A Personal Relationship with Jesus

Is there really such a thing as a personal relationship with Jesus? I struggle with that question because part of me answers in the affirmative, and another part of me answers in the negative. I'll deal with the latter, negative part of me first.

The skeptic in me senses that a personal relationship with Jesus involves the self setting the terms of the relationship. In other words, if one is going to have to have such a relationship it would be under the condition that Jesus sees things "my way". And aren't we really good at composing agendas for others to follow, especially demanding that Jesus conform to such an agenda? If that is what is meant by a personal relationship with Jesus, then I would have to say that there is no such thing. But there's also another dimension to this that is often overlooked.

Whenever in the Scriptures God deals with an individual, it was for the benefit of the whole. The covenant with Abraham was for him and his descendants, and ultimately his seed, who is Christ (see Galatians 3:15-18). Moses was given the stone tablets on Mt. Sinai for himself and for Israel. It was not a private affair between Moses and God. Jesus didn't die and rise for himself, but for all of us. It could be argued that Jesus had a "personal relationship with God", but that was only because he embodied all of humanity. Again, it wasn't a private affair between "me and God".

It appears that God deals with the individual, but only with the collective in mind. This is why it disturbs me when people look for "practical application" of the Scriptures, or when people ask, "How does this apply to me and my life?" Why is it so necessary that the Scriptures must have direct application to you? Or me? The Scriptures were not composed for the purpose of helping individuals live better or to give individuals a set of regulations that will guarantee happiness. The were written to gather a people, composed of individuals, yes, but not for the sake of the self. It is to take the self beyond the self so that the self is lost in an organic body of Christ which submits to the love and the grace of God. For we are one body and individually members of that one body.

Now answering in the affirmative, there is such a thing as a personal relationship with God insofar as it is recognized that said relationship is also true of other individuals in the body of Christ. Grace is all the same for everyone. God doesn't pay more attention to one person over another, although it may appear that way to us. But that is to misunderstand the relationship and misappropriate the grace of God as a talisman for the self. A personal relationship with Jesus is not measured by how many goodies one has but by membership in the body of Christ. By grace through faith we are granted membership.

Relationship with Christ automatically places us in relationship with others. The Christian tradition has always said that faith is never a private affair. It is always lived out in community for the life and salvation of the world.

So, in answer to the question of, "Is there any such thing as a personal relationship with Jesus?", it would have to depend on what is meant by "personal relationship".