09/06/2026
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Do You Desire to KNOW Jesus?
Matthew 7:21-27
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
"On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’
"And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
"And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.
"And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.
"And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
For Jesus to know you and you to know Him, there must be a close intimate relationship, comparable to the relationship of a husband and wife. The Church is the Bride of Jesus Christ, who hears and does His word, and Jesus is the Bridegroom of the Church. He is the Head of the Church. And the Church—that is you and me—are to hear and do what He says.
Notice it is imperative that we don’t just hear His Word. We must do it.
James 1:22-25
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves.
Do what it says.
Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this—not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.
Some of you have expressed, “I want to know Jesus.” That is good, because desire is necessary to know Jesus.
Desire is a powerful word. Synonyms of "desire" are "burning; longing; craving; hunger; yearning; appetite; passion; love"
Discipleship - that is being a follower of Jesus - is a lifestyle that begins with desire, a passion for Jesus that loves to do His will.
Paul expressed this desire in Philippians 3:10-12
“I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”
Desire drives people. Some people desire fame, wealth, romance, success, happiness, etc. Desire drives people to make choices and changes in pursuit of their goal.
Psalm 40:8
I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.
Desire is at the heart of discipleship. Some “Christians” simply lack a desire to FOLLOW Jesus. They do not want to deny self or take up a cross daily. That does not appeal to them, so they make no effort or sacrifice to have an intimate relationship with Jesus. They also ignore the consequences of this choice.
Mark 8:34-35
And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
"For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it."
We pursue what we love and desire. Jesus is calling anyone who desires Him to follow Him. Anyone. No qualifications, but it is a calculated decision to follow – not an emotion but a choice. And, there are consequences for what we choose.
Jesus said in Mark 12:30, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”
It is one thing to express love to someone you can touch, see, and feel. But how do you express love for someone you CAN’T touch or see or feel? If you have ever been in love, then you know what to do.
For one thing, if you love someone, you praise them highly.
Psalm 116:1-9
I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy.
Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish.
Then I called on the name of the Lord: “O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul!”
Gracious is the Lord, and righteous; our God is merciful.
The Lord preserves the simple; when I was brought low, he saved me.
Return, O my soul, to your rest; for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.
For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling; I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living.
Lovers will talk, sometimes until 3 in the morning. You know why? Because they want to build their relationship on something deeper than physical involvement. Something far more intimate than physical love.
And that’s the kind of relationship God wants with us. He wants us to go beyond the superficial. He’s not only interested in our wish list. He’s interested in our companionship, our trust, and our love. In Psalm 116, the writer senses this. And that’s why he says in verse 2:
"I will call on Him as long as I live!"
Prayer is a conversation with God, talking and listening.
Ephesians 6:17
Pray in the Spirit on all occasions.
1Thessalonians 5:17 ..pray continually....
These admonitions are a joy if you love Jesus.
Lovers spend time alone together. Get alone with God and tell Him how much you love Him. Praise, worship, sing, meditate, and rededicate. Love Him for who He is. Love Him for how He watches over you, and for all the blessings He gives you. But the greatest blessing of them all is the blessing of having Him in your life. Tell Him these things.
Lovers write and reread their letters to each other. Read the Bible, which is a book of letters God has written to you. Read to know God’s thoughts, character, commands, purposes, promises, past dealings with people, future plans, and His love for you. Some believers keep a journal of their relationship with God, telling God how they love Him.
Lovers do things together. Walk with Him, obey Him, and experience the same things He does— His joys, suffering, rejection, and peace. Express your love for God by living for God.
That’s what the writer of Psalm 116 is saying about his relationship to God. Two times, he says "I will fulfill all my vows to the LORD."
(I want everyone to know that I love Him! I am going to be his servant forever. I want the whole world to know that I am going to live the rest of my life for God!)
John 14:15-27
"If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
"And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him.
"You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.
"I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
"Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me.
"Because I live, you also will live.
"In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.
"Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me.
"And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.
Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?”
Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
"Whoever does not love me does not keep my words.
"And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me.
“These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you.
"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
"Not as the world gives do I give to you.
"Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
Just as important as what Jesus said is what He did not say.
Jesus did not say, “If you agree with my commandments, then you love me.” Mental assent with His Word is not the same as keeping His commandments.
Jesus also did not say, “If you keep my commandments, then you love me.” No, He said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” We can’t turn a cause-and-effect statement around without changing its meaning. “If you keep my commandments, then you love me” means that love is produced by obedience.Still, some relate to Jesus that way. They obey, not because they love Him, but because they think it will prevent them from being punished in an eternal Hell.
Jesus said, “if you love me, you will obey my commandments.” In other words, love produces a desire to obey.
It is possible to obey Jesus and not love Him. It is even possible to obey Jesus without knowing Him, but it is impossible to love Him and not obey Him.
Jesus also said the Father would send the Holy Spirit to be in us, lead us, comfort us, and bring to our remembrance everything He said. The Holy Spirit is God in us. It doesn’t get more intimate than that. As a result of God being in us, we have His grace to love Him and obey Him.
This intimate relationship with God, the Holy Spirit, produces a conscious walk with Jesus. As we walk with Him, the Holy Spirit leads, guides, comforts, speaks, and corrects us. There is a constant awareness of God’s abiding presence at all times and in all places. We can have a constant conversation with God in our spirit about everything, and the Holy Spirit will speak in a still small voice about our situation.
As we obey, our actions take on a godly appearance because all of our thoughts, words, and deeds are brought under the penetrating light of God’s Word.
2 Corinthians 10:5
We demolish arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.
Jesus desires to fill us with Himself, but we must be a willing recipient. We must desire to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Therefore, ask the Father to fill you with His Spirit.
Luke 11:11-13
What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent?
Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
Don’t be afraid to ask the Father for His Holy Spirit. You are seeking and asking for God, not an experience, as some teach. Daily I ask God to fill this body, the temple of the Holy Spirit, to rule over my soul (mind, will, and emotions), to take control, for help in denying myself and taking up my cross, and following Jesus, to give me power to be a witness for Christ, and to produce His character - the fruit of the Spirit - in me. I can do nothing apart from Him—except sin.
We must continually work at this intimate relationship, as much, or more than we work at other relationships with spouse, family, and friends. The result is we serve God in joyful, peaceful, loving ways, exhibiting all the fruit of the Spirit. Then people will see Jesus in us and in this church.
In closing, following Jesus, loving Jesus, being filled with His Spirit are all choices we make. We will not choose these if we do not desire them. If we love anything, anyone, or ourselves more than Jesus, our decisions and choices will center on whatever or whomever we love more. That is why Jesus said we cannot have two masters. Do you desire Jesus to be your master, Lord, and Savior?
Every day we choose. Our choice is based on whom we desire, whom we love. It is a daily choice to deny self, pick up a cross, and follow Jesus. What do you choose this morning? What will you choose this afternoon and tomorrow? If you love Him, you will choose Jesus.
