It's Jesus You're Searching For

By William Kassler

If you're feeling broken or lost, stranded, and without friends to turn to - It's Jesus you're Searching for.
If you knew Jesus as a kid, but lost your way, It's Jesus you're Searching for.

Everyone needs Jesus, even if they don't know it. I have seen Jesus do great miracles for people who were Hindu, or not a friend of Jesus, because He was trying to get their attention. Can He get your attention?

Go deeper. Learn for the first time or get refreshed in your faith. It's Jesus you're Searching for will help you get there. It's basic, but it goes deep. It asks and answers the questions you need the answers to.

Is your heart saying, "YES!" then get the book. You'll be glad you did.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Oct 14, 2022
• ISBN: 9781387547081

Book preview

It’s Jesus You’re Searching For

By

William Kassler

It’s Jesus You’re Searching For by William Kassler

Copyright © 2008, 2014, 2022 by William Kassler.  All rights reserved.

Published by William Kassler

ISBN: 978-1-387-54708-1

Unless otherwise indicated, Bible quotations are taken from New King James Version, (C) Copyright (C) 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.

Other citations

KING JAMES VERSION

    1611. Electronic conversion by NASCO.

    (C) Copyright 1988. Electronic Work Product. Ellis Enterprises, Inc.

LIVING BIBLE:

          The Living Bible, copyright (C) 1971 by Tyndale House Publishers,

    Wheaton, IL, used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004.  Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189.  All rights reserved.

JOSEPHUS, THE COMPLETE WORKS 6 Volumes

    (C) Copyright 1988. Electronic Work Product.  Ellis Enterprises, Inc.

THE PILGRIM’S PROGRESS – John Bunyan (1676) - Public Domain

This publication in its entirety remains the property of William Kassler

Photo art:  William Kassler & Regina Kassler

I looked then, and saw a Man named Evangelist coming to him, and asked, Why do you cry?  He answered, Sir, I perceive by the Book in my hand, that I am condemned to die, and after that come to Judgment; and I find that I am not willing to do the first nor able to do the second.  Then said Evangelist, If this be your condition, why do you stand still?  He answered, Because I know not where to go.  Then, he gave him a parchment-roll and there was written Escape from the wrath to come.  The man read it and looking at the Evangelist very carefully said Where must I go? 

The Pilgrim’s Progress – John Bunyan (1676)

Table of Contents

It’s Jesus You’re Searching For

Introduction

Who are you?

Who You Are

The Work of Believing

Grappling with Personal Sin

The Struggle

The Journey

It’s Your Response

Accountability

Undeserved Blessing

Glory to God

Dedicated to my wife Regina.

Introduction

I love heroes.  Heroes are part of everyday life.  They are the people who have the ability to overcome great difficulties when the need arises. 

Real life sometimes feels like you were dropped in the middle of a desert without provisions, and without a map.  If only somewhere out in the distance you could see a familiar oasis on the horizon, you would have hope that you were going in the right direction. 

Heroes are not special; they are merely prepared.

Heroes may read books on parenting before conceiving.  It does not make them better parents, but it helps to enter into parenting with their eyes open. 

Another aspect of heroes is their confidence.  When put to the test, heroes seem assured they are on the right path.  In false heroics, situations overcome the hero.  For example, in CPR must you give five chest compressions and two breaths, or fifteen chest compressions and two breaths, or thirty chest compressions and two breaths?  Surety of that answer can save a life. 

Some heroes are emotional heroes who are there when you need a hug.  They are the people who listen to you when times are tough.  They care about you and will give good advice, when you need it, to get through the tough times.  They may be great life coaches, but they are not authorized to make the winning shots in your life.  They can encourage you to be the best that you can be, but they can’t do it for you.  These heroes may become your friends as they give you the confidence to succeed. 

You have likely been an emotional hero in the past, but you wonder who is going to help you when you need it.  Isn’t there anyone who understands what you’re going through?  Why do you always have to be the person who helps?  How can you be such a great hero when your life seems to be such a mess? 

The search for love and security should manifest real answers that provide you the assurance that you are moving in the right direction when you are dropped in the desert.  You need to get a perspective of where you are to know the direction to take.  The best directions steer clear of the pitfalls of transforming your feelings of insecurity into feelings of security.  You are prepared and assured.  You feel like a hero. 

Your search for direction may have you battling with yourself.  In a game of chess, it’s impossible to play both black and white in the same way you would play a true opponent.  Real-life difficulties are true opponents, yet we are not prepared to attack because we fight with ourselves strategizing to get the best position.  For every argument you imagine, you can imagine a counterargument.  Rather than fight your opponent, you fight yourself.  What if you could get the perspective of a hero and do it as the hero would do it?  What will you do to come out on top?

I hope you enjoy It’s Jesus You’re Searching For.  I pray that you will find the hero waiting to burst out from inside of you. 

Who are you?

"For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. "  (Romans 8:29)

When I started writing this book, I started in the middle knowing that eventually, I would have to write the beginning.  I was predestined to write the beginning, even though I started writing in the middle.  The scripture above is often quoted.  It says, in essence, that God had a plan for you. 

My heart is overjoyed in the Lord because today you started reading these opening paragraphs.  You were predestined.  I pray that this book challenges your beliefs, and deepens your understanding by introducing you to the awesomeness of knowing the Lord. 

Here is another famous quote, Can you ever really know someone?  A person’s face may have just flashed into your mind.  Even though you may be together daily, can you ever really know that person?  Think about yourself.  What do you know about yourself?  Here’s a wild thought, Can anyone ever know God?

"I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently will find me. "  (Proverbs 8:17)

The Bible implies that you can get to know God.  Of all the reasons to get to know God, this is the most important.  That you are convinced He is real and your salvation is secure in Him.

Beyond salvation, this is one of the most awesome times to see God in action.  We can read in the bible of His plans and see the actions He has taken.  We’re not in the dark but in the light. He has fulfilled so many of His plans for the world that it is even becoming obvious to the casual person. 

Therefore, this book is not to prove or disprove the Bible.  The Bible stands provable and you are welcome to research it.  However, there is an underlying question, If Jesus is real, what does it have to do with me?  Think about it, are the things written in the Bible thousands of years ago even relevant today?

Current-day philosophy college courses abound with studies of great thinkers.  Socrates said (as written by Plato): I sought to persuade every man among you that he must look to himself, and seek virtue and wisdom before he looks to his private interests.  Is this ancient wisdom as relevant today as it was to Socrates before his death in 339 BC?  It must be significant as philosophy, with the great philosophers, is still taught in universities all over the world.  While Socrates was great, the man deemed the wisest man in the world was Solomon.  He wrote: "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.  For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether it is good or whether it is evil.  (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)  I believe the wisdom to help you discover who you are" is contained in the Bible.  If the Bible can help you, then it is both historical and relevant to you today. 

…"he who comes to God must believe that He is…"

(Hebrews 11:6)

The statement that He is implies that God is active today.  The word indicates current day, not past as in "He was", or future as "He will be."  No, He is.  Because He is, you can have a relationship with Him unlike a relationship with a dead relative or an unborn child not yet conceived.  It can be daily and interactive.  Because He is, He knows the stuff you are going through.

"But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul." (Deuteronomy 4:29)

What I have found is that the more you attempt to know God, the more you will examine yourself.  Knowing God causes introspection that unveils the deepest parts of you.  Since the most important person in the world to you is you, this can be a very good thing.  You care about yourself.  This is not to say you are selfish, but you have a great deal of interest in your diet, health, recreation, entertainment, relationships, volunteerism, etc.  You have an interest in the type of clothing you wear, the sports you participate in, and the route you take to your school or your job.  You have an interest in the people you associate with on a daily basis.  You are interested in yourself.  Why not?  Who else is going to care about you?  My answer is simple.  God cares.  He cares about you and He cares about your decisions.

"God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew." (Romans 11:11)

Could God have foreknown you?  Could He know your future and your past?  Could He have known you before you were born?  In fact, He did know because He is. Think about this: He is always there. You get a realization that while you were sleeping, riding to work or to school, making breakfast, or being intimate He is always there.  He was also there before you were conceived.  Knowing you implies that he already knew about your parents, grandparents, and great-great-grandparents.

What does God know?  Does He know you as a bystander?  Or does God know you as an influencer? 

In something called a product life cycle, there is an idea or concept phase.  There is no actual product at the beginning only the notion of the product.  The project starts based on a concept.  Did the final product exist in this conceptual stage of the project?  No, of course not.  On May 25, 1961, U.S. President Kennedy declared that within ten years man would set foot on the moon and return to earth.  This concept, which was the President’s idea, concluded in 1969 when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon.  However, at the time President Kennedy declared it, not even one astronaut had ever ventured into space.

Let’s look at an example:  I have a project to create nuclear energy.  Let’s say you need to obtain uranium for use in a nuclear plant.  The natural byproduct of uranium decay is plutonium.  Plutonium is the garbage after the uranium is used up.  Plutonium is not desired in a nuclear factory, but uranium is desirable.  However, I must deal with the fact that in order to have what I need (uranium), I must also contend with what I don’t need (plutonium). 

Before the project starts, I do not have uranium.  I also know that plutonium waste must be disposed of as a by-product of running a uranium-rich nuclear power plant.  The project must include a clear plan of how to dispose of the plutonium waste.  I have the wisdom, but I lack the plan.  I must plan for waste disposal, while I am in the idea and concept phase or many people will die from radiation exposure.

You are much more valuable to God than uranium.  He saw your life before you were born, and included you in His plan.  God could see your life’s beginning and end as clearly as you can foresee the use of and disposal of uranium.  God’s great plan includes you. 

Can you accept that God has foreseen and expected you?  Try to comprehend that God intimately knows every moment of your life.  He knows that you are reading this book as well as what you will be doing exactly one year from now.  You are beginning to grasp the mind of God.  He is omniscient, all-seeing, and all-knowing of things past and things to come.  Reading this book is not a coincidence, but a predetermined fact of your very existence.  Free choice means that you can put this book down even now.  Predestination means that regardless of your choices, your life is a book already written.  Whom will you be exactly one year from now?  Since God knows, shouldn’t He clue you in a little?  If you have read this far, you are already learning a bit about God and perhaps a little about yourself. 

"Behold, the days are coming,'' says the Lord God, That I will send a famine on the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. (Amos 8:11)

The words of the Lord are truth: they are words of love, mercy, and grace.  Are you hungry for the truth?  Maybe you’ve never opened a bible before.  Are you thirsty enough to want to jump in and get wet?  God’s desire is to bring to people who are hungry and thirsty for Him the testimony of Jesus.  Jesus said His words are life.  Here is something Jesus said: you can have life more abundant.  Something new is going to happen to you if you stay the course.  Who are you?  If you need a change that would make you feel like a different person a year from today, you might be very interested in what God has in His mind for you today.

This book is one fragment of God’s desire to speak His abundant life into your life.  God hopes to deepen His presence within your inner man at your core.  That work has already begun.  As an analogy, it is mathematically correct to say, The shortest distance between two points is a straight line.  Spiritually, there is a straight line to God.  As a line has two ends, one end is God, and the other is you.  God is large, powerful, and unchanging.  Can you see your way to Him?  You probably can’t see your way.  Here’s why.  You don’t know where you are.  How can you find your way without a starting point?  Even a GPS always uses here as a starting reference point.  Admitting that you are lost, but you know where you want to go, is where everyone starts.  It is the beginning of your travel.  That makes today, and right now, a critical checkpoint for your future.  In the GPS of your life, right now is your here point.  The new identity of your life begins as the Word of God reveals itself to you.

So, who are you? 

If you answer by stating your job, or job title, or anything related to how you earn money, it doesn’t qualify as a correct response.  If you answer that you are a student, unemployed, a politician, retired, or anything similar, it does not answer the question Who are you?

The question is not, What do you do? 

The question is Who are you?

Let’s fill an imaginary bag with your life choices.  When the door to your bedroom is closed, who are you?  When you are driving in your car, what do you listen to, and what thoughts consume your thinking?  When you pick friends, what kind of friends do you pick?  Your baggage is filled with the life choices you made.  Your baggage is yours and you carry it always.  If you change jobs, your baggage would go with you to the other job.  Are you happy, or angry?  Are you grieving and sorrowful, or full of joy?  What motivates you in the morning, or in the evening?  Is your baggage full of deep things that are not resolved?  Discovering you means digging under the surface of everyday life and discovering a deeper understanding of your inner self and your motivations.  Delving beneath the surface and identifying who you are will give you an opportunity to understand when God talks to you.  God is not talking to a lawyer, salesman, doctor, cashier, or teacher.  He is talking to you, the person holding the baggage.

Who you are touches your motivation.  Who you are shakes your free will choices.  Who you are governs if you are striving to live for today or to live for tomorrow.  If you are living for tomorrow, it makes sense to put money into a retirement plan even though you can’t spend that money for a number of years.  If you are living for today, saving is not a choice at all because you need the money to survive the day.  When you live for today but are making a conscious effort to save for tomorrow in spite of your current circumstance, then you are shaking your natural tendency for something better.  The choice to overcome is inspired by who you are. 

When you choose to save money, in lieu of your day-to-day survival, you seek a better future.  You want to have a reasonably good lifestyle today, but the right choices today will make a difference in your future.  Perhaps for your retirement account, maturity is age fifty-nine and one half.  It means that the date the retirement money will make a difference is preset.

When you seek God, you come to an understanding of things that you perhaps never knew.  You start to understand choices you didn’t know existed.  You may come to a knowledge of choices other people made but you didn’t understand.  Why did some people protest when the monument of the Ten Commandments was to be hauled away from Judge Moore’s Alabama courthouse?  Why did others not care?  Why did some pray?  What does it matter?  Was there a deeper significance?  Who you are will determine your thinking and actions because of your values. 

"Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.  Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it."  (Matthew 7:13-14)

In your future, a gate represents the transition from your earthly life to existence beyond your physical lifetime.  Jesus said that the gate is narrow.  How can you make it through that narrow gate if you can’t even find it?  If you can find it, why is it so difficult to navigate?

  I am not the type of person who will ask for directions until I have to.  That is part of who I am.  However, why I don’t ask for directions may be for any of the following reasons:

I’m following directions already.

I’ve been spurned in the past with bad directions.

There is no place to safely stop and ask.

I just feel like driving around a bit and it’s not critical to be somewhere on a schedule.

The summation of who I am, and the choices that I will make, is a balance of multiple things.  Past influences balanced by the priority of my schedule will affect my choices.  The key is prioritization and it implies you have a choice.  If time is of the essence, and the original directions are bad, I may be willing to risk stopping in an unsafe place.  I prioritized the goal but evaluated the risk.  Instead of focusing on my unsafe surroundings, I venture to get the directions I need so I arrive on time.