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Pause and ponder this question: How much do you think you need Jesus Christ?
Maybe you believe you don’t need him at all. I urge you to keep reading. Maybe you believe you need him more than anything or anyone. I urge you to continue reading as well.
As bible-versed and aware of man’s depraved state as we may be, the degree to which we grasp our need for Christ still falls pitifully short of the reality. This is not a claim that you lack understanding of yourself, of the gospel, or of God, but a cry to elevate all of the above.
So, deeply consider this reality: You need Jesus Christ more than you can imagine.
Eat Your Veggies
Most of us know that we need to eat our veggies. Do we know exhaustively why? Probably not, we just know it’s important.
Knowledge of how much we need Christ is on a far grander scale. The capacities needed for a complete comprehension of man’s need for Christ far exceed our own; therefore, such understanding resides in the mind of God alone.
Having all the right theological answers does not mean that you fully grasp how much you need Christ. Not only are God’s thoughts and ways infinitely higher than ours (Isaiah 55:8-9), we can hardly understand our own hearts (Jeremiah 17:9).
Man’s immeasurable need for Jesus Christ is a reality that God urges humanity to believe and humbly respond to (see John 8:24; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8).
Man Needs God
God didn’t waste any time revealing this reality. This truth is so crucial that God beautifully illustrated it right in the first chapter of the Bible, through the account of Creation.
Through the account of creation, God illuminates a truth that no human can afford to ignore. Our Creator has given us a logical glimpse of man’s desperate need of him through a pattern that escapes the notice of too many.
It’s a portrait of truth missing from the gallery of too many hearts today.
If you examine the Word of God closely as you continue to read, it will be more clear that you need Christ more than you can imagine. Are you ready to be in awe of God? Read on.
In addition to creating man and woman, God created light, vegetation, living creatures, and more. The book of Genesis reveals that some of God’s creation was made to be separate, and others, meant to be uniquely united.
Example of creation meant to be separate:
Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. (Genesis 1:3-4, NASB here and throughout)
Notice anything interesting about this modern photo of Earth? Light and darkness are clearly separated! One look at earth is evidence of the absolute validity of God’s Word!
From the beginning, God designed light to be separate from darkness, calling the light Day, and the darkness Night. However, most of what God created was designed to have unity with another part of his creation.
In the next set of examples, we will see how the part of creation that God spoke into existence can remain living only if it is unified with the part he referenced in the process of creating it.
Genesis 1:11
And God said, ‘Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.’ And it was so.
God spoke vegetation, plants, and fruit trees into existence by saying, “Let the earth…” Therefore, for each to live and be fruitful they must remain unified with the earth.
The roses that beautifully sit in the vase don’t remain beautiful, do they? Why? They have been removed from the earth, from the life-giving unity that they were created for.
No matter how hard one tries to keep them alive, the reality is, once they are removed from the earth the perishing process begins. They go from gorgeous to garbage.
Genesis 1:20
And God said, ‘Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures…’
God spoke swarms of living creatures into existence by saying, “Let the waters…”. Therefore, those swarms of living creatures must in some way remain unified with the water to live and be fruitful.
A fish out of water is a fish that is perishing, just as a rose detached from the earth. There will never be a trout that can live out of water, because God created fish to have unique unity with water. Have you ever seen the sad sight of a beached whale?
Are you beginning to see where this is going?
Genesis 1:24
And God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.’ And it was so.
God spoke living creatures, livestock, creeping things, and beasts into existence by saying, “Let the earth…” Therefore, for the living creatures to live and be fruitful they must remain unified with the earth.
Imagine a cow walking the plank of a ship out at sea. Will this cow live and be fruitful once it cracks the plank and plunges into the ocean? Not a chance! Why? Because cows were created to be united with the land where they can munch on the grass to live and be fruitful.
So, this is the pattern: To create vegetation God spoke to the earth, to create water creatures he spoke to the water, and to create land animals he spoke to the earth.
What about Man?
What did God speak to when creating man? It’s not a what, but a who!
Amazingly, when creating man God did not speak to anything that he created, but to himself! In Genesis 1:26 the Bible says, “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.’”
- How much does a rose need earth?
- How much does a whale need water?
- How much does a cow need land?
- How much does man need Jesus Christ?
Jesus (God the Son incarnate) separated himself from heaven so that man might be able to reside there (2 Corinthians 8:9; Philippians 2:7-8). God created light to be separate from darkness, but because of his unfathomable love for us he sent The Light into the dark world to save our perishing souls (John 1:1-10; John 3:16).
Apostle Paul did not have an exhaustive understanding but surely was filled with the urgency of God:
Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20, NASB).
How much do you think you need Jesus Christ?
Photo Credit: Unsplash
Kyle Green
Resident
Kyle is a campus pastor at The Orchard Evangelical Free Church in the Chicagoland area. Originally from Baltimore, he moved to Chicago to attend Moody Bible Institute, where he received a life-transforming education. He was then strategically-equipped for ministry through Unlocking the Bible's pastoral residency. He has great confidence in the gospel of Jesus Christ and great zeal for discipleship among the body of believers. Kyle often says, "By God's grace, I'm just as clear that I'm called to pastoral ministry as I am clear that my name is Kyle Green." Kyle and his wife, Melina, have two young sons, Avery and Amari, who they like to call "The Green Beans." The Greens love to eat Kyle's signature popcorn that he makes every Friday for movie night.
