The Table Part 4
An Invitation to be Known I love the exchange between Philip and Jesus in John 14. Jesus is talking about going to the Father and preparing a place for them. And like always, the disciples are only thinking in the physical so they are confused as to where Jesus is going and how they’re going to get there. When Jesus says that he is the way to the Father, Philip is really confused. “Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you had really known me, you would know who my Father is. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.” Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” Jesus replied, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking me to show him to you?” John 14:6-9 Have you ever felt like Jesus did here? Maybe when someone suggests something or makes an incorrect assumption about you and you think, “Do you even know me?” Jesus had clearly spelled out who he was and his relationship with the Father to them, and still Philip didn’t get Jesus’s true identity. Philip had been with Jesus. They had lived life together. He had seen Jesus do some things that would totally blow our minds. Things that I want to believe if I had seen, I would have had zero doubt about who Jesus was. But still, after all that, Philip doesn’t get it. He doesn’t really know Jesus. How can we be in a room full of people and still feel lonely? How can we have hundreds of followers on social media and still deep down feel like no one understands us? We must realize this truth: depth of friendship isn’t based on proximity, it’s based on posture. True friendship comes from posturing ourselves in a way that leans into who the other person is, without preconceived ideas and without assumptions of who we think they are. Deep friendship is when we posture ourselves towards someone else and say, help me know you. That was the trouble with the disciples. They thought they knew who Jesus was. They thought they knew his strategy for bringing the kingdom of heaven to earth. They came into this relationship with Jesus with all these ideas and assumptions about who they thought the Messiah was that in the end actually prevented them from knowing him! They had proximity. They had access. They had time. But they did not posture themselves in a way that allowed them to fully
experience Jesus in the reality of who he truly was. How often do we do the same thing? How many people do we have regular interaction and contact with, yet we don’t experience the joy of truly knowing them because we have not postured ourselves to do so? I have three children, and I have found that when they are upset or frustrated, the best thing I can do is change my posture towards them. I lean in and pull them close. I kneel down so I can see them, eye to eye. When my posture changes, something in them changes, too. I am more able to see the deeper issue going on, and they are more willing to respond vulnerably. Our posture towards people either separates us or draws us in to know and be known more fully. When it comes to relationships, proximity isn’t enough. Coffee dates once a month aren’t enough. Exchanging text messages or commenting on each other’s Facebook from time to time doesn’t equate to the depth of relationship that Jesus intends us to have. When we look at how the family of God operated at the birth of the church in Acts, it says that they were devoted to fellowship. The Message version says that daily they were in worship and fellowship together. In order to know and be known, we must devote extravagant time to building authentic relationships. When we do, we assume a posture that says, you are so important to me that I am devoted to getting know you. I am devoted to being with you, loving you, knowing your needs. That is the kind of relationship that Jesus had invited his disciples to- the invitation to know and be known. That is the posture that Jesus lived his life in- a posture of seeing people for who they really were, in spite of their social class, ethnicity, past choices, or physical condition. Jesus came into each relationship with a posture that said, “I see you.” He truly sees us. And he can help us to see others the same way. Our series has come to a close and we’ve explored Jesus’s invitation to serve and be served, to be vulnerable, and to be known. All of these invitations culminated in a beautiful way at the Last Supper when by offering his body and his blood- the bread and the wine- he invited his friends into a covenant relationship. Jesus is the most faithful friend, and when our other relationships flow out of a vibrant, covenant relationship with Jesus we will experience the joy of friendship the way he intended. I’d love to close this series by praying for you. Precious Jesus, thank you that you are a friend that sticks closer than a brother. We see the way you lived and loved and we desire to embody those qualities as we pursue friendship with others. Lead us to those who are lonely and need a friend. Help us to come into relationship ready to serve, be vulnerable, and posture ourselves towards others. Be glorified in our friendships, and let them be a beautiful testimony to the world of your covenant relationship with us. Amen.