To Be Known

 

Sometimes I worry that if you really knew me, you wouldn’t think that much of me (maybe you already know me and this describes you!)  In our passage, Jesus says that He knows you.  Let’s unpack what it means to be known and why it matters so much.

 

John 10:14 – I am the Good Shepherd.  I know My sheep and My sheep know me.

 

Things to think about:

·       Words matter – a lot. In the Greek, there are two words for the verb “to know”

o   Oida – to be familiar with

o   Ginosko – to be intimately familiar with    

§  This is the word Jesus used here and is the same word He uses when describing how He and the Father know one another

·       In our case, He knows the good, the bad, and the ugly

o   The woman at the well – John 4

·       You are probably familiar with the three words used for our one English word, love

o   Eros (physical), phileo (fraternal), agape (unconditional)

o   He ginoskos you and He agapes you

§  When I first wrote this, it read He agapes you “anyway”

§  But I got thinking, that’s wrong.  He made you and loves how He made you.

·       We tend to focus on our flaws, weaknesses, and mistakes

o   We have an enemy who encourages this kind of thinking

o   Jesus focuses on our good points, our purpose, how He wants to be with us for eternity

o   We’re not in the Scratch and Dent section

§  We’re behind the glass where He has His most precious masterpieces

·       How does reflecting on how well Jesus knows you, affect how you feel His love for you?

·       The flipside of all of this is that He says we know Him

o   When you really get to know someone, you spend time with them

o   You see how they respond in various situations

o   You listen to the words they say

·       What can you do this week to get to know Jesus a little bit better?