They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.” (John 4:42, NIV)
If you don’t have caddies where you play and you’re not engaging in high level competition, you’re most likely to employ a caddie in a golf destination. Think St. Andrews or Bandon Dunes. Plenty of other places offer caddies, too, of course, and they are there chiefly to assist those who are visiting and who need help finding their way around unfamiliar territory.
Included in the unfamiliar are the greens. Particularly if they are classic old greens, they will include surprising slopes and subtle movements. On your own, you’ll be frustrated. With the help of an experienced caddie, you might make more putts than you can ever remember making before.
But there is a bottom line in your relationship with any caddie. Even when you know he has experience you do not have, you are with every putt putting him to the test. Can you trust his reads, or do you find you’re more confident on your own?
With Christ, his trustworthiness is never in question. His motive is pure; his character is flawless; his words are wholly dependable.When Jesus sat down with the woman at the well in John 4, it did not take long before he was speaking specifically into her life’s circumstances. He knew things he wasn’t “supposed” to know. But all of them proved true, and the woman was sure she had met the Messiah.
From the well, she returned to her village and started spreading the news: “This man told me everything I ever did.” Her listeners were met with the same decision she was: Could they trust the man?
You see, even if I my caddie gave me every right read, and I told you to hire him tomorrow, you’d still put him to the test for yourself. With every putt you hit in the first few holes, you’d measure your trust in this expert knowledge.
Faith always comes from two directions: The one to be trusted and the one doing the trusting. With Christ, his trustworthiness is never in question. His motive is pure; his character is flawless; his words are wholly dependable. And yet we each are faced with the same decision. Will, when we have heard him for ourselves, believe him? Will we declare him to be the Savior of the world?
We could have ended today on that note. But there is one more question for those who do believe. It’s this: Will we, like the woman, tell others about this man, Jesus? If we have been affected as surely as she was, the village around us should know. The people in our club, our neighborhood, our clinic, our school, and our workplace should be given the chance to hear and believe for themselves. And we are positioned to make this happen.
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Jeff Hopper
October 2, 2019
Copyright 2019 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
Photo by Daria Shevtsova on Unsplash