Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. 2 Cor. 5:16.

Paul had never seen Jesus in the flesh when He was on the earth. In those days it seems many Christians made a big issue about that. That is how they claimed to know Christ. That was the extent of their knowledge: His birth, race, position, life, and death; His natural, human appearance. Paul's knowledge of Christ was essentially spiritual; a living Christ, not outside of him, but inside of him.

"If only Jesus were here visibly!" we tell ourselves. "If only we could see Him heal the sick, and raise the dead! If we had but felt His hands in our hands! If we had actually heard His voice say to us, 'Thy sins be forgiven thee. Go in peace.' If we had heard Him say to the tempestuous sea, 'Peace be still,' and then had seen the sea get suddenly calm. All this could never be forgotten."

We are to know Jesus with equal certainty. If we have experienced at His hands the forgiveness of our sins, the new life in Him, the transforming power of His love, there can be no doubt. He is very real to us. Ignoring or forgetting Jesus is not because our memory is not working. We remember a thousand and one things of comparatively trifling and minor importance, such as a slight or a favor given us. But we forget God at times. We ought not to have to prod our memories and agonize when it comes to Jesus Christ and His meaning for our lives.

Where problems persist, His grace is sufficient for us. Trials must come to all of us. Temptations never fail to raise their ugly head. Perhaps God is testing us. We are to fill our minds each clay with thoughts of Him. He is an antidote for all our sins. Is much of modern life so gripping and captivating that we feel no need of Him?

God has not given us simply a list of texts to memorize, a set of rules to be remembered. What God has promised to us is Himself. "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you" (John 14:18).