Patty sat quietly on her chair listening closely to the preacher. Tonight it seemed as though there were just the two of them in the room. He was speaking on John 4, where Jesus met the woman at the well. Suddenly, pointing his finger in her direction, he quoted verse 26, “I that speak unto thee am He.” For a moment Patty felt uneasy. Was he really pointing at her? What if it were God speaking to her? She was again occupied with the message.
She enjoyed hearing this man preach, though at times he could look as fierce as a lion. But what she did not like was when he would ask the young people after the meeting if they knew the Lord Jesus as their Saviour. Tonight Patty felt uneasy. After the meeting was over she waited for a chance to slip out the door unnoticed.
As she reached the door to leave, the familiar voice of the preacher startled her. “Good evening. I’m so glad to see you tonight.” She hesitated and then turned, afraid that now he would ask her if she were saved. She knew that she could not say “yes,” but she did not want to say “no.” Before he could say anything else she turned back and hurried out the door and down the steps.
For days and nights those words kept coming back to her, “I that speak unto thee am He.” Was God really speaking to her? She thought about all the times she had gone to Sunday school and of all the verses, and even chapters, she had memorized. When she was alone and honest with herself, she knew she was a sinner. God was stirring her to want the peace that He alone can give, that well of water that springs into everlasting life. He was truly speaking to her, and now she was ready to listen, just like the woman at the well. She was ready to have the drink that would quench her thirst for peace forever.
Sometime later she was at a meeting when the same preacher spoke, but this time she waited for him at the door. Shaking hands with him, she felt suddenly shy. But when he asked if she had peace with God about her sins, her answer tumbled out happily, “Oh, yes, now I am saved.”
God had done the work, and it was settled forever. Her faith was grounded on the One who would never let her down. He had given His very life on Calvary’s cross and shed His blood for her sins. She belonged to Him, and He promised never to let her go.
If you have any doubts, get them settled now. Satan will whisper many things to make you feel good about yourself and tell you everything is all right—you’re not a sinner. But God says, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves” (1 John 1:88If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. (1 John 1:8)), and “the soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezek. 18:2020The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. (Ezekiel 18:20)). What about your sins? Come now and find peace. It’s yours, if you will listen and believe.
ML-02/06/1983