No, this post is not about an Abba song (though I am a big fan).

Have you ever heard the expression ‘walk-a-while’? This is an expression used by the Australian aboriginal people to describe how to get to know one another and I think it is a most excellent image of how we get to know our Lord.

You see, you can tell me anything and everything you want to about yourself, (even leaving out the bits you don’t want me to know) and this will help me to know about you, but it won’t make me know you. However, if I share life with you, walk-a-while with you, I observe you in all sorts of circumstances and I get to know your character, the essence of who you are. I can rightly weigh up what I know to be true of you in various situations. If someone speaks something contrary to what I know of you, I can say with full confidence “No, that’s not Susan, I know her and that’s not her heart.” (That’s if your name is Susan, of-course 🙂 ).

In the same way, we might read the bible cover to cover, listen to sermons and conversations about Jesus, even attend bible/theological college, read book after book, study commentaries and languages to interpret scripture, and talk about Jesus as much as we possibly can.  Does this however, mean we really know the Person of Jesus Christ?

How many of us have trekked through years of traditional church life and have thought we had a real relationship with Jesus, only to later be confronted with the reality that we hardly know this Lord of ours at all? Oh, we know about Him, but do we know Him?

Jesus walked-a-while with His disciples for 3 years on earth, so they could get to know Him. Clearly, this walk-a-while experience of getting to know one another, takes a lot longer than a few weeks, months, even years. And these guys lived in each others’ pockets! They didn’t just meet once or twice a week for a couple of hours and think that’s how you get to know someone. They lived, ate, worked, slept and traveled together.

Jesus certainly wants us to know Him and the Father, too. It is in fact so important to Him that He prayed about it when He said……..

I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them, and that I myself may be in them. (John 17:26)

This next verse of scripture seems to really capture just how important it is to God, that we know Him….

“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches; but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he has understanding, and knoweth me” (Jeremiah 4:23,24 ARV).

If you’re really taking the time to ‘walk-a-while’ with Christ (which of-course has no end) this has most likely come about through a revelation of Christ being your All, in your personal pursuit of Him.  In addition, perhaps you have set out on a journey to detox from all the old spiritual and religious programming and are now getting to really know Jesus, the Person.

It has possibly come about through your corporate pursuit of Him by living body-life with other believers who share the same vision of letting Jesus Christ take His position as Head of His Church. In doing this, Christ has allowed Himself to be known among you, as you walk-a-while together.

Ah, the richest of all! A corporate pursuit of Christ! Christ being made known among us corporately as we walk-a-while together with Him! In Him! How glorious! How we long for this Lord Jesus! Teach us Your ways!