A Spiritual Process of Finding Jesus

I remember standing in the rain on a rock ledge overlooking a large, deep green pool where two powerful snow fed streams loudly dump themselves into a perfect fishing hole in Icicle Creek outside of Leavenworth, Washington. The two pools cause a cause rather strong eddy flowing through the front of the pool while at the far end of the pool the water flows smoothly into the large river-like creek.

Though it has been raining lightly all morning, I was gleefully casting my small hook which had three tiny red salmon eggs on it into the snow fed pool. As their youth pastor, I was with a group of junior high kids enjoying a weekend of camping and fishing. The noise of the two streams pouring their water into the pool was so loud I didn’t hear at first the panicked yelling of a boy some 30 feet away trying to get my attention. I looked in his direction and all I could hear at first was, “in the water”! I thought to myself, “Dang it, these crazy kids lost another fishing pole.” So, I looked at the water in front of them, searching for the pole, and saw nothing. I then heard, “He’s in the water! He fell in the water”! Now I was panicking as I realized the dad that had accompanied our little excursion was not at his spot on the rocks, opposite me, where I saw him last. I realized they were yelling at me that he had fallen in the ice-cold water. I also realized as I looked in the water that it was probably at least 3-4 minutes before I had realized what they were yelling. I knew that Ted had been in the water, under the water, for a long time. Now I was more than scared.

To make the story short, I threw off my jacket, dove in, swam across the pool to a shallow ridge. I saw his hand reaching for the top of the water at the top of the eddy swirl, just before it would drag him down for what probably would have been the last time. I grabbed his cold hand as hard and fast as I could. I pulled out a semi-conscious, blue lipped man, the dad of one of the kids fishing on the wet rock where he had slipped into the stream. The first thing out of his mouth was a chattering, “th-th-th-thank you J-J-Jesus!” We carried him up the hill to the road where the church van was parked and eventually got him to the emergency room some 45 minutes away.

He was dismissed from the hospital a few hours later and, amazingly, back at camp. Thank you, Jesus! Around the campfire that night he told the group in a rather solemn tone that he was sure he was going to die. He had run out of breath and was breathing in water just before I grabbed his hand as he reached above water. He was so grateful to be there, alive. Saved.

Salvation. It’s for those who are tired and weary. They’ve tried so many solutions to alleviate the pain they feel inside. They long for wholeness in a broken world and are often filled with guilt and shame. Some of the solutions they’ve tried seemed good at first, but only led to a further decay of their soul. I know.

I was a sophomore in college and more lost than a person should be at that age. I was fearful, lonely, and “lookin’ for love in all the wrong places.” I sat in the large living area of a frat house on Monday night, April 15, 1975, not wanting to hear what a group of Christian athletes had to say, but longing for the answers they gave. Hoping they were true and going back to my frat house room, kneeling before my bed, and crying out to God to “save” me. I wanted what these men had. They spoke directly to my heart and my soul. I began to follow Jesus that night. He gladly, no, joyfully accepted me into his Kingdom of Love. That was the beginning of a lot of difficulties, twists, and turns. But God has had me firmly in his grip all these years. I actually feel more alive today than I have ever felt. I believe I am living in reality. Living in God’s Kingdom and loving it. Oh, yes, I am prone to wander, but God is prone to love me back to reality in his Kingdom, repeatedly, for which I am more grateful than anyone, including me, could possibly imagine. Yes, thank you Jesus!

Just Information?

I feel like people who talk about how a person can “get saved” and become a Christian believe people think about it as they would a purchase. They don’t. Writers and speakers think people are making choices about their lives as if they were shopping for a car. They research the brands; they decide on whether they want a car or truck. Sedan or sports model. Electric, gas, or even hybrid. Two doors or four doors. They research the quality of the car. They might go to a dealership or shop online. But they study the pluses and minuses of a car, not least of which would be its cost. They might take a test drive of one or more into consideration. After all this they make the buying decision, which is usually more emotional than practical. Finally, they proudly drive away in their new car, wondering if they made a huge mistake. Buyers’ remorse sets in early.

What people sometimes but not always, forget is before car buyers start their search, they have developed a need for a car. Their current car might be too old for their tastes. Or it might be broken down and towed off after another “incident,” while avoiding a certain disaster.

There are reasons that lead to a change of cars. Some purchases are simply out of pride and vanity. Some out of a sheer need to get rid of their old broken-down jalopy that costs more than it’s worth.

There are reasons for change.

So, where does the information come in to play as a person experiences their “felt need” to change, wondering if God is their answer? To begin with, people don’t always seek God first. If they do, it’s usually not because it makes sense to do so or because of some objective reasons given for his existence. They can’t relate to the term “salvation” at the start, but usually go through a series of life events which cause them to begin a search for truth about themselves and the difficult life they’ve been living.

Deciding to seek God seems to follow a certain pattern most of the time. People realize a need for change for whatever reason, followed by a progression of events. While this is not a hard and fast formula, usually a person experiences the following:

1.    Spiritual Hunger: They feel empty or lost. They have a sense that there must be something more to life than they are experiencing on one or more levels. They might feel insignificant or hollow, and that life is meaningless. There’s a lack of purpose and even a feeling of worthlessness. They begin to rethink life as it is or at least as it has been for them. They consciously or subconsciously have a longing for solutions to the emptiness they feel. They realize they can’t fix their life. They need outside help. A power greater than what’s inside them.

2.    A Search for Answers: They hear about and investigate various forms of spiritual solutions. They hear claims of Christianity and other religions. For some reason, they begin to focus on the person of Jesus, his claims about himself, or claims made about him by their friends and even those considered to be experts. They become aware of their own personal failures in the way that Jesus described it: sin against God and others. They long for a solution. They search for God. Who is he? What’s he like? They long for real answers.

3.    Finding Truth: The reason truth is important is simple: we need to know what to live by. It’s a similar idea to software. If there’s problems in the code, we have disastrous results on the screen. The computer just won’t run properly, if at all. When Jesus said, “the truth will set you free” he was telling people they just can’t run their lives on anything else. Truth sets you free to be who you were born to be. That is freedom! While a person may have heard claims of truth before, nothing will do but the truth or good news (gospel) that comes directly from God. So, in a person’s search for a solution to the very real pain in their soul, they are made aware of what we’ll call the Kingdom Gospel. It is the one and only good news about God, his Son Jesus, and life in his Kingdom of Love. They find themselves sincerely investigating the teachings of and about Jesus: He lived, he died, He rose, He’s divine (he’s God). These truths lead them to the hope that Jesus could forgive and heal them which is the core of the Kingdom Gospel. These truths are what the very first followers of Jesus believed.

4.    Begin to Believe Jesus is the Real Solution:  Once a person begins to believe the first three truths they are on the pathway to the Kingdom. Once they believe Jesus is who he said he was – God, they begin to believe he is the only one who can forgive and heal them, giving them new life. They begin to believe that it is Jesus who can fix their soul and give life to their spirit. They simply come to believe “he can do it.” They begin to change their mind about many things which they never thought they would believe. This is the true meaning of repentance. They begin to question their life, their values, and their notions about living. Though usually people don’t associate the word repentance with “change of mind” it is the meaning of the ancient Greek word “metanoia”. It’s been poorly translated to the word “repent” in English versions of the Bible. This usually carries with it a sense of a sorrowful contrition for bad actions, along with the thought that they are a “rotten sinner,” and God is always angry with them. The word doesn’t mean this. It means to change your mind an your direction. That’s what Jesus was getting at when he said it was time for people to “repent” or “change their minds and life direction”. They question their assumptions about spirituality and even life beyond death. In essence, they are asking themselves the question “What is real?” The result is they begin to believe Jesus can do it!

5.    They Surrender: They believe God loves them and understand why Jesus died for them. They begin to trust Jesus to forgive and deliver them from their sin. They begin to follow him and to become the kind of person they believe they were born to be. In doing so, they begin a new relationship with Christ which lasts through eternity. They surrender their will and the care of their lives to God. Their old way of thinking and living is dead. Though problems don’t disappear, they are able to work at them from a position of forgiveness, grace, and a new spiritual power they did not have before. Literally, all things in their life are lived from a new reality. It’s a reality that Jesus referred to as the Kingdom of Heaven.

6.    They Become a Disciple/Apprentice: They decide to follow Him to learn more. They experience more joy, peace, patience, kindness, love, and other Kingdom virtues. They become his disciple/apprentice as they learn to read his Word the Bible, study, pray, mediate, fellowship, worship, and so much more. They believe three simple truths:  I can’t, he can, I’ll let him. This becomes the beginning point of real change. They become so enthralled with Jesus and their new life that people begin to ask them about the changes in their life. They look so much more content, at peace, and joyful. They still have day to day struggles but are learning a process to live in the reality of the Spirit and his Kingdom. In so doing others begin to find out about their experience and want to join them. And the cycle of new life begins again.

Someone who has gone through this process is someone who at the core of their being has changed. They didn’t change because of information. The Spirit of the living God renewed their mind and their heart, and in so doing their spirit and soul became alive. Yes, alive! Alive because of their new relationship with Jesus.

Salvation is what people come to know and experience as they pursue Jesus. It isn’t just a matter of truth, it’s a matter of the truth and Spirit. God’s Spirit connecting and giving them new life and setting them free. In fact, most of the time people who seek to be healed and set free from the pain they live in find the truth about the Great Healer of Souls. They begin to follow him and experience their salvation, healing, forgiveness, and freedom. Like a drowning man being pulled from a flooding river, they “get saved.”

Salvation is for today. The bonus is eternal life with Jesus in a renewed heaven and earth. Now that’s a bonus! And that my friends…is salvation.