Knowing About Jesus Is Not the Same as Knowing Jesus

There are a few Bible verses that I have struggled with for years, not because I don’t believe them, but because I’ve had a hard time understanding how they all fit together.

I believe in Jesus. I pray to Him, I try to follow Him, and I trust that He is my Savior. But if I’m being completely honest, there have still been moments when fear has crept in and made me wonder, What if I’ve misunderstood something? What if I think I’m doing this right, but I’m not?

On one hand, Scripture tells us to believe in Jesus, and we will be saved. John 3:16 tells us that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life.

Acts 16:31 (NIV)
31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

Romans 10:9 tells us that if we declare Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, we will be saved.

That sounds wonderfully simple. Believe. Trust Jesus. Receive salvation.

But then I read verses like Matthew 7:21-23, and suddenly that simple message feels a whole lot more complicated. Those verses have made me stop and wonder more than once: What does it really mean to know Jesus, and how do I know that He knows me?

What Does “I Never Knew You” Mean?

Matthew 7:21-23 (NIV)
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

Those may be some of the most frightening words in the entire Bible. Every time I have read that passage, one little question has tried to creep into my mind: What if He says that to me?

What if I believe, pray, read my Bible, try to follow His commandments, and somehow I have missed something? Have you ever wondered the same thing?

The interesting part of this passage is that the people Jesus is talking about didn’t appear to be unbelievers. They called Him “Lord.” They prophesied in His name. They drove out demons. They performed miracles. If I saw someone doing all of those things, I would probably assume they were pretty high up on the Christian ladder. Lol!

But Jesus didn’t say, “You didn’t do enough.” He didn’t say, “You weren’t good enough.” He said, “I never knew you.”

I think that is where the difference lies.

Knowing About Jesus Is Not the Same as Knowing Jesus

I know who Dolly Parton is. I could probably tell you quite a few things about her, but Dolly doesn’t know me. There is a huge difference between knowing about someone and actually knowing them. The same thing can happen with Jesus.

You can know that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. You can know that He died on the cross and rose again. You can know the Christmas story and the Easter story. You can attend church, know Bible verses, sing every hymn, and still know facts about Jesus without actually surrendering your heart to Him.

James gives us a startling example.

James 2:19 (NIV)
19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.

The demons weren’t confused about who Jesus was. Throughout Scripture, evil spirits recognized His identity and authority. But knowing Jesus is the Son of God didn’t mean they loved Him, trusted Him, worshiped Him, or surrendered to Him.

In Acts 19:15, an evil spirit even said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?”

That always gets my attention. Recognizing who Jesus is and belonging to Jesus are two very different things.

The devil knows Jesus exists. satan knows He is the Son of God. But satan does not love Jesus, surrender to Him, worship Him, or follow Him.

So when the Bible tells us to believe in Jesus, I don’t think it means simply agreeing that He existed. Biblical belief involves trust.

What Does It Really Mean to Believe in Jesus?

I’ve talked before about how we don’t have to somehow get ourselves “good enough” before coming to Jesus. In my post, Finding Hope In Jesus In A Troubled World, I wrote about the Good News that salvation isn’t something we earn by finally getting everything right. Jesus did the work we could never do for ourselves. Our part is to trust Him and receive that gift.

Think about a chair. I can look at it and say, “I believe that chair will hold me.” I can inspect it and tell you exactly how it was made. But trusting the chair means eventually sitting down and putting my weight on it.

That’s closer to what faith in Jesus looks like.

I’m not trusting myself to save myself. I’m not trusting my good deeds, the number of times I’ve attended church, how much money I’ve given, how many people I’ve helped, or how many Bible verses I’ve memorized.

I’m putting the full weight of my salvation on Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

We are saved by grace through faith. It is a gift. We cannot earn it. And thank goodness for that because if getting into Heaven depended on my ability to behave perfectly, I would be in serious trouble.

And so would every one of you. Lol!

If Works Don’t Save Us, Why Do They Matter?

This is where Christianity can start sounding confusing. If works don’t save us, why does the Bible talk so much about obedience, repentance, good fruit, and following God’s commandments?

Because good works aren’t the price of salvation. They’re the result of a life being changed by Jesus.

A living relationship with Christ should begin changing us over time. Not overnight. Not perfectly. And certainly not without some steps backward along the way.

Maybe we forgive when the old version of us would have held a grudge. Maybe something that never bothered our conscience before suddenly bothers us. Maybe we become more generous, patient, or compassionate.

Maybe after we sin, instead of defending ourselves, our heart says, Lord, I shouldn’t have done that. Please forgive me and help me do better.

That is fruit.

James says faith without works is dead. He isn’t saying our works purchase salvation. He’s saying genuine faith doesn’t remain completely lifeless.

I think sometimes we accidentally turn Christianity into a checklist.
Believe. Check.
Pray. Check.
Go to church. Check.
Give money. Check.
Read the Bible. Check.
Be nice. Check.

Surely I’ve accumulated enough points now. But Jesus didn’t come to give us a heavenly punch card. He came to reconcile us to God. The heart of Christianity is relationship.

John 17:3 (NIV)
3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

There is that word again. Know. Not simply know about Him. Know Him.

But What If I’m Still Not Good Enough?

This is where my mind likes to cause trouble. Maybe yours does too.

I can read about examining our fruit and immediately start conducting a spiritual performance review. Have I prayed enough? Have I read enough Scripture? Have I served enough people? Did I lose my temper too many times? Am I changing quickly enough?

Before long, instead of looking at Jesus, I’m staring at myself. That misses the entire point.

Our assurance isn’t supposed to come from deciding we’ve finally become good enough. Our assurance comes from Jesus.

John 6:37 (NIV)
37 All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.

“Whoever comes to me I will never drive away.” That doesn’t sound like a Savior standing at Heaven’s door looking for technicalities so He can keep someone out. Jesus isn’t trying to trick us or hide one secret requirement somewhere in the Bible just to see if we can find it.

He wants us to come to Him.

And coming to Jesus doesn’t mean we will suddenly stop sinning. Romans 3:23 says all have sinned. Becoming a Christian doesn’t mean we’ll never lose our temper, become jealous, act selfishly, gossip, or make another bad decision.

We will still fail. The difference is what we do when we fail.

Do I excuse my sin and harden my heart, or do I turn back toward Jesus? Do I want Him to change me? Do I want to know Him better? Am I trusting myself, or am I trusting Him? There is a difference between stumbling while following Jesus and having no desire to follow Him at all.

Peter denied Jesus three times. David committed horrible sins. Paul called himself the worst of sinners. Their stories aren’t stories of perfect people.

They’re stories of people who needed a Savior. Just like us.

Knowing Jesus Changes Everything

The longer I walk with the Lord, the more I realize Christianity isn’t primarily about knowing more information about Jesus. It’s about knowing Him.

It’s talking to Him, listening for Him, trusting Him, depending on Him, repenting when I wander, and following Him when I understand where He’s leading and when I don’t.

And slowly, sometimes so slowly that I barely notice it, He changes my heart.

I will always have more to learn. There will always be areas where I need to grow and sins I need to confess. But my hope isn’t in how perfectly I follow Jesus. My hope is in the One I’m following.

Maybe salvation really is both simpler and harder than we sometimes make it. Simple because we cannot earn it. Jesus already did the work. Hard because genuine faith asks us to surrender ourselves to Him.

I don’t want to simply know facts about Jesus. I want to know Jesus. And when my time on this earth is finished, I don’t want my confidence to rest in a list of things I’ve accomplished. I want it to rest entirely in Him.

To GOD Goes The Glory!

Have A Blessed Day!

Let’s End With a Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Jesus to save us when we could never save ourselves. Forgive us for the times we try to measure our salvation by our accomplishments, our failures, or how well we think we are doing.

Lord, I don’t want to simply know about You. I want to know You. Help me trust You more deeply, hear Your voice more clearly, and surrender the areas of my life that I still try to control.

When I sin, convict my heart and lead me back to You. When fear whispers that I haven’t done enough, remind me that Jesus has already done what I could never do for myself.

Let my life produce fruit, not because I’m trying to earn Your love, but because Your love is changing me from the inside out. And when doubts creep in, help me remember the promise of Jesus that whoever comes to Him will never be driven away.

Thank You for Your grace, Your patience, Your forgiveness, and the gift of salvation through Jesus Christ.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.