Why Is Our Relationship with Jesus Important?

What’s the importance of being in relationship with Jesus?

Our relationship with Jesus is everything! It’s the reason we can’t just talk about judgment and wrath. But we must all realize that a relationship with Jesus is not a done deal. What I mean by that is that we can’t just profess faith in him and then do what we want.

When he changes our hearts, he changes our desires. What we want to do is worship, love, and serve him. If we still want to do our own thing, then we need to keep listening for that change. I assure you, as we grow in godliness the Holy Spirit will demand obedience and have a list of things he wants to address.

I use the example of a husband-wife relationship. Throughout the Old Testament God likens his relationship with Israel, his people, to a marriage. But don’t think were off the hook in the New Testament. Sorry to tell the guys this, but the church is the bride of Christ.

If a husband ignores his wife I guarantee she won’t stick around forever. If a wife doesn’t receive even what she thinks she needs, she is not going to stick around. And if a husband gets “bored” with the relationship he won’t either. If the wife isn’t “in love” with her husband anymore she’s out of there.

These may be extreme examples but the point stands. We are in a relationship with Jesus. This requires that we put work into it. It requires that we listen and obey. It requires that we trust him without question. It requires that we do what he says if we call him, “Lord.”

Relationships are not static. They had ebbs and flows. David was one of those men whose life is transparent in the Psalms. One moment he’s up and the next he’s down. One moment he’s glorifying God for listening to his every prayer and the next minute he’s asking where God went.

Our relationship with Jesus is going to have its ups and downs. We are going to be high on victory mountain one day and low in the valley another. The one constant is Jesus’ love for us and our trust in him. There’s a deep joy that comes with this relationship.

Those same married couples examples I mentioned above can weather the storms of life. As the relationship matures, they won’t even have the same conversations as they grow old together. Even if each person changes, love will hold them together.

The best that I can tell you is that Jesus never changes. He remains the same. But we are changing. We are becoming more like him. I’ve talked about it before but there is a line where our relationship with Jesus can be severed. I believe that line is different for every individual.

But our goal isn’t to find the line that gives us a “Get out of relationship with Jesus free” card. God knows our hearts and he knows when we slide toward that line. But who can find a love like the love of Jesus? It’s worth the adventure!

Image by Barbara Jackson from Pixabay

Jonathan Srock

Rev. Jonathan Srock is an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God since 2010. He received two Bachelor’s degrees in Biblical Languages and Pastoral Ministries, as well as a Masters of Divinity from Assemblies of God Theological Seminary. Jonathan was privileged to be the Lead Pastor of New Life Assembly in Shillington, PA for five years before suffering sudden paralysis in 2013. Jonathan has been a Christian since 1988.

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