By Jeff Scoggins

A man approached a wise old sage and asked, “How do I know if I will be saved?”

The sage replied, “Are you a Christian?”

“Yes,” said the man.

“How do you know?”

“I believe in Jesus,” replied the man.

“How?” asked the sage.

“How?” The man looked confused, but the sage offered no help. “Well, I believe Jesus existed and that he died to save me from my sins.”

“That is a fact,” encouraged the sage, but then stopped again, waiting expectantly.

The man squirmed, unsure of what to say next. Finally he blurted out, “I read my Bible every day.”

“Good,” said the sage. “How?”

“How?” the man exclaimed, perplexed. The sage nodded.

“With my eyes going back and forth across the page,” retorted the man, not really intending sarcasm but growing frustrated.

“What do you find in your Bible concerning Jesus?” asked the sage.

“Oh, I can answer that,” replied the man, encouraged. “I see the way Jesus was. I see how he healed the sick. I see what he told people to do. I see how he loved people. I see how he died for us.”

“I see,” said the sage. “Would you describe yourself as someone who enjoys research, knowledge, and understanding? Do you like to figure out problems and be able to defend what you believe and do?”

“Right on!” the man grinned. “How did you know?”

“Because you’re speaking in past tense,” said the sage.

“What does that mean?” asked the man.

“It means you are a detective investigating a dead man.”

“What?”

“That’s why you ask if you are saved. You believe in a past-tense God.”

“I’m not following you.”

“I suggest that you become a suitor instead of a detective,” said the sage.

“A suitor?”

“Yes, Jesus is alive.”

“I know that!”

“If you believed that you wouldn’t have asked me about the state of your salvation.”

“I believe Jesus is alive!” said the man emphatically.

“No, you accept that as a past-tense fact. You don’t believe it as a present reality.”

The man sputtered, but all that came out was, “Huh?”

“Bear with me a moment and let me present to you a hypothetical situation,” said the sage. “Suppose a man asked you, ‘Do you think my wife will take me back?’ You ask for more information. He says, ‘My wife and I were separated during the war. I thought she had died. Several years ago I found out that she was alive and living just down the street from me. People tell me that she never remarried out of faithfulness to me. I really enjoy reading her old letters. Do you think she will take me back?’ Tell me, what would you say to that man?”

“That’s ridiculous,” snapped the man.

“So it is,” replied the sage. Then he spoke slowly and deliberately.

“Jesus is alive! Go to him and reconnect. Become a suitor striving to know your long lost love. Very soon you will not ask me that terrible question.”