Jesus Is the 'Why'

by Paul DeStefano

Years ago, as part of a professional development and team-building exercise at work, every participant was required to develop their ‘why’. The exercise was called, ’what’s your why?’ Basically your ‘why’ gives definition to your purpose and identifies the passion and drive that has brought you to where you are. What is it that you want your work to accomplish here? Why do you work or serve here? What motivates you?

Someone in my group’s ‘why’ involved passion to provide equity outcomes in education for underserved and disadvantaged communities. He went on to explain experiences and events that were instrumental in shaping that passion. He was highly motivated to be working in a school that supported him and provided the opportunity to live out his ‘why’.

Knowing your ‘why’ is so important for a couple of reasons. It is helpful for self-identifying what your giftings and purposes are. It also channels your passions and desires toward a desired outcome. In addition, knowing your ‘why’ is important because when discouragement, disappointment, and challenging seasons come, reminding yourself of your ‘why’ can help you through. It can fortify your commitment and establish a foundation for continuing on.

In 1982 at the age of 25, I surrendered my life to Jesus at a Bible study in a family friend’s home. The group of people who met there came from different churches and met once a month to study the Bible and enjoy refreshments. I had heard the gospel before, but for the first time in my life, it made sense to me. I could tell that the people there really believed what they were talking about and I perceived that they had something that I didn’t. To be clear, I didn’t know any of them and I reluctantly went as a courtesy to my mom, so I was surprised by all of what I was experiencing. Long story short, I committed my life to Jesus that night. Within days I began to sense an internal change and God was working wondrously as His transforming power took me from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of His Son (Colossians 1:13).

I went from being an aimless, immoral, drug and alcohol addicted person to one with purpose and passion to tell others what God did for me. And for a long time, my testimony was my ‘why’, what God did for me.

And then it all changed…

One night as I was reading through Habakkuk, I felt the Lord was highlighting a verse for me.
‘For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea’ (Habakkuk 2:14).   (See also Isaiah 11:9, Numbers 14:21, Isaiah 6:3). I meditated on these words and waited for what I thought the Lord was trying to say.

Entrepreneurs and business leaders of companies will tell you that if want to be successful, it is essential that you establish and build around two core elements. First, you have to know your mission, what’s your purpose, the reason for what you want to do. Secondly, you need to be able to communicate your mission with a vision statement.

The more time I spent meditating on this verse, the more I came to believe that it represents God’s ultimate mission along with being a vision statement. Read it again: ‘For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.'

‘As the waters cover the sea’ implies that there is no place, no space, no country, no mountain, valley, etc., where the knowledge of Him and His glory will not be known. This is God’s ultimate objective and mission.

Similarly to the tension of the kingdom being here, but not yet, the fulfillment of this verse won’t be fully realized until after Jesus returns, but we partake in that mission now in the way we live as kingdom people. We are filling the earth with the knowledge of Him when we are living in our identity as His image bearers. How we love, how we serve, how we pray, forgive, worship, parent, sacrifice, etc, pierces through the darkness and reveals God to a world that doesn’t know or see him!
 
Everything that God does is intentional to the purpose of filling the earth with knowledge of Him. From the beginning of creating man in his image and placing him on the earth, God purposed that there would a representation of Him that all creation could know what He is like. Unfortunately, through sin and the rebellion of man, the image of God has been distorted and perverted.

Until Jesus…

Colossians 1:15-17
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things were created through him and for him, and he in before all things and all things hold together

Hebrews 1:3,4
He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.

From the time Jesus was a young boy, he was about his Father‘s business (Luke 2:49). In the following verses, Jesus identifies himself with God the Father while also displaying humility and submission to Him.

John 5:19
So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father[a] does, that the Son does likewise."
 
John 8:28
So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me."
 
John 10:30
I and the Father are one.

These verses are relevant because God’s desire for us is to be conformed to the image of Jesus (Romans 8:29). The Spirit is at work shaping us in character, humility, compassion and power. He is equipping us with gifts while enabling us to produce fruit of and by His Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Why is it important that we conform to the likeness of Jesus in this way? Because Jesus was the visible image of His father, and when we are like Him, we are like the Father…and in some small way, we are revealing God so He can be known…filling the earth with the knowledge of His glory.

Years ago, this became my ‘why’: to make Him and the knowledge of His glory known. It is no longer just about what He did for me.

As we come to the end of our corporate time of prayer and fasting, I’m sure each of us can identify areas that were highlighted by the Holy Spirit and His refining process during this season of focused self-denial. I have been marked by what the Lord has emphasized through the Word and by the devotions that were shared each day from members of our community. The daily devos were awesome! My prayer is that the incomplete work that is taking place within each of us will produce a complete wholeness when we come together as a beautifully united body, with its many parts uniquely fitted, forming the one man that mirrors the image of Christ. Arise and shine for His Glory!