A Grateful Heartනියැදිය

Let's Not Forget

Every encounter Jesus had while He was on earth was very important. Take, for example, His meeting with the rich young man. Jesus offered him the chance to follow Him and be His disciple, but the young man chose his riches. A fatal decision that prevented him from being called a child of God. “Just then, a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” … Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me. When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. Matthew 19:16, 21–22 (NIV)

In the case of Zacchaeus, a wealthy chief tax collector, a dishonest and ill-intentioned man, whom Jesus called and sat down to eat with, things were different. Zacchaeus opened his heart and received salvation, and on his own initiative, he decided to give half of his possessions to the poor and pay back four times the amount he had cheated from anyone. He received the salvation Jesus offered him. “But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now, I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount. Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.” Luke 19:8-9 (NIV)

On the other hand, we have Jesus’ meeting with the Samaritan woman. With great humility, tired and thirsty, Jesus asked the woman for a drink of water. His request was meant to offer her the water of life. “Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” John 4:10 (NIV) Jesus revealed to this woman that He was the Messiah, the Christ. What was her reaction? To go and tell the people of her town that she had found the Messiah and to receive the living water He offered. “Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words, many more became believers.” John 4:39–41 (NIV)

It's good for us to go back to the moment we first met the Master. Let's look at how we were then; let’s remember our experience with the Savior. Let's thank Him because we didn't turn our backs on Him like the rich young man did. Let's be grateful that He invited us to dine with Him and that He allowed us to see our need to receive His salvation.

Let's go back to that time when we were thirsty, without hope, and without God in the world. Let’s think about all that God did so that we would meet His Son, even when we were still dead in our sins and offenses.

Some people have allowed time, routine, and even religious practice to cover their saving experience with cobwebs. That sounds harsh, but it's true. That moment of romance, of rejoicing in knowing they were loved, forgiven, and saved, became such a distant memory that what Jesus pointed out to the church in Ephesus has happened to them: “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.” Revelation 2:4 (NIV)

Let's be thankful for the unconditional love of our Savior, and let's not forget that loving encounter where He reached us, redeemed us, and made us accepted in the Beloved One.