From Knowing About to Knowing Him

Devotional Credit: In Christ by E. Stanley Jones
Photo Credit: Unsplash

E. Stanley Jones exposes a critical distinction—one that has eternal significance. He warns us that religious education often substitutes knowledge about Jesus for knowledge of Jesus. And when that happens, the Christian faith is reduced to a moral system, a philosophy of life, or a noble guide for ethical living. It may inspire discipline and reform, but it cannot impart divine life. Why? Because life isn’t found in principles, it’s found in a Person.

Jones writes with urgency: until we know Jesus as Savior and enthrone Him as Lord, we remain in a state of spiritual wistfulness—always learning but never arriving. We may walk the halls of church and school, speak Christian words, and admire Christian ideals, yet lack the consciousness of Christ’s indwelling Life.

But once Christ is received—truly received—life begins. Not religious striving, not moral effort, but real Life. From that point on, education can guide, but only as an outflow of something already alive. Jones reminds us that fathers in Christ are those who have received Life and, as a result, can share it. Without the Life of Christ within, we cannot impart it to anyone else.

✍🏼 Personalized Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture

I did not come to give you a philosophy, a moral framework, or a set of principles to imitate. I came to give you Myself. And I still do.

I am not distant knowledge to be mastered—I am the indwelling Life that transforms. You were never meant to walk in the shadow of My teachings alone. You were meant to walk in step with Me, as one reborn, united in spirit, led by My presence. That is why I came—not to be admired, but to abide.

Many will speak My name, explain My words, and promote good behavior in My honor, yet never come to Me for Life. They know about Me, but they do not know Me. And without Me, there is no new birth, no power, no witness—only form without fire.

But you… you have received Me. You are no longer merely instructed; you are indwelt. You are not living for Me—you are living from Me. You are not climbing toward salvation by process; you are resting in the finished work of salvation by a Person. You are not wistful—you are a witness. You have passed from death to Life, and I have made My home in you.

Continue to abide, and you will bear much fruit—not through effort, but through union. You are not called to manufacture holiness, but to manifest Me.

Scriptures referenced: John 1:12–14; Galatians 2:20; 1 John 5:11–12; John 15:5; 2 Corinthians 3:6

🧺 Real-Life Analogy

It’s like holding a recipe card in your hand but never baking the cake. You can memorize the ingredients, understand the steps, and even explain the process to others—but unless the oven is turned on and the ingredients are mixed, there is no cake to taste or share. Knowing about Jesus is like knowing the recipe. Knowing Him is tasting the cake.

🙏🏼 Prayer of Confidence

Father, I thank You that Life is not found in information, but in the Person of Your Son. I rest in the certainty that Christ is not a philosophy to live by, but a Life to live from. You have placed Your Son in me, and in Him, I lack nothing. I no longer strive to become what I already am—a new creation in Christ. Thank You that I am not on the way—I am already in the Way, because Jesus Himself is my Way, my Truth, and my Life.