No one comes to Jesus by accident. Salvation is active, not passive. You’re about to learn about three ways to get to God.
Something needs to happen before you can receive the healing you need. It’s intentional, not accidental.
No one ever comes to a personal relationship with God unless somebody does something. God, yourself, or others must take intentional steps to get you to God.
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Recently, I’ve heard the term…
“Bumping into Jesus.”
I’ve heard people speak of this almost as a Bible doctrine. I’ve heard this set as a goal for a worship service.
I wonder if the people who use the term know what they are saying?
The term sounds nice, but it actually means that they hope everyone in attendance gets to be close to Jesus and then leaves the service after receiving nothing from Him.”
To me, that goal makes little sense.
I would hope that Bible-believing churches desire Jesus to use their ministry to change people’s lives for the better.
I hope that true followers of Christ want to help people get to God in a life-altering way.
Today I’m speaking to you about…
Three ways to get to God.
Before I tell you these ways, I want to give you some background.
You’ll soon learn the only scriptural event where people actually bumped into Jesus.
It’s in…
Luke Chapter Eight.
At the beginning of this chapter, Jesus and His disciples preach and teach “throughout every city and village” (Luke 8:1).
We also find the disciples, “certain women, and many others were with Jesus, supporting “the ministry.”
After that, Jesus teaches the Parable of the Sower (Luke 8:4-15) and the Parable of the Lamp (Luke 8:4-16-21).
Also, in this chapter, Jesus calms the sea on the way to visit the Gadarenes (Luke 8:22-25). There, Jesus casts devils out of a deranged man who lived in a graveyard (Luke 8:36-39).
By the time Jesus returns, the people who lived in the area were excited. They spread the word about Jesus, His message, and His miracles.
In fact, the Bible says,
When Jesus was returned, the people gladly received him: for they were all waiting for him.
Luke 8:40
Just imagine the crowd!
Out of this crowd, a man named…
Jairus
…got Jesus’ attention. He asked Jesus to go with him to his house because his daughter was dying (Luke 8:41).
Jairus believed that Jesus could save his daughter, so Jesus went with him.
As the pair head towards Jairus’ house, “the people thronged him” (Luke 8:42)
In this throng was…
A Woman
…who also wanted something from God.
She needed healing.
For twelve years, she had a medical issue. She was poor because she spent all her money on medical treatments.
The woman believed that Jesus could heal her, so she “touched the border of his garment “(Luke 8:44).
The Bible says that,
She was healed immediately.
Luke 8:47
Like Jairus, the woman had gotten Jesus’ attention. God met her need.
After the woman touches Jesus, He asks a question:
Who touched me?
Luke 8:45
In response, Peter and “they that were with Him” introduce us to…
The Multitude.
None of the people who accompanied Jesus claim credit for “touching” Jesus (Luke 8:45).
In fact, they thought that Jesus’ question was odd.
So, they asked Jesus a question:
Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?
Luke 8:45
A crowd surrounded Jesus.
They…
Thronged
…Him (Luke 8:45).
To find out what this word means, I consulted the Outline of Biblical Usage. [The Outline of Biblical Usage was created by Larry Pierce, creator of the Online Bible, via https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G4912&t=KJV].
Here’s what I learned.
This word means “to press on every side.” It involves an immovable force such as that of a strait, that forces a ship into a narrow channel.”
By thronging Jesus, they were squeezing Him on both sides as a farmer or rancher would do to immobilize cattle to give it medicine.
In this context, I’d say that many people had touched Jesus. They had bumped into Him, but they didn’t receive anything from Him.
The Bible also says that the people…
Pressed
….Him.
The Disciples say,
Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee
Luke 8:45
Again, I’m telling you what I learned from the Outline of Biblical Usage. [The Outline of Biblical Usage was created by Larry Pierce, creator of the Online Bible, via https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G598&t=KJV].
The word refers to intense pressure, “To press on all sides.” The word refers to the “pressing out grapes and olives.”
So, here in this text, we found some people who…
Bumped into Jesus.
I’ll say again what Peter and the disciples say to Jesus:
Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee…
Luke 8:45
Jesus was in a setting where bumping into Him was normal. In fact, the Disciples thought Jesus was acting strangely by asking, “Who touched me?”
I’m asking you,
What does this mean?
In this crowd, two people intended to get Jesus to help them.
Two of them received the help they desired.
The multitude, however, received nothing.
The people were interested in Jesus, but they had no desire to have Jesus meet their needs.
I’m telling you that, after the crowd dispersed that day, the lives of the people who “bumped into Jesus” did not change.
I’m telling you this because a zero-percent chance exists that Jesus will, by chance, change your life. No casual encounter. No happenstance.
As we see with Jairus and the sick woman, a life-changing encounter with God requires intent.
Scripture teaches us…
Three ways to get to God.
Salvation has active prerequisites. For you to get saved, something must happen.
First, you can get to God when…
1. God calls you
God purposefully intervenes in a person’s affairs. For example, God spoke to Moses from the burning bush (Exodus 3:2). Saul of Tarsus “saw the light” on the Damascus Road (Acts 9:3).
God looked for Adam and Eve in the Garden, after they had sinned.
Jesus tells us
The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
Luke 19:10
Could it be that today, right now, Jesus is looking for you?
2. You seek God.
Secondly, a person may choose to seek the Lord. Zacchaeus intended to see Jesus. He was small, so he climbed a sycomore tree to adjust his line of sight (Luke 19:2-9).
If you desire a touch from God, you can actively pursue it.
God speaks through the prophet Jeremiah saying,
Ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:13
I’ll also remind you of the sick woman in our text.
She searched for Jesus.
She found out where He was.
She came looking for Him.
She intentionally touched Jesus for the purpose of receiving healing. She was the only one, besides Jairus, in the multitude, whose life was changed.
If you want God, you will find Him.
Finally, you can get to God when…
3. Someone brings you to God.
Do you remember the account of the man with the palsy?
When Jesus preaches in Capernaum, word spreads like wildfire (Mark 2:1).
An enormous crowd had gathered to hear what Jesus was saying (Mark 2:2).
Also, four men who heard that Jesus was “in the house,” worked together to carry a sick man to Jesus for healing.
Because of the crowd, the men couldn’t bring the sick man to Jesus using ordinary means.
They took the extraordinary step of carrying the man onto the roof and lowering him, through the roof, into Jesus’ presence (Mark 2:4).
Here’s what happened:
When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.
Mark 2:5
Four men of faith brought another to Jesus. Because of their faith, the man received healing and forgiveness of sins.
Just imagine if these men didn’t care. Imagine if they were busy. What if they had something “more important” to do?
What if they didn’t care enough to go to such a great effort?
What if those men didn’t want to look ridiculous in front of a big crowd?
The man with the palsy would have never received anything from Jesus.
John the Baptist pointed his disciples toward Jesus, saying,
Behold the Lamb of God!
John 1:36
One of those disciples, Andrew, followed Jesus, but he didn’t stop there. He went to find his brother, Simon, and brought him to Jesus (John 1:41).
If you’ve already accepted the Savior, will you bring others to Him?
I want to help you get to Jesus. I want to work with you to bring people to God.
As we work to that end,
You need to know that…
While some people get to God, many never do. You must understand that…
Most get left out.
I have mentioned only a few examples from the Bible that show that no one accidentally gets help from God.
Nobody accidentally receives salvation.
Nobody who “bumps into Jesus” receives any benefit.
The multitudes went on their way. Most of them died and went to Hell.
Few people receive Salvation.
Jesus alludes to this when He speaks of…
Elijah.
Rather than sending Elijah to any of the widows who lived in Israel, God sent the prophet to one widow in Sidon (Luke 4:25).
Many other widows lived at that time, but only one of them received a miracle.
God sent…
Elisha
…to one leper, Naaman, in Syria. The rest of the lepers never received healing (Luke 4:27).
In another passage, Jesus articulates this principle:
Many are called, but few are chosen.
Matthew 22:14
What does all this mean?
If neither God, nor you, nor other people move, you will die in your sins. Even if you bump into Jesus somewhere.
I want you to…
Respond
to God’s word.
Answer the call.
To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts…
Hebrews 3:15
If God calls you to repentance, answer Him. Obey Him.
I want you to…
Seek the Lord.
Do you want the peace and confidence that comes with salvation?
Do you want to experience a “more excellent way” (1 Corinthians 12:31)?
Get a fresh start. Learn the fear of the Lord. Gain knowledge of the holy (Proverbs 9:10).
Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
Isaiah 55:6
Finally, if you’re already a believer, God wants you to…
Do your part.
And God wants me to do my part.
Live a good life. Set a good example. Let your light shine. Those things are good. They please God.
But they are passive.
You can only help others through intentional action.
To help others, you must bring them to Jesus.
Step out of your comfort zone.
The Book of Jude says,
Of some have compassion, making a difference:
And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire;
Jude 1:21-22
Want to learn more?
Check out other Bible messages by Bruce Tyson: