The Secret

Yesterday I wrote that union with God is the end and purpose of all religion -- all the disciplines and practices of any religion are designed to bring us closer to that end.  Jesus met the woman at the well, who, despite having had five husbands, had just one question:  "Which is the 'right' religion?"  Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.

Jesus' answer is very interesting:  "You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."

I think His answer to the Samaritan woman is just as relevant to our world today.  Some worship what they do not know, even though it is possible to know the Truth through the Gift of the Holy Spirit (see John 16).  But regardless of 'where' we worship -- on this mountain or that, or on neither -- those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth.

That is the secret, the key, to true religion -- worshipping God in spirit and in truth.  But how is that supposed to happen?  How do we get from where we are now (perhaps having had 5 marriages ourselves) to worshipping in spirit and in truth?  The answer is John 4:10 and 4:14:  If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ''Give Me a drink," you would have asked Him, and he would have given you living water......whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.

Probably all of Scripture points to this passage -- this is the 'secret' of eternal life and the aim of all religion -- the fountain of water (which is the Holy Spirit) welling up inside of us, cleansing, healing, teaching, leading, guiding, soothing, changing us into the spirit and image of Jesus Christ, the perfect and only true union of God and man. 

We are not meant to do it on our own -- by "imitating" Jesus, for example, although if we mean by "imitating Him" actually drawing closer to Him in spirit and in truth, that may be one way to express the truth.  Rather, the secret to eternal joy is asking for it -- if you knew the gift of God and who is was who asked you....you would have asked Him....

People do not want to believe it is that "easy," so to speak.  They have been taught that we have to "earn" eternal life --and that does seem rational, after all.  But Jesus revealed His Secret to a woman who had no chance to earn anything related to the spiritual life -- at least in the eyes of the world.  God sees things differently, however.  She asked, and she received that which she asked for -- in fact, she became so filled with the Spirit that she became the first evangelist.  Jesus told the apostles that the harvest was ripe as they gazed on all the villagers flocking out to see and hear Him because of the woman's testimony. 

The "little ones" are those who are willing to ask, those who know they are 'poor in spirit,' and can earn nothing of 'reward.'  It is not about "reward;" it is about relationship, just as an infant cannot earn a reward from his parents -- but the relationship is eternal, nevertheless.  We never stop being mothers and fathers to our children, whether they speak to us or not.  And the same is true of God; He continually desires communion with us in spirit and in truth -- but He will take whatever it is we are able to give Him.  He wants us to know Him intimately, but if we choose to remain at a distance (on this mountain), He will still pursue us, just as Jesus pursued the woman at the well, offering her the fountain of eternal life.