Look Unto Jesus

If there was ever a time when this world needed to focus its attention on the Lord, now would be one of those times.  The world has tried to handle the wars, violence, crime, hunger, disease, rampant immorality, and the breakdown of the family, with all of the consequences that go therewith, without the Lord.  The overall results have been, predictably, unimpressive.  God is the creator of the universe, this world being a small part thereof (Genesis 1; Psalm 24:1).  Every good gift is a blessing from Him (James 1:17).  It does not require great intellect to figure out that we need to go to the creator for solutions to problems that develop within the creation.

The Hebrews writer put it well when he wrote "looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2-3).  We need to look unto Jesus as our Savior (Titus 2:13).  There is no other Savior (Acts 4:12).  He came to this world specifically to be our Savior (Luke 19:10; John 3:16-17).

We need to look unto Jesus as our Lord (Acts 10:36).  That was a basic lesson the Jews who had rejected Jesus needed to learn and accept (Acts 2:36), and it's the same for us today.  We must submit our will to His will and openly live by His teachings (Luke 6:46).

We need to look unto Jesus as our example in living this life (1 Peter 2:21-22).  He lived here in this world, and He knows what we go through (Hebrews 2:17-18; 4:14-16).  We "ought...also to walk just as He walked" (1 John 2:6).

We need to look unto Jesus as our mediator with God (1 Timothy 2:5).  He is "the mediator of the new covenant" between us and God (Hebrews 12:24), and He is in Heaven pleading our case before God's throne (1 John 2:1).

 We need to look unto Jesus as our judge (2 Corinthians 5:10).  He has been "ordained by God to be judge" (Acts 10:42).  There will be no secrets when we appear before Him as our judge on that final day of judgment (Romans 2:16).

We should also look unto Jesus for some specific things that we particularly need.  Of course, what we need from Jesus most of all is salvation.  As Savior, He is the source of eternal salvation (Hebrews 5:9).  But in order to find salvation in Him, we must first seek forgiveness through Him (Hebrews 9:28).  As we get the matters of forgiveness and salvation settled in our lives, then we can look unto Jesus for direction (John 10:3-4), for strength (2 Corinthians 12:8-10), for hope (Colossians 1:27), and for "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding" (Philippians 4:7).  These matters are vital to our lives, both present and future.

What are you doing to address these needs in your life?  If you look anywhere other than to Jesus for the answers, you'll come up short!  You'll find fulfillment of your most fundamental needs only as you look unto Jesus...