Spirit. He’s active in our lives all the time. Each new day brings fresh opportunities to enjoy His involvement in our lives and respond with love.
So here are five ways we can enjoy a living relationship with our living Lord.
1. See the gaze of Jesus
‘When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry”.’ (Luke 7:13). As Jesus approached the city of Nain, He ran into a funeral procession. In its midst was a widow burying her only son. She’d lost all that she loved, and she’d been left without support. In the midst of the melee Jesus saw her, and His gaze was filled with compassion – ‘his heart went out to her’.
Here’s the thing: Hebrews 13:8 says, ‘Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and for ever’. The Jesus who stood on the outskirts of Nain looking at that widow 2,000 years ago is the same Jesus who looks upon you today in your struggles and temptations. If you turn to Him by faith, what will you see? You will see His heart going out to you in compassion.
‘As a father has compassion on his children,’ says Psalm 103:13-14, ‘so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust’. God knows we’re fragile. He knows we easily become frayed. Why? Because God remembers that human beings are made from the dust. He Himself formed the first man from the earth and breathed His life into the lifeless form (Gen.2:7). The amazing thing is that Jesus not only remembers that we are dust; He Himself is formed of dust. He became human, ‘fully human in every way’ (Heb.2:17). As a result, He’s able to ‘feel sympathy for our weaknesses’ (4:15). He knows what it is to live within limits. And so He deals with us gently (5:2).
In our struggles it’s easy to think we’re letting Jesus down. We fear His frown. But today the heart of Jesus goes out to you in love. So whenever you struggle this week, think of Jesus looking at you with His compassionate gaze.
2. Listen to the voice of Jesus
‘I am the good shepherd,’ said Jesus. The people to whom He was talking were Jews, so He added: ‘I have other sheep that are not of this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice…’ (John 10:14 -16). Both Jews and Gentiles are going to be brought under the care of Jesus by responding to His voice. Yet Jesus rarely spoke to Gentiles. His focus on earth was ‘the lost sheep of Israel’ (Matt.15:24). So how do the nations hear the voice of Jesus? The answer is: through the preaching of His word by His people.
But what if we flip this Q&A? What if we ask: what happens when the word of Jesus is preached by His people? The answer becomes: we hear the voice of Jesus. The Puritan Paul Baine concluded that ‘Paul preached to the ear, but Christ to the heart of Lydia [Acts 16:14]. This teaches us to see Christ as the chief Prophet among us, and the chief Preacher – regardless of who is speaking.’
Again the role of the Holy Spirit is crucial. Hebrews 3:7 introduces a quote from Psalm 95 with the words: ‘As the Holy Spirit says…’. We’re used to the idea that in the past the Holy Spirit inspired the Bible writers so that their words were true and trustworthy. But Hebrews suggests the work of the Spirit didn’t stop at that point. The Holy Spirit continues to speak in the present through the words of Scripture. He makes the word of Christ, spoken many years ago, a living word for us today. He makes it personal. He makes it a message from Jesus to you – today, in the midst of your turmoil, problems, guilt or pain.
Today Jesus reassures you of His love as you read your Bible or hear it preached. So next time you’re in church, think of the sermon as a personal message to you from Jesus. And each time you open your Bible, expect to hear the voice of Jesus.
3. Feel the presence of Jesus
When my friend Tayden was young, he would help his father set up for our church gathering each Sunday. At one point he referred to our church as ‘Josh’s church’. That was because Josh opened up the building, so Josh was always there when Tayden turned up to get things ready. ‘It’s not Josh’s church,’ said his parents, ‘it’s Jesus’ church.’ Tayden looked puzzled. ‘If it’s Jesus’ church,’ he asked, ‘why does He never turn up?’
It’s a cute story, but it highlights something we often feel: Jesus is conspicuous by His absence. ‘I am going away,’ Jesus told His disciples on the night before His crucifixion (John 14:28). He was talking about His ascension to be with His Father. Jesus is not physically present with us.
But Jesus also said: ‘I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you’ (v.18). Was He going or coming? The answer is that Jesus was going away physically, but He comes to be present with His people spiritually. And ‘spiritually’ simply means ‘by the Spirit’. ‘I will ask the Father,’ said Jesus, ‘and He will give you another advocate to help you and be with you for ever – the Spirit of truth’ (vv. 16-17). Jesus may not be physically present, but His presence is real. That’s because Jesus and the Spirit share one divine being with the Father. This means the Spirit makes Jesus really and truly present among us.
So at some point today, why not close your eyes and imagine Jesus in the room with you? By ‘imagine’ I don’t mean ‘pretend’, as if Jesus isn’t really present. I mean see with the eyes of faith the reality that physical eyes cannot see. Think of Jesus present with you and then perhaps focus on His kindness or patience or care towards you in that moment.
4. Hear the prayers of Jesus
The writer of Hebrews says that Jesus ‘always lives to intercede’ for His people (Heb.7:25). Some notable people have argued that Jesus intercedes only by His presence before the Father and not by offering prayers for His people. They don’t want us to think that the Father is reluctant and needs to be won over by Jesus. It’s a good concern. But it shouldn’t rule out the prayers of Jesus. For one thing, Jesus prayed for His people when He was on earth. When Jesus predicted that Simon Peter would deny Him, He added, ‘I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail’ (Luke 22:32). If the prayers of Jesus on earth didn’t imply any reluctance from the Father, then neither do His prayers offered in heaven. In fact it’s the Father Himself who has appointed Jesus as our mediator so that Jesus might intercede on our behalf (Heb.5:1-10).
There is great comfort in this. When we don’t feel able to pray or we don’t know what to say, Jesus is already praying for us. The 19th-century Presbyterian pastor and professor William Symington wrote: ‘So long as His people sin, Jesus will plead for pardon. So long as they are tempted, He will procure them strength to resist. So long as they continue to serve, He will continue to make their service acceptable.’ So today, by faith, hear the prayers for Jesus for you. Hear Him say, I pray for ......................, that his or her faith may not fail.
We all know the power of touch. A child clings to their mother for reassurance. A hug seals the reconciliation of two friends. A husband holds his wife’s hand as she lies in a hospital bed. A young couple kiss for the first time, their hearts aflutter at the future this touch promises.
We use touch to signal acceptance and affection. It was the same with Jesus when He was on earth. He could heal at a distance without needing to touch people. Yet many of His healings involved touch. He touched lepers, and they were cleansed. His touch brought wholeness, but it also signalled His acceptance, despite their status as outcasts.
But what about now, when the physical body of Jesus is in heaven? How can we enjoy the reassurance of His touch today?
In 1 Corinthians 8–10 Paul says it’s okay to eat meat offered to idols since idols are nothing; the meat is just meat. But then Paul gives a strong warning against engaging in pagan ceremonies because this involves participation with demons. To back this up, he draws a parallel with the Lord’s Supper. The bread of Communion is just bread (just as the meat of pagan ceremonies is just meat). But the Communion meal as a whole is a participation with Christ (just as pagan ceremonies involve participating with demons). The point is that Christ is present at the Lord’s Supper through the Holy Spirit. It’s His table; He is the host, and we are His guests.
Of course Jesus is present with us all the time. But He’s especially present at the Lord’s Supper. That’s because He’s given us bread and wine as physical tokens of His spiritual presence. Through the Holy Spirit, Jesus reaches out through the bread and wine to reassure us of His love. So next time you take Communion, receive the bread and wine from Jesus as His loving embrace.
