Reflective Bible Study

If you have ever felt conflict over the role of money in our relationship with God, chances are that you have come across a verse that is found in our passage for this week. The verse is Mark 10:25, and the New Century Version translates it as: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” Matthew and Luke also share this verse as well, and these three gospels share this statement almost word-for-word identical.

When preparing for this podcast episode, I found no shortage of opinions surrounding this verse and teaching. When looking at what other people think about this impossible-sounding teaching, there is a huge range of ideas. Two theories surrounding this passage are worth mentioning to set the stage for this passage.

The first theory regarding this “eye of a needle” reference refers to a narrow gate through the wall in Jerusalem, which a camel would need to be blindfolded to go through, because it believed the opening to be too small. The second, but also similar, theory worth mentioning is that others who hold to this “eye of a needle” gate belief say that this gate would let a camel through, but only if it was completely emptied of its load.

However, while researching this passage and uncovering these theories to help explain Jesus’ words, I couldn’t validate them with other evidence. As far as I am aware, no evidence of such a gate ever existed, and if there was a crack like this in the walls of Jerusalem, I suspect it would have been patched or secured quickly. With how often Jerusalem was attacked and put under siege, a weak point in the wall would need to be patched instead of made into an alternate entrance.

Also, while reading these theories and the disciples’ reaction, I am less inclined to believe in a “needle-gate” theory. I’m doubtful of this angle of interpretation because if a camel could get through the needle-gate, the reaction of those present wouldn’t be one of impossibility. The needle gate theory claimed it was possible for a camel to fit, and those present believed Jesus’ words to be impossible.

However, the really amazing part of this verse about rich people, camels, and the eye of a needle does not come when we look at the verse itself. The amazing truth this verse hints at is found when we look at the context in which this verse is given. To help us unpack this truth, let’s read the context for this event from Mark’s gospel, and discover what Jesus wants to teach us about wealth and the role of money when being a follower. We’ll start reading in Mark, chapter 10, and like we did earlier, we will read from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 17, Mark tell us that:

¹⁷ As Jesus started to leave, a man ran to him and fell on his knees before Jesus. The man asked, “Good teacher, what must I do to have life forever?”

¹⁸ Jesus answered, “Why do you call me good? Only God is good. ¹⁹ You know the commands: ‘You must not murder anyone. You must not be guilty of adultery. You must not steal. You must not tell lies about your neighbor. You must not cheat. Honor your father and mother.’”

²⁰ The man said, “Teacher, I have obeyed all these things since I was a boy.”

²¹ Jesus, looking at the man, loved him and said, “There is one more thing you need to do. Go and sell everything you have, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.”

²² He was very sad to hear Jesus say this, and he left sorrowfully, because he was rich.

We’ll pause briefly in the passage to draw our attention onto a key idea: We don’t learn the end to this man’s story. While he did leave sorrowfully, nothing in this verse stops us from wondering if a week or a month later, after wrestling with Jesus’ words, the man decided to obey Jesus’ instructions. While traditional thought says this man ultimately chose to reject Jesus in favor of keeping his riches, the passage leaves the end of this man’s story open-ended – and this is good news for us.

With this event as a backdrop for a teaching moment, we’ll continue reading as Jesus then turns to His followers because He senses a teaching moment. Picking back up in verse 23, Mark tells us that: 

²³ Then Jesus looked at his followers and said, “How hard it will be for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

²⁴ The followers were amazed at what Jesus said. But he said again, “My children, it is very hard to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”

²⁶ The followers were even more surprised and said to each other, “Then who can be saved?”

²⁷ Jesus looked at them and said, “For people this is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”

We’ll stop reading here, because in what Jesus has shared, we have a full picture of the craziness of Jesus’ words and the response of those who were present to hear them. The most basic reading of this idea is that it is easier for a camel, which is something large enough for a person to ride, going through the eye of a needle – which is an opening designed for only thread, and in most cases, only large enough for a strand or two of thread. Maybe needles had bigger eyes in Jesus’ day, but even still, needles were used to make and mend clothing, and they needed to be small to go through fabric.

The reaction of Jesus’ followers is perfect in this situation. They ask, “Then who can be saved?” Using the metaphor of a camel and the eye of a needle set the bar so high that it was truly impossible. While the context relates to wealthy people, the immediate context for these verses is everyone.

Jesus concludes with a promise: “For people this is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”

The big message Jesus wants the disciples to learn is that the best idea we could come up with as a solution to the sin problem would still not be enough. This big message says that the best, most selfless actions from our best people is still not good enough to gain entrance into God’s kingdom.

However, while dashing our hopes of being able to save ourselves, Jesus quickly follows up with the promise that God can turn our impossible into being possible with Him. In the rich man’s case, while he obeyed the law, it’s likely that he hadn’t learned the love within the law, and that his money had been clouding his vision. Generosity was the key that could grow a loving outward-focused character in this potential disciple’s life.

But the real question many people have with this entire event is about who should pay attention to Jesus’ instruction for this “rich, young ruler” to sell everything and give it away to the poor. Is this an instruction for everyone, is it an instruction for only those who are rich, or is it an instruction for a specific person in a specific context?

While you might have a quick and clear answer from these three options, I am inclined to believe that Jesus’ focus is different from all three of these categories, and it is more based on the theme of what Jesus shared rather than on the specific message.

The really big truth I see in Jesus’ instruction for this almost-a-disciple, and in what He shares with the disciples, is that we must learn to be generous and dependant on God. Dependence on God is often harder to learn if you have always had money, and if one has always been poor or had to work hard to get by, being generous might not come easily.

For those who started off with nothing and earned their way into wealth, it is impossible for them – but just as impossible for each of us. For every human who has ever lived, salvation is impossible. That is why we must learn to depend on God and to lean on Him.

This truth makes our passage’s focus be on something other than the amount of money we have saved or haven’t saved. This truth is a challenge for us to depend on God for His help. It is also a challenge for us to be generous like He is generous.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always open these challenges by saying, intentionally seek God first in your life and learn to depend on God above everything and everyone else. If the thought of giving money away makes you feel uneasy, perhaps it is because your money has inched its way into a space of your heart that God was designed to fill. Perhaps Jesus’ challenge to this rich man is a challenge for you to give some of your money away.

However, before you give anything away, prayerfully study the Bible for yourself and don’t take my word – or anyone else’s word about this. While reading about Jesus from gospels, listen for a message that God will impress upon your heart and follow that. It is better for you to follow what the Bible says and model the love we see present within Jesus’ life rather than take other people’s ideas without personally studying them out.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or give up on where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

For our episode this week, I want to share with you a parable Jesus shared that sounds very strange in my mind. While this parable is not the strangest parable I have read in the gospels, this parable would easily fit into a top five list of strange parables Jesus told if I were to create such a list.

However, while this is a strange parable, we don’t have to wonder what Jesus meant by sharing it. Luckily for us, Luke prefaces this parable by telling us why Jesus shared it, and in both the parable and its introduction, we see hints at how God responds to prayer. Our passage, with its strange parable, is found in Luke, chapter 18, and we will read it from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 1, Luke tells us:

¹ Then Jesus used this story to teach his followers that they should always pray and never lose hope. ² “In a certain town there was a judge who did not respect God or care about people. ³ In that same town there was a widow who kept coming to this judge, saying, ‘Give me my rights against my enemy.’ ⁴ For a while the judge refused to help her. But afterwards, he thought to himself, ‘Even though I don’t respect God or care about people, ⁵ I will see that she gets her rights. Otherwise she will continue to bother me until I am worn out.’”

⁶ The Lord said, “Listen to what the unfair judge said. ⁷ God will always give what is right to his people who cry to him night and day, and he will not be slow to answer them. ⁸ I tell you, God will help his people quickly. But when the Son of Man comes again, will he find those on earth who believe in him?”

With that closing question, this parable ends. Many Bibles call this parable The Parable of the Persistent Widow, and in my mind, this parable is an odd one for Jesus to have shared. In this parable, it appears as though Jesus compared God the Father, who loves us enough to send Jesus to redeem us, with an uncaring judge who doesn’t respect God or other people. After giving us these two contrasting characters, Jesus then challenges us to look for similarities between the two.

However, before we get too caught up on how Jesus misaligned these two characters in His illustration, let’s bring our focus back around to how Luke introduces the parable. Luke says in verse 1, “Jesus used this story to teach his followers that they should always pray and never lose hope.”

It seems like the goal Jesus has for this parable is to teach His followers to be persistent in their prayers. Perhaps even though we know that God is not like that uncaring judge, we might feel that way if we pray, and pray, and pray and don’t feel as though we have received an answer.

But if we look closely with how Jesus concludes this passage, we see an interesting paradox. In verse 7, we read Jesus giving us a promise when He says, “God will always give what is right to his people who cry to him night and day, and he will not be slow to answer them.”

The paradox in this verse is that those who are persistent in their prayers will receive quick answers – but then it seems as though God might stall answering if we are not persistent. I have no idea what prompts the responses God gives, or why He chooses the answers He gives to prayers, but I do know there are four possible responses He gives when we pray:

The first possible response to prayer is giving us a “Yes” answer to our request. By far, this is our preferred answer, but it seems as though God only gives us the “yes” answer if He knows it will benefit us or those around us. The promise Jesus shared is that “God will always give what is right to His people”, so if we receive a yes, then we can trust God knows that our request will benefit us and those around us.

The second possible response to prayer is giving us a “No” answer to our request. In some ways, this might seem like the least preferred answer, but actually it isn’t. For some people, receiving a clear “no” is actually a blessing because they trust God has something better in mind for them. Jesus’ promise that “God will always give what is right to His people” filters the requests that are answered with a “no” as being outside what is right. While we might want the things we are requesting, God can see how these things would not be an ultimate blessing to us in the long run.

The third possible response to prayer is giving us a “No, but here is something better” answer to our request. In my own experience, this is usually the response I receive. Perhaps I don’t know how to pray, or maybe I simply pray too small, but once I realized this possible response to prayer, I am able to recognize that many of the times it feels like God is saying “no”, He may really be saying, “No, but here is something better”. When I claim Jesus’ promise that “God will always give what is right to His people”, I can trust that God has something better in mind when I don’t get exactly what I want. For this response and the next one, it’s up to me to learn patience and to not lose hope that God has something great in mind to give me instead.

The fourth and final possible response to prayer is giving us a “Not yet” or a “Wait” answer to our request. This is probably the most painful response we can receive because we want what we want and we want it now! However, a “not yet” answer to prayer is not a “no”, it is simply a delayed “Yes” or a delayed “Here is something better”. While I have no idea when the right time will be, I do have the promise that “God will always give what is right to His people”. Part of God giving us what is right is answering our requests at the right time and in the right way.

The last part of the promise Jesus shares tells us that God “will not be slow to answer” our requests. This means that even if we feel like we are talking to the ceiling without any luck, our prayers are passing through time and space and they ultimately reach God on His throne. God answers our prayers quickly, so if we don’t feel like we have received a response, chances are that the answer is either a “No, but here is something else”, or a “Not yet”.

Both these responses have an element of waiting involved. The “something else” God may give us might not be what we had hoped for, but in time we will see how His response was best for us in the long run.

However, the promise ends with a touch of pessimism. Jesus finishes verse 8 off with a question saying, “But when the Son of Man comes again, will he find those on earth who believe in him?”

God is quick to answer the prayers of His people, but with the way the world and culture is heading, we are speeding towards a place where people might simply give up on Him. God wants to answer our prayers with what is best for us, but if no one is praying to Him, there will be no prayers that He can answer.

Does God need our prayers to help us?

Easily I can answer that with a “No”, but God values our freedom of choice and our free will over forcing good into our lives. Even though it might bring Him pain to watch, He will stay out of our lives if we choose to reject Him, and if we are indifferent to Him, then any blessings He gives may be more subtle than clear.

God doesn’t want to stay an arm’s length away from us. He wants to be right next to us. But He will only come near to us when we ask Him to and move towards Him.

As we close out another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and claim the promise He gave us through this strange parable that “God will always give what is right to His people”.

Also, as I regularly challenge you to do, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself, with the goal of learning directly from the Holy Spirit and the message about God that has been preserved through history.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or move away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

When reading the gospels, sometimes Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John surprise me about the events they chose to include in each of their respective gospels. While Matthew, Mark, and Luke all share many similar stories, John takes a different approach with his gospel, and he shares many unique events that the other gospels for some reason or another, chose not to include.

Of all the events that John includes that the other three gospels excluded, the event I am most surprised about is the resurrection of Lazarus. For some reason, only John’s gospel included it, and I can only speculate that one of the primary reasons the other three gospel writers didn’t include it was because it was such a well known event that it would have been redundant for those in the first century who were well aware of what happened.

However, when reading about Lazarus’ resurrection, an interesting secondary theme appears, and this theme is both subtle and powerful. Let’s read excerpts from John’s gospel and draw out this theme together. Our passage is found in the gospel of John, chapter 11, and we will read it using the Contemporary English Version. Starting in verse 1, John opens this event by telling us that:

^1-2 A man by the name of Lazarus was sick in the village of Bethany. He had two sisters, Mary and Martha. This was the same Mary who later poured perfume on the Lord’s head and wiped his feet with her hair. ³ The sisters sent a message to the Lord and told him that his good friend Lazarus was sick.

⁴ When Jesus heard this, he said, “His sickness won’t end in death. It will bring glory to God and his Son.”

The first clue to this secondary theme in this event is that Jesus says that Lazarus’ sickness won’t end in death. Instead, it will bring glory to God and His Son.

I’m sure that when the disciples and messengers heard Jesus’ response, they were relieved, but what happens next is startling. Continuing in verse 5, we read:

⁵ Jesus loved Martha and her sister and brother. ⁶ But he stayed where he was for two more days.

In my mind, the two verses we just read don’t add up. Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, but He stayed where He was for two more days. In my mind, it doesn’t seem like love to stay away from your friends who are hurting – especially since John doesn’t give us a reason why.

After the two-day delay, we pick back up reading in verse 7:

⁷ Then he said to his disciples, “Now we will go back to Judea.”

⁸ “Teacher,” they said, “the people there want to stone you to death! Why do you want to go back?”

When reading this portion of the event, part of me wonders if the disciples thought Jesus wouldn’t go back to Judah to see His friends. After two days with no movement in that direction, the consensus among the disciples may have been that no direct intervention was necessary for Lazarus’ benefit.

But Jesus answers them in the next verses by saying:

⁹ [Jesus answered,] “Aren’t there twelve hours in each day? If you walk during the day, you will have light from the sun, and you won’t stumble. ¹⁰ But if you walk during the night, you will stumble, because you don’t have any light.” ¹¹ Then he told them, “Our friend Lazarus is asleep, and I am going there to wake him up.”

¹² They replied, “Lord, if he is asleep, he will get better.” ¹³ Jesus really meant that Lazarus was dead, but they thought he was talking only about sleep.

¹⁴ Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead! ¹⁵ I am glad that I wasn’t there, because now you will have a chance to put your faith in me. Let’s go to him.”

¹⁶ Thomas, whose nickname was “Twin,” said to the other disciples, “Come on. Let’s go, so we can die with him.”

I find it interesting that Jesus begins by saying that Lazarus’ sickness won’t end in death, but here just two days later, Jesus now talks about Lazarus sleeping. However, when the disciples don’t catch the metaphor, Jesus has to plainly tell them: “Lazarus is dead!” (v. 14)

Here is the second clue into our secondary theme hidden in this passage. Jesus seems to talk about death on two separate levels – or He has a bigger picture in mind when discussing death. To learn which it is, let’s continue reading, but let’s jump down in the story to Martha’s conversation with Jesus.

Picking back up in verse 20, we read:

²⁰ When Martha heard that Jesus had arrived, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed in the house. ²¹ Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. ²² Yet even now I know that God will do anything you ask.”

²³ Jesus told her, “Your brother will live again!”

²⁴ Martha answered, “I know that he will be raised to life on the last day, when all the dead are raised.”

²⁵ Jesus then said, “I am the one who raises the dead to life! Everyone who has faith in me will live, even if they die. ²⁶ And everyone who lives because of faith in me will never really die. Do you believe this?”

²⁷ “Yes, Lord!” she replied. “I believe that you are Christ, the Son of God. You are the one we hoped would come into the world.”

The subtle, but not so subtle, theme that Martha picks up on is that Jesus had promised through the messengers that Lazarus’ sickness wouldn’t end in death, but since her brother had died, Jesus must be talking from an eternal perspective. In her conversation with Jesus, Martha demonstrates amazing faith – and she points us to the biggest picture we can imagine that can only be seen through looking at eternity.

But in this conversation, Jesus still sounds like he is still talking about death on two different levels. First He tells Martha that her brother would live again, but then He starts talking about those who have faith in Him dying but not really “dying”. The fact that Jesus says He is the one who raises the dead back to life, but those who believe in Him will never really die is a contradiction – if we understand Jesus to only be talking about death on one level.

This must then mean that Jesus has two different perspectives or angles on death that He refers to in this passage and conversation. Earlier, Jesus tried describing death like a sleep, but He wasn’t successful using this metaphor with the disciples. Jesus then tells Martha that her brother will live again, but she only understands this statement from the big-picture, future resurrection that God’s people will experience.

In each case, dying is dying, but in the first case, the death is equivalent to a sleep that only Jesus can break. In the second case, the death is final. Martha had her perspective correct when she understood Jesus’ promise that Lazarus would ultimately be alive in heaven with God at the end of time, but she missed the immediate promise of Jesus’ words that Lazarus’ death was simply a sleep that he needed Jesus to wake him from.

Lazarus was dead. He wasn’t in a coma or simply unconscious. The way bodies were prepared for burial in that culture would have killed an unconscious person. After four days in the tomb, everyone was certain that Lazarus was truly dead. No one present had any doubts to the contrary.

We can understand the perspective of those present in this passage when they talk about Jesus on the way to the tomb. The crowd says in verse 37, “He gives sight to the blind. Why couldn’t he have kept Lazarus from dying?” and Martha pushes back against the idea of opening the tomb in verse 39 by telling Jesus, “Lord, you know that Lazarus has been dead four days, and there will be a bad smell.”

When we think about death, the secondary theme of this passage is that until the resurrection happens on the last day, everyone who dies with their faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus will simply sleep waiting for Him to awaken them. These people technically will never die because they have a future life waiting for them with God.

But those who have died who have rejected God, Jesus, or chosen to believe in something or someone other than Jesus will die, and they will face a death in the future that does not have a resurrection promised.

While the primary theme of this passage relates to Jesus being the Life-Giver and being someone who is worthy of our faith, the secondary theme of this passage tells us that death in this life is more like a sleep, and that after we take our last breath, the next sound we hear will be Jesus waking us up.

With this said, here are the challenges I will leave you with as we close out this podcast episode:

As I always challenge you to do in one way or another, intentionally choose to place your faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus. Choose to live your life in a way that pleases Him, because when death-sleep comes, it won’t matter whether we stay in the ground until resurrection or whether we immediately go to Heaven. The only thing that will have mattered is how we stood with God at the moment of our last breath.

As always, pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn the truth God wants to teach you. While death is a sad subject for many, God wants to draw your attention to the future life He has promised each of us.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

Probably one of the most famous illustrations that Jesus ever shared can be found in the passage we are covering in this episode. The parable of the prodigal son is one of the clearest examples of God’s love and His character when faced with rebellious children.

However, while the name suggests that the son who ran away is the main character, when we read this parable with God in mind, it’s possible, perhaps even probable, that a different character in this parable is the real “main” character. In some ways, this parable might be more accurate if its title focused on the character Jesus intended us to focus on.

The prodigal son parable we will be reading is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter fifteen, and we will read it from the New International Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 11:

¹¹ Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 

Let’s pause here after the first verse to point our attention to the detail that Jesus opens with. The first character that is identified is the father. He is the “man with two sons”. Let’s continue reading to learn what happens. Continuing from verse 12:

¹² The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

¹³ “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. ¹⁴ After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵ So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. ¹⁶ He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

¹⁷ “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! ¹⁸ I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. ¹⁹ I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ ²⁰ So he got up and went to his father.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

²¹ “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

²² “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. ²³ Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. ²⁴ For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

²⁵ “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. ²⁶ So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. ²⁷ ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’

²⁸ “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. ²⁹ But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. ³⁰ But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’

³¹ “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. ³² But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

This parable is powerful. In it we see the father in an almost no win situation. The youngest son basically insults him by asking for his inheritance before his father’s death – and with his inheritance, he leaves town which is a visible rejection of their family. For a time, the father is only with the older son.

However, after the younger son returns home, the older son reveals his heart by refusing to go in. When his father asks him why, the older son says that he basically feels as though he has been equivalent to an obedient slave, and nothing more.

In some ways, this parable should be titled “The Parable of the Loving Father”. This title would present a clearer meaning for those interested in seeing the focus.

But this parable’s current title is also significant. By drawing our focus onto the younger son who left but also returned, we place the focus on God’s power and willingness to forgive. Following what would have been the biggest insult a child could ever give to their parents, the father in this story forgives and celebrates the moment he has with his son who had returned.

Neither one of the children understand this. The older son is bitter because in his mind, the younger son should be punished not rewarded. But what the older son misses in his mind is the fact that the younger son has already been punished by the world. The reward the younger son receives is because he returned to his senses and decided to come home. That decision is one of the primary reasons the father wants to celebrate.

The younger son doesn’t understand this celebration either. He has matured enough to realize his offense and knows that he doesn’t even deserve to make eye contact with his father. While he begins his apology for his earlier actions, the father basically ignores what is said. The young man’s posture and attitude has said enough. The father can clearly see that his younger son has learned from his mistakes and that education is worth celebrating.

For each of us, we can learn from the father’s celebration. We can learn that celebrating can and should happen when people make a decision to return to God. When someone has turned or returned to God, either through a profession of faith or through baptism, heaven celebrates – and we can too. Also, when someone has learned a valuable life lesson and has decided to repent from their sin and mistakes, heaven celebrates – and we can too.

With both of these reasons to celebrate, as we close out our episode for this week, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally place God first in your life. If you see someone else make a decision for God, celebrate with them for their decision.

Also, as I regularly challenge you to do, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to continue growing your relationship with God. God wants a personal relationship with you, but He is waiting like the Father for us to return to Him. Other people cannot drag you into a relationship with God; it is instead 100% our choice whether we will return to Him and grow a relationship with Him.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or turn away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!