To Know Jesus is to Love Him, Part 1

Welcome to leading the way audio with Dr. Michael, you set everything that I am and everything that I have my job, my degrees, my money, my possessions, even the good life. It's self is rubbish. When I compare them to grow in Christ loving pricing model until I come. The more than I have no way to grow loving right about you. Are you willing to get everything in order to grow in Christ. Thank you for listening to leading the way with Dr. Michael you sent this episode marks the beginning of a series poised to change your perspective on living for Jesus it's called to know Jesus is to love him. The first step dissatisfaction. Do remember that leading the way is listener supported impacting lives right there in your neighborhood neighborhoods just like yours. All around the world.

Learn more about talk to yourself learn more about how to stand with Dr. you Seth give us a call 866-626-4356 or LTW.org right now though a message to challenge you to dissatisfaction to know Jesus is to love him.

Can you love someone you still neglect the person you love someone, only for what you get out of the person you truly love someone without wanting to know everything about the person. Can you truly love someone without wanting to spend every waking moment with the person think about this questions as I begin this new six part series messages called to know Jesus is to love him. Beginning today I want to help you to fall in love with Jesus and stay in love and I'm not talking about loving him and then I am. But I'm talking about loving human. The lots of people out there who say the followers of Jesus, lots of politicians who say they are followers of Jesus and the lives are in shambles and therefore from obeying Jesus and so I water explained to you in this series of messages how your love for Jesus can be all-encompassing, that your love for Jesus will not flow your love for Jesus is not seasonal, that your love for Jesus is not going to blow hot and cold. No, but your love for Jesus can only grow deeper and higher. I want to do my God, because this is important I believe with all my heart, this series of messages is most desperately needed in these last days as we receive the love of many growing cold loving Jesus intimately is one of the most important things that you begin to comprehend and focus on in these days as we see many people whose love for Jesus is so superficial. As we look around and we see how the love of many words and nothing. We see all of this and as we see all of this, we need to know how to love Jesus intimately, completely well for those of you who know Jesus, you need to learn how to grow in loving him more intimately. Every single day listening wherever you are on the spiritual spectrum. I want to share with you that when you totally and intimately loved Jesus is going to give you greatest joy in the midst of crushing circumstances. But just because someone here it's all well Michael I think I'm going to switch off right now. I love Jesus I don't need to know more. I have excellent Bible knowledge or in factor I'm a stickler for accurate Bible interpretation I defend the biblical doctrine.

All these things beloved are wonderful and I don't want to. Others, my cell, Michael, wait a minute into the deeper life. Amen to that change lives into the victorious life.

Amen to the upward call. Don't stop.

Keep going. But here's the problem. There are so many believers who have made the means of loving Jesus become and enter themselves and that's what I want to talk to you about today. Please, please listen carefully, not just today but in the next six messages for airfield goal in life is to have had knowledge of the Bible. If your goal in life is to get out of God and his word.

What you want to get.

I pray that God will transform your today is the cry of my heart that you will be transformed today as we look together and learn together. I'm learning is much as you are of how to love Jesus more deeply how to love Jesus more fully how to love Jesus more intimately how the love Jesus more uniquely you might say is that important. I received Jesus as Savior of my life. I met my profession of faith long time ago and I'm fine.

I will what I need to know this because I can tell you the deeper your loved Jesus, the more all things in life going to fall in place.

Paul was a religious man. He was zealous for his religion. My goodness you couldn't get any more grocery list of accomplishment and not religion them. Paul was committed to his religion he has accomplished a great deal for the religion and I mean he was an amazing human being.

In terms of his accomplishment and plenty of an encounter Jesus encounter that transformed his life after that encounter all of his religious stars. He said there are rubbish in comparison to loving Jesus and knowing Jesus, his desire and is growing love for Jesus made him to consider all that stuff to be trash listen to what he said and if you want to check me out. That's Philippians 38 after he lists the grocery list after he lists all his accomplishments all his achievement after he lists all the qualifications he goes on in verse eight, and he says I regard all these things. What are these things I want to read it from the ESV indeed I count everything as a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them rubbish. By the way the words a lot stronger than that and I'm not gonna tell you very close to the work done because rubber sometimes can have value. I count them rubbish in order that I may gain Christ who does he mean what is it mean that for me. But assuming that for you. Listen to me very carefully. I don't like to talk about myself, but only if I give God the glory. To me that's what it means here is what it means everything that I am and everything that I have my job, my degrees, my money, my possessions, even life itself is rubbish.

When I compare them to knowing Christ loving Christ, my Lord, beloved, listen to me until I come to that point. Then I have no way to grow loving Christ until I come to the point of site. Nothing can be compared to you in my love for you elemental listen to me for a minute. I know you know this is a fact that women particularly derive our identity from our work.

What we do we derive our identity from our accomplishment out achievements at titles that just a fact of life. Can I get a witness meant here is the question what is it that I you the most in life. Only you can answer that only I can answer that one is it that I value most in life.

Melanie getting a confession time when I was younger I was ordained ministry, always serving God, but I had only one ambition in life.

Back then earned a PhD from prestigious University that was my goal in life. That was the most important thing for me that I wanted to accomplish in life is that degree worthless for me today. No butter not comparing it with my love for Jesus is hands-down is not worth the paper was written on every one of us has different ambitions. I wanted to ask yourself whatever it is, is that you aspire to be the CEO of your company aspire to be a seal of a bigger company values aspiring on a major net worth whatever you are aspiring, ask yourself the question, and once you identified whatever it is, the next question should be, how does that compare with my love for Jesus that there are some people in ministry. There are some people who are Bible teachers and preachers they need to ask themselves the question, do I love preaching and teaching and ministry more than my love for Jesus is the how can you make that dichotomy as I can because many of us can take those means of loving Jesus and turned into an ends in themselves, ask yourself the question. The first step beloved in the way of developing deeper intimacy and love for Jesus is to ask yourself this all important question is it comparable with my love for Jesus doesn't stand in the way of my love for Jesus loving Jesus begins with being dissatisfied with where you are at your current level of loving Jesus, can I get a witness. That's what begins with the satisfaction and advertise want to give you satisfaction.

I'm telling you today that you really want to get the real thing. Start with the satisfaction. Your loving, for Jesus begins with yearning to know him I love him more than anyone or anything in life.

Listen to the apostle Paul's prayer on behalf of the Christians in Ephesus in Ephesians chapter 3 verse 18. Here is what is interceding on behalf of the people that he loved the most. And it's been three years more than any time investment anywhere in Ephesus. This is my prayer for you is that you might comprehend fully the breath and the links and the height and depth of Jesus love for them because until you come to the point of saying Lord my love for you is so pathetic. My love for you is so shallow.

My love for you is so superficial. My love for you is so self-centered my love for you is only for what I get out of you my love for you is not anywhere near your love for me when you come to this point in your life. I have great news for you. You have taken the first step in the right direction. Until and unless you become dissatisfied by the level of your current love for Jesus and listen. The Scripture warns us that in the last days the love of many grows cold and that is why the urgency of this message until you become dissatisfied, you haven't begun yet today. You can today you can begin on the road. Beloved, if I've learned anything about Jesus from the word of God. It is this. Listen carefully that he longs to nourish our minds with the truth that he longs to fill our hearts with his love that he longs to lift our imagination into new heights that he longs for us to surrender our will so that he might fill us with his butter all begins with the satisfaction when you become real with God. When you start crying out to him on a daily basis. Help me Lord to comprehend the depth and the width and the brats and the links in the height of your love for me so that I love you with all my heart and above else, but as a warning as a warning. If you pray this prayer on a regular basis.

Get ready for a transformation in your life. Get ready.

What is the biggest in the first obstacle to deeply loving Jesus to intimately loving Jesus, you want to know the answer. I will tell you anywhere. It is complacency and smugness.

It really is in fact in the next message I'm going to talk about the three things that will hinder you from intimately loving Jesus just what your appetite.

Let me give you the outline. The inability to accept correction.

The unwillingness to change, and the susceptibility to confusing the journey for the destination. I know you can't wait. I could never comprehend when God appeared to Abraham and he said to him, Abraham I want you to leave your CEO of this closely held corporation that you presiding over onto the leave it, so can make you see over bigger company.

No saga making the chairman of the board will give your promotion now. Always always puts a lump side of me. He said I want you to leave this lucrative place and lucrative job and I'm brother made you uncertain future. Think about that. I know it's not in the Bible and Cassondra going to write to me and say where was that in the Bible, but I'm convinced that Abraham had epilepsy. At that point.

I mean, he must've had treatments.

I know human nature that's only reason I can only imagine this God appearing Damas is okay. I want to take you out of all this wonderful place of wealth and I'm gonna take it on the sentence you just want and remember this Abraham did not have a Bible or a Bible commentary.

Abraham did not have a pastoral Bible teacher, Abraham did not have 2000 years of Christian history was 2000 years before Christ, he knew little about God, but he trusted God, oh my goodness that is enough and that's the beginning of the road of loving God, let me ask you if you remember him shoe. Here we are 2000 years after Christ, all the Bible teaching and all the books and all the seminars and all this going on. Ask yourself, am I willing I will repeat that word. Am I willing to give him everything he knows. I keep repeating the word willing because he's what most people don't understand God gave you everything you have.

He really did was I worked harder. I did this another and the other thing I sacrifice that you and he gave you everything. Keep that in your head no matter what you've done. He gave you everything everything you have they gave you want anything from you but he wants to know are you telling Abraham was willing to give up everything and he wants to know that there is anything that comes in conflict with your loving him with all of your heart deeply and more intimately hands-down. You give it up. He wanted to say if the time comes. Jesus, if I put everything and everyone on one side of the scale on my love for you on the other side.

Hands-down your side wins no comparison.

No comparison here is the blessing is the thing most people don't realize when Abraham did this not only trusted him in the beginning he trusted them even if they give him Isaac and said offering is it okay I know you raising from the dead. If you have to go ahead God blessed them out of his socks, because you cannot truly begin on the road of loving Jesus without willing to obey Jesus. No matter what the cost. I was thinking about the man in the 19th century was a well-known lecturer by the name of Wendell Phillips, renowned directors all over the at least eastern side of United States and Wendell Phillips loved his invalid wife with all his heart. He loved her so deeply. But, unfortunately, because of his profession of going around and giving lectures is his job speaking engagements took him away on long journeys from home one time at the close of one of those lectures miles away from his home in Boston. He was determined that he was going to go home at night. His friends pleaded with him this, please wait until morning. They said to him, the last train has left and you have to hire special transportation. It is cold and sleeting outside, you will face many obstacles and dangers on the road. He simply replied yes but on the other end of those miles I shall see the face of my beloved and my beloved as I said, regardless of where you are in the spiritual spectrum. This message is for you because when you love for Jesus grows deeper and higher and more intimate even in the heavenly and crushing circumstances and experiences in life. They become light for you. Why, because you know that on the other side of life. When you get home you'll see the face of the beloved Jesus. Amen when your intimacy with Jesus is all encompassing all the sufferings along the journey will not compare with his beautiful face that will see on the other side. I don't know where you are. Doesn't matter. You can start today and you can continue starting because there can be no end.

Loving Jesus. Keep on growing his love and keep growing, loving and wrong and loving them until we see his face.

You're listening to leading the way with Dr. Michael you sent Dr. Yousef joins us in the studio as we go through this series.

Dr. you set to know Jesus and 11 which you explain what it means to love Jesus intimately, the most common word I hear from believers is that I'm a follower of Jesus Christ. That's great. What is it me follower of Jesus Christ. You know what Jesus said that if you really love me that if you follow me, is that if you love me, keep my commandments, and so to love Jesus intimately is to be totally dedicated, committed to pleasing him to love him intimately is to say your pleasure.

Whatever pleases you, Lord, I will do you know what is what the Lord does. He gives us the power to do that. So these are not just words in inky Dr. you sent intrinsic you've been encouraged in your spiritual journey and we trust that you have that and we encourage you to stand with Dr. Yousef as a front-line mission partner. This is a way for you to expand the reach of leading the way. Right here in this community to your neighbors and in communities like yours all around the world learn how to do that when you give us a call 866-626-4356 866-626-4356 or go to LTW.org LTW.org or write to us at leading the way, PO Box 20100 Atlanta, GA 30325. That's PO Box 20100, Atlanta, GA 30325F.Cas. Eight 2015.

Let us make plans to join Dr. you sent leading the way this program is furnished by meeting the way with Dr. Michael passionately proclaiming uncompromising truth around the world