Skip to main content

New Article: All Are Welcome


               Their stories could not have been more different from one another.  One was a man, the other a woman.  One is named, the other is anonymous.  One was from the city, the other the country.  One story happened in the dark of night and the other in the bright sunshine of mid-day.  One was proudly Jewish and the other was from a mixed-race background.  One was highly respected and honoured in society and the other was shamed and shunned.  Both had a conversation with Jesus. However, one visit was initiated by the person and the other by Jesus himself.  One conversation began with a spiritual question and the other with a question about something as mundane as a drink of water. 

               I do not think it is a coincidence that the story of Nicodemus coming to Jesus at night (John 3) and the story of the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4) are placed side by side in the Bible.  While both stories are valuable on their own, it is their contrasting nature that makes them so powerful. 

               Jesus is not put off by Nicodemus’ privilege, nor is he offended by the woman’s past.  He treats them kindly, starts where they are and leads them to something better.  In the end, not only do each of them come to believe in Jesus, but they act on their faith as well.  Nicodemus becomes a defender of Jesus (John 7:50-52).  Later, he is part of the group that claims Jesus’ crucified body and makes sure that he has a proper burial (John 19:38-39).  As for the woman, she runs into town and tells everyone about Jesus.  Because of her, they become believers too (John 4:39-42).

               These two stories remind us that no one is so good that they do not need Jesus and that no one is so beyond hope that they cannot come back to Jesus.

               In other words, in Jesus’ kingdom, anyone can change and begin again.

               “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Consider This: Who Needs Worship?

  Why does God need our worship? The events of Matthew 14 provide at least one answer.   This chapter starts with the beheading of John the Baptist (verses 1-12). This is the first in a series of events that indicate things are about to become much more difficult for the believers. Next, the scene shifts to a crowd gathered on a hillside in Galilee. After listening to Jesus teach all day, the apostles realized that these people had nothing to eat. They brought the problem to Jesus. He took a child’s lunch and fed the entire group of five thousand men plus women and children. Afterwards, they picked up twelve baskets of leftovers (verses 13-21).   Then Jesus told them to get in a boat and cross the Sea of Galilee. As they went, a storm arose, and the apostles were scared. They struggled along until Jesus came to them walking on the water. Peter tried walking on the water too and sank. After Jesus rescued Peter, they got into the boat, and the storm immediately s...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Spiritual Makeover (1 Peter 1:13-16)

 Three responses to the new life God has given us.  https://youtu.be/FmqX5-3jOKc  
Post a Comment
Read more

Consider This: Something to Hold On To

      If you have never stopped to see the Swinging Bridge in Souris, Manitoba, you should add it to your list of things to do. I like it. Others do not. It feels wobbly. It bounces up and down. I have seen people in the middle of the bridge holding on and screaming because it feels too unstable. Of course, there is nothing to fear. The bridge has huge anchors at each end and is secured by steel cables, but sometimes, our feelings make us forget the facts. Peter knows that his readers are about to face some scary situations. He does not want their feelings to obscure everything else, so he outlines three truths they need to remember. First, their hope is greater than their troubles. “For a little while, you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith – of greater worth than gold… may be proved genuine and result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:6-7). Not...
Post a Comment
Read more