Jesus is everything to us. When I say that, I’m not being emotional or Romantic in the literary sense. But let me back up a little.

First, He is the one who provides forgiveness to us. We believe that our biggest problem is sin, which has separated us from God. Through Jesus’ death on his cross, the payment for our sins has been made, and when we “apply” the payment to our lives, we are forgiven. His life is a great example to us, and His teachings are worthy of discussion and meditation, but more than that, He is the one who has provided forgiveness for those asking for it. If someone solves a person’s biggest problem, you can see why there would be a loyalty there.

Secondly, we believe that He is divine. That doesn’t mean that we believe that He is God the Father—that’s a whole different discussion. But we believe that God has come to earth in the person of Jesus Christ, and that He lived, died and was resurrected about 2000 years ago. He wasn’t just a man to us, or a great man, or a great teacher. We believe that God was indeed one of us, at least in the sense of putting on flesh and living here.

Lastly (at least for this short response), Jesus is not just the center of our religion. We believe that He is the center of the cosmos. Colossians 1:17 may say it most succinctly: “[Jesus] is the image of the invisible God. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.”

This is way more than a great teacher or moral leader. We believe that He is the central Person of the universe, and that when all is said and done, everyone will acknowledge that (Philippians 2:9-11). In fact, we believe that the whole universe is currently being held together by Him because He is currently wills it (Heb. 1:3)

It’s easy to see, if you believe those things, that a Christian’s relationship with Jesus is the most important thing in his/her life. As Christians grow in understanding of who He is according to the Bible, we get a greater and greater desire to understand Him and know Him, to and adjust our lives to the reality of who He is.