Thirsty Christians

Then cometh He to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with His journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.  There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give Me to drink.  (For His disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)  Then saith the woman of Samaria unto Him, How is it that Thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.  Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and Who It is that saith to thee, Give Me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of Him, and He would have given thee Living Water.  The woman saith unto Him, Sir, Thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast Thou that Living Water?  Art Thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?  Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the Water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the Water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of Water springing up into everlasting life.  John, Chapter 4, verses 5-14.

I like the picture I get when I read this.  I know that I get thirsty and get a glass of water; but in a little while, I might get thirsty again.  Sometimes, it becomes annoying when I have to run downstairs to get another glass of water.  Other times when I’m away from home and find myself without a place to get water, my thirst seems unquenchable.
I have never thought of being so satisfied that I’m never thirsty again.  Of course, Jesus isn’t talking about actual water, but we do have a thirst to have eternal life with Him.  If we ignore that inner thirst and choose to lead a more worldly life, that thirst is still there, unquenched.  If we satisfy our thirst, by finding out more about Jesus and His love for us and try to be examples of how He works in our lives, our thirst for a relationship with Jesus is quenched.  We don’t have to seek eternal life, because we will have it through our love of Jesus, who will quench all our needs as Thirsty Christians, if we only ask Him.

Since this is an example of the positive influence God has made on my walk with Christ, this may not reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verses.

Show Me Christian

Then answered the Jews and said unto Him, What sign showest Thou unto us, seeing that Thou doest these things?  Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.  Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt Thou rear it up in three days?  But He spake of the Temple of His Body.  When therefore He was risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this unto them; and they believed the Scripture, and the Word which Jesus had said, Now when He was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in His Name, when they saw the miracles which He did.  John, Chapter 2, verses 18-23.

This reminds me of Missouri, the Show Me State.  It’s kind of like we say to God, “I’ll believe that Jesus is our Savior if You show me the proof, if You show me a sign, if You show me…”
I think that’s how many Christians get led astray to metaphysical and cult types of churches.  They are looking for valid proof of Jesus’ existence and a concrete explanation for the creation of the world.  These metaphysical churches seem to appeal to them because they combine religion with science in a way that makes some kind of sense to them.

Jesus’ telling us that His body is going to be raised up on the third day defies any explanation, real or metaphysical.  It’s in the Bible and enough different disciples wrote about it from their perspective, so we know that no one made this up.  This allows us to compare what was foretold in the Bible years before Jesus’ birth with what the different disciples wrote.  That’s why reading the Bible is beneficial, especially for those that have doubts.

Even Thomas told the other disciples that he didn’t believe that Jesus had risen from the grave.  Knowing this, Jesus appeared to Thomas and told him to touch the nail prints in His hands and thrust his hand into His side in order for him to believe.  It really did happen!  Although it defies our human logic, Jesus arose from the grave to save us all from our sins.

As a Show Me Christian, I see Jesus’ work in my life each and every day in ways that defy all explanation, but I do.  I try to turn my life over to God and turn to Him to take care of my daily issues and concerns.  He gives me the Peace Which Passes All Understanding to get through the tough times.  He is always there taking care of me. Jesus’ rising from the grave to save us from our sins defies all explanation…but it’s true!!!!

Since this is an example of the positive influence God has made on my walk with Christ, this may not reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verses.

Two-Faced Christian

And while He yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss Him.  But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of Man with a kiss?  When they which were about Him saw what would follow, they said unto Him, Lord, shall we smite with the sword?  And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear.  And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far.  And He touched his ear, and healed him.  Luke, Chapter 22, verses 47-51.

I don’t know if I could do something nice like heal a person who was part of a plot to kill me.  I’ve been known to remember situations for over twenty years where someone has been rude or hurtful to me, yet I am dependent on Jesus’ forgiving nature.  If He remembered all my sins the same way I have harbored resentments toward others, there’s no way I would ever make it to heaven.  He forgives me over and over, even when I don’t deserve His forgiveness.  He is there loving me when I find it difficult to love myself.  I’m so fortunate to have Jesus as my Savior and Redeemer.
I write these things and find I’m very two-faced.  I say things like Savior and Redeemer in my writing and realize that I would never be caught dead saying these things in public.  I think that’s because I don’t want to sound like a religious fanatic to others.  I might say that I love Jesus, but that’s usually as far as my profession of faith goes.  I need to pay attention because I could be faced with Jesus saying, “I love Debbie, but I can’t allow her to have Salvation because she is afraid to risk the condemnation of others.  She is afraid that if she says I’m her Savior and Redeemer, others will think she is a religious fanatic!  What a shame.  She had such potential, but if she can’t acknowledge Me, I don’t feel obliged to acknowledge her.  Such a shame!”
Actually, this reminds me about the passage I had just written where Simon Peter denied Jesus three times.  Well, Simon Peter still received Salvation, because he learned from his mistakes and realized how terrible it was that he had denied Jesus.  Simon Peter turned his life around where he became someone who readily proclaimed his love for Jesus.  Now I need to be able to do the same.  I need to turn my life around and not hide behind my fear of what people will think of me.  I’m still very weak as a Two-Faced Christian in this area and need to ask that God gives me the willingness to let Him guide my actions and my words, now and always, not just when it’s comfortable.

Since this is an example of the positive influence God has made on my walk with Christ, this may not reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verses.

Communion Christian

And when the hour was come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him.  And He said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer: For I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God.  And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come.  And He took Bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is My Body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of Me.  Likewise also the Cup after supper, saying, This Cup is the New Testament in My Blood which is shed for you.  Luke, Chapter 22, verses 14-20.

These words are very significant to me each time I prepare to have Communion.  They remind me of how Jesus knew what was going to happen to Him and He still went through it anyway…for me.  He gave His life for me, even though I get self-righteous at times and puff up my ego…For me, even though I can get cranky with my family, especially when my blood sugar is low…For me, even though I look at the angles to see how I can keep more of the money I think I deserve rather than giving it to Uncle Sam…For me, even though I have a difficult time giving up control and trusting God to take care of me…For me, even though I have some hateful, jealous thoughts in my mind, at times.  I could go on, but you get the picture.  As a Communion Christian, I’m a very sinful human being and Jesus gave His life for me…and He gave it for you, too!

Since this is an example of the positive influence God has made on my walk with Christ, this may not reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verses.