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Is Jesus a means to an end…or the end?

There are a lot of ‘reasons’ that people come to Christ, but there is really only one reason that people truly come to Christ. The issue comes down to what you do with Jesus.

Some folks see Jesus as a means to an end; he can help you in life, improve your broken marriage, inject some much needed morality, provide a new set of friends, give hope, make you feel better, and perhaps even give you a purpose statement to enjoy your best life now. So in this case we have Jesus as the salvation ferry that brings the sinner to enjoy the island of amusements and self-fullment. Jesus is a means to bring about a seriously selfish, and dare I say, idolatrous end.

On the other hand, some come to Jesus not as a means to an end but as the end itself. Jesus is not a vehicle to anything other than the enjoyment of his own perfection. We don’t come to Jesus as a connecting flight to our own exaltation but rather the final destination in the unmitigated divine exaltation. It is that simple.

In fact, the first taste buds of the new Christian are to see Jesus as the sufficient and peerless last stop in the pursuit of worship. Prior to conversion our eyes are blinded to his greatness (2 Cor. 4.3-4). We do not see his glory, greatness, and beauty; we are blind to it. However, upon the gracious and sovereign work of the God who causes “light to shine out of darkness” we actually see Christ. God gives “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ” (4.6). We actually see him, value him, love him, enjoy him, and worship him. This is the first posture of the Christian and the default posture thereafter.

These new eyes have seen and are indeed satisfied. They do not see Christ as a mediator of other functional saviors or delights but rather the chief end. He is preeminent.

It is good and healthy to ask yourself what you truly see Jesus as, either the end or a means to an end. For in reality the difference is substantial, and as grave as life or death.

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