Do you consider this a strange question? It really should not be.

When we think of meeting Jesus, our mind immediately goes back to the dramatic way that Saul of Tarsus met Jesus on the road to Damascus. Perhaps we think that we too should have met our Lord in a similar manner--one that would have left a lasting impression on our mind and heart.

Since none of us have had such a dynamic encounter with Jesus, we may conclude that perhaps we haven’t really met Him at all. But if we have accepted Him as the Lord of our life, this would be a wrong assumption. Our Lord Jesus manifests Himself to us in various ways--mostly in a quiet, gentle manner by making impressions upon our mind through the Holy Spirit. We must be alert in spirit or we will miss His gentle admonitions.

When our Lord was on earth, He called His disciples by name and invited them to follow Him. They left all to do so. Likewise, at some time in our lives, Jesus issues this same invitation to us to follow Him, and we also have responded with an affirmative heartfelt answer. We have seen no vision of Jesus. We have heard no audible sound of His voice. Nevertheless, we have heard Him speak to our heart and were activated to follow Him.

But just how did this happen? Jesus uses various agencies to accomplish His purposes. We might have heard His invitation through someone’s personal testimony of Jesus; or it might have been a tract that was handed to us, or sent through the mail. Someone in Africa told us it was a tract that he had picked up off the street that someone had thrown away that spoke to his heart and he wrote us, wanting to learn more. Jesus’ voice may have been heard by us from godly parents, grandparents or some friend whose life showed forth the joy of true conversion; it might have come by way of an article in a Christian magazine, a sermon or prayer but most often Jesus speaks directly from the Bible which with clarity and power rings out His invitation... “Come unto me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest” (Mat. 11:28), and then He invites us to...“Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly of heart and you shall find rest to your souls” (Vs. 29-30). And after we accept Jesus as Savior and Lord, He then makes a further invitation...“If you would be my disciples, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me” (Mat.16:24).

Regardless of the method or manner that the Lord meets us, something new begins to happen in our lives. Being born from above, we begin to have different interests. We find that the things of this world no longer have an attraction for us, “old things are passed away, behold all things are become new.” As we follow our Lord and remain focused on Jesus, we find our life transformed as we...“Let this mind be in you as it was also in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2:5). Yes, our work is to allow God to do His work in us.

Age doesn’t matter. The Lord reveals Himself to little children as well as to grown adults...but we must become as a little child to be one of Jesus’ disciples. I was only fourteen when the Lord met me and invited me to come and be His follower. I didn’t realize the fullness of His call at the time, but I began to love Him and for the first time, I was led to read a Bible that someone had given me as a gift two years earlier, but which I had never bothered to open. It took three more years of studying and learning before I realized that in some mysterious way I had, indeed, met Jesus. I had heard His call and now I was willing and ready to dedicate my entire life to Him.

Perhaps this has been your experience. Perhaps you were also only a child when you first met Jesus, and in your mind you heard His call to come to Him. You may not remember the exact date or occasion but it did happen, otherwise you would not be living for Him today. So whether young or old, all of Jesus’ followers have met Him, accepted Him as their personal Savior, come in heartfelt repentance and dedicated themselves to follow Him. Their lives have been wondrously changed by the power of the Holy Spirit; their minds have been renewed and transformed; their hearts purified, and they now have entirely new spiritual goals for all eternity; goals which give them joy, peace and a hope that the human mind can never know or appreciate.

If this has not yet been your experience, if you have not met Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord or heard His loving “follow me,” then may this little tract prepare your mind and heart to hear His voice calling you to come. Go to Him in heartfelt prayer, acknowledge Him as Savior of your life, repent of your sins with a humble, contrite heart, and ask Him to be Lord and Master of your life. If you meet Jesus in this way, your life will be truly blessed and your joy and peace will be for all eternity. Your life will be a blessing to all those coming in contact with you. The Light of Jesus shining through you will bring them light; His love flowing through you will enfold them; the music He gives you to sing will lift them up; the knowledge of Christ you speak forth will enrich them and they will bless you for having brought them to Jesus as His disciple, and faithful witness.

For more on Jesus, send for the free booklet, “How Well Do You Know the Lord Jesus Christ?” to the address below:

CHRISTIAN DISCIPLING MINISTRIES INTERNATIONAL

32 Chapel Lane, Somersworth, NH 03878