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When I was 30 years old I died, my spirit floated above my dead body, but God brought me back to life! I also encountered Jesus and I will never be the same. That is why I am completely unfazed by the mockers who think I am stupid for believing in Jesus. I have personally experienced God’s healing power. I can also say to the scoffers, “Well, here is the amazing thing, that you do not know where He is from; and yet He opened my eyes!” (v.30)

David had confidence that God heard him. He held that key of belief in his heart. He had the “inheritance of those who fear Your name.” (v.5) It’s kind of like a club… being a believer… enjoying a relationship with the God of the universe. But it’s not exclusive; membership is offered free to ALL who want to join!

The true meaning of Jesus’ words might get a bit lost in translation for US. But His Jewish audience would have understood exactly what He meant. Jesus was claiming to be GOD. He also laid out the way to salvation when He said, “…unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins.” (v.24)

Notice that Jesus did not excuse or downplay her sin. He told her, “Go. From now on do not sin any longer.” BUT He enveloped that admonishment within compassion and forgiveness. Instead of pointing at HER sin with condemnation, He pointed at the sin of all the others who were condemning her. He reminded us that we are ALL sinners worthy of death. But that death sentence has been wrapped up within His forgiveness. The penalty for our sins has been fulfilled by His sacrifice.

And that same holy river, the Holy Spirit, flows through each one of us today! How fantastic that the entire Bible speaks of this glorious living river. The more I delve into the Scriptures, the more my eyes are opened to see how magical and unified it is. Only God could have assembled this amazing book!

Thank God, there is always a remnant. Then and now, there has always been a handful of believers threading us together throughout all of human history… spiritually hungry people who see beyond their temporary physical circumstance, those who feel God’s call on their life, people like Simon Peter, to whom God has revealed that Jesus is the “Holy One of God,” who has “the words of eternal life.” We know that there really is nowhere else to go.

We are so surrounded by all sorts of evil that it doesn’t even phase us. But we are called to be a separate, holy people. It is often so difficult to navigate that balance of being in the world but not of the world. May we learn from the foolishness of the Israelites and not make the same mistakes. Don’t forget about God when life is comfortable. Don’t let the wickedness of our culture seep into our own hearts. Hang tightly onto God through ALL the seasons of life!

Jesus WILL meet our needs one way or another, according to His perfect plan, according to the riches in glory in Christ Jesus. But He’ll often first direct us to a place where there appears to be no possible solution, where the physical obstacles appear too great. He’ll often let us sit there for a while, to teach us, to test our faith. If He let us know at the very beginning what amazing way He was going to provide, then we wouldn’t need to trust. It is only when we DON’T KNOW that we can learn and grow our faith.

I actually find this comforting. Gideon was afraid to do what God told him to do, but he did it anyway. And God blessed him. When we are following God’s direction, we don’t NEED to be afraid. But it’s okay if we are!

Thank God, He eventually grabbed my soul and pulled me back to Himself. He showed me that real Christianity, really following Him, is about RELATIONSHIP, not rules. A true relationship with Christ is ALIVE, dynamic, full of joy and thankfulness. A true relationship with Jesus seeks to spend time with Him regularly, to always be growing closer to Him. True relationship with Jesus recognizes how good He is and how much He loves each of us and longs for us to know Him intimately. Now THAT is something wonderful!!!