Finding Jesus or Being Found – by Greg Albrecht

But now that you know God – or rather are known by God… Galatians 4:9

He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. – John 1:11

When we read John’s summary statement about Jesus being rejected by “his own” we normally think of the historic Jewish culture, race and religion into which Jesus was born… something that happened a long time ago, in the “olden” days. But consider this:

If Jesus arrived on earth today, many people who sincerely believe they are following him wouldn’t even let him in their church buildings. 

I have a friend who is a Hindu, who in the spirit of our lighthearted camaraderie at our local gym invites those of us who exercise with him to call him “Maharishi” (after the Indian who developed Transcendental Meditation). Given previous conversations, Maharishi knows I am a pastor, an author and a Christian teacher, so we often talk about faith. 

“Maharishi” recently walked by me at the gym and stopped to say, “You know, Jesus is having trouble.” I took the bait – “Oh really, what kind of trouble?” He replied, with a sly grin, “It seems to me that many churches are not allowing him to come in!”

I told Maharishi that I agreed with him and asked him if he knew that one of his countrymen, Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948), the great non-violent activist, whose faith was also rooted in  Hinduism, agreed with him? He said “No, I have never heard about that.”  I told him the quote has been recounted many ways, so the precise words may not be correct, but it goes something like this: 

“I like your Christ, but I do not like your Christians. You Christians are so unlike your Christ. If it weren’t for Christians, I’d be a Christian.” 

Then I told Maharishi that there is a place in the Christian Scriptures where Jesus is depicted as standing outside a place where a church is meeting. The picture we get is that he is knocking on the door, but they won’t let him in! To the church in the city of Laodicea, one of seven cities/churches described in the second and third chapters of Revelation, Jesus said:

“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” – Revelation 3:20  

Driving home from the gym after talking with Maharishi, I imagined a conversation Jesus might have with many who assume they are doing everything Jesus wants them to and believe they are faithfully following him:

Jesus:  It seems you Christians are so busy with all your programs and your evangelism and your outreach activities you have no time for me.  

Church Member: No time for you? You can’t mean that! Why, that’s almost all of what occupies our time. We witness to people because we want them to get saved. We try to help people find you! We try to get people to come to our church so that our church grows so more people get saved.

Jesus: I never asked you to go out and “get people saved.” You tell people how to “find” me – I didn’t realize I was lost. People don’t get saved – my salvation is a gift, not something people accomplish. 

How exactly can you “save” people? That’s my job. Do people find me or do I find them – do they “get” saved or receive and embrace my rescue? Do they first know me or do I come to know them?  

Church Member: We tell immoral people to start living a moral life and then they can find you and get saved. Isn’t that a good thing? Don’t you think it’s important for people to know how to find you? 

Jesus: You may not realize it, but you are constantly condemning others and doing so seems to make you feel good. I did not come into the world to condemn the world (John 3:17). 

You think people will find me if you condemn them? Where is the good news about forgiveness and redemption – where is the emphasis on my love and grace? If I showed up at your church, you might not even let me in! 

So many people are caught in the trap set by Christ-less religion – they think that being in a church building and being busy with church activities are the priorities – they have been convinced that’s what Jesus really wants them to be doing. They think religious prescriptions will heal them spiritually and religious programs are how God wants them to spend their time.  Many are addicted to Christ-less religion – they feel good after they get their Sunday morning fix, convinced that God is pleased and appeased for at least one more week. Many who assume they are Christians easily become engrossed with their narrowminded, legalistic religious world – they become obsessed and consumed by what they are doing and completely miss what God is doing and the love and grace he invites them to receive. 

Henri J.M. Nouwen makes a critically important distinction about knowing God, yielding to him and letting him love us:

For most of my life I have struggled to find God, to know God, to love God. I have tried hard to follow the guidelines of the spiritual life – pray always, work for others, read the Scriptures – and to avoid the many temptations to dissipate myself. I have failed many times but always tried again, even when I was closer to despair. 

Now I wonder whether I have sufficiently realized that during all this time God has been trying to find me, to know me, and to love me. The question is not “How am I to find God?” but “How am I to let myself be found by him?”…. The question is not “How am I to love God?” but “How am I to let myself be loved by God?” – The Return of the Prodigal Son, pg. 106

I first started reading Henri Nouwen’s book because its title promises a focus on my favorite parable that so perfectly illustrates the gospel. When he hit rock bottom the prodigal son realized he was lost, he came to his senses and started home. The father saw him, ran to him, finding and embracing and saving him. The elder son was working in the field, so wrapped up in all that he was doing that he resented his father lavishing his love and grace on his brother. 

Prodigal sons and daughters search for fulfillment and satisfaction in all the wrong places. God yearns for his sons and daughters in a far country to know it doesn’t matter what they have done. When prodigal sons and daughters come to their senses and repent, they can go home. Will they accept his embrace – will they accept the father’s forgiveness – will they let the father find them? 

Elder sons and daughters work hard in the field. They assume their works are earning the father’s love when it’s not for sale. Just as he yearns for sons and daughters in a far country, God yearns for his sons and daughters whose efforts convince them they are “saving” people. God invites and welcomes elder sons and daughters as well, even as they resent permissive brothers whom the father forgives, embraces and accepts. 

Elder sons and daughters can assume they are close to the father because of their hard work, but they can be just as lost as prodigal sons and daughters in a far away country.  

People today are either 1) ashamed of how far away they are from God and convinced he will never have anything to do with them, or 2) enslaved by the illusion that God can be found, pleased and appeased through their efforts and religious performance. 

Prodigal sons and daughters usually know they are lost, but they cannot believe that the father would ever find, love and accept them. Elder sons and daughters cannot believe that they are already home because of their efforts, doing everything they should be doing. They have no idea they have been hijacked by their religious efforts and taken away from God into a far country.  God wants to find us, know us and love all of us – the whole world. God longs to open the windows of heaven and pour out the lavish treasures of his grace that is never earned – for his grace can only be received and accepted. 

Your brother in Christ,

Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter from August 2019

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