Wednesday Bible Blurb “All In” 3 5 2025
Most people love to go swimming, go to the beach or to a pool and get all into the water. We take for granted our blessings at times and just go about our business of cooling down in the Summer with a nice swim in the pool, or a high mountain lake fed by snow melt. My two friends were both blind from birth. Swimming was a difficulty for them both, but they wanted to be like everyone else and swim laps for exercise at the college pool. I was the swim instructor, and I was given a challenge, teach them to swim laps in a straight line without being able to see where they were going. I could teach them the fundamentals of swimming but how would I teach them to swim in a straight line when they were blind? How would they know when they reached the end of the pool and not hit their head on the wall?
David and Goliath (Not their real names) were eager learners, and we devised a plan. The edge of the college pool was at water level. So, I taught them to swim by the side of the pool and to touch the pool edge with every stroke. This one little innovation kept them swimming straight. But how to not swim into the wall at the end of the pool? Math, we started to count strokes and soon they stopped just short of hurting themselves at the end of the pool. Both David and Goliath became very good at swimming and were able to enjoy themselves while getting some exercise. Soon they wanted to race each other across the 25-yard pool. But that was not all as they both wanted to learn how to dive off the diving board.
How do I teach blind folks to get up on the one-meter diving board, walk out to the end while it bounces, not to fall off and then jump into the pool? They were “all in” when it came to swimming. Literally they were in the pool 2-3 times a week and soon I taught them how to jump from the diving board. Our procedure was they would walk out onto the end of the board and wait for my signal for them to jump into the 12-foot-deep pool. As lifeguard and instructor, I was their eyes for a safe jump. They loved their newfound skill, but it was not enough. Soon, they wanted to know how to dive into the pool headfirst. Talk about being “all in” to a new activity, David and Goliath soon were diving headfirst into the pool.
Are we all in when it comes to our worship and love of God? Our swimmers David and Goliath understood “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Heb. 11:1 [NKJV]). They could not see the pool. They could not see the end of the pool. They could not see the diving board. They could not see the water as both were blind from birth. They would wait at the end of the diving board for me to tell them it was safe to jump. For David and Goliath swimming and diving was the literal act of faith in the evidence of not being able to see the water. They dove in headfirst anyway. Are we faithful in our daily lives? Do we dive headfirst into the gospel of the Kingdom of God without being able to see the future? Do we trust God enough to do exactly what He says without even understanding why? Are we all in for the gospel of the Kingdom of God?
We all know of the history and the faith of the three friends of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego. The great king Nebuchadnezzar had set up a golden image of himself and all were to worship him. The king said to them, “’Now if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?’ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” (Dan. 3:15b-18). They were all in the furnace and God saved them. The king was astonished and said, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.” (Dan. 3:25). They could see the fire but had the faith to withstand the king and Jesus walked them through their trial of fire.
What about Daniel and the lions den? Because Daniel was faithful to God, even when he knew he could be killed for worshipping the true God, Daniel prayed three times a day in plain view. Do we pray three times a day? King Darius regretted his own actions and fasted all night for the delivery of Daniel. “Now the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; and no musicians were brought before him. Also his sleep went from him.Then the king arose very early in the morning and went in haste to the den of lions. And when he came to the den, he cried out with a lamenting voice to Daniel. The king spoke, saying to Daniel, ‘Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?’Then Daniel said to the king, ‘O king, live forever! My God sent His angel and shut the lions’ mouths, so that they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent before Him; and also, O king, I have done no wrong before you.’” (Daniel 6:18-22). Are we ready to be all in the lion’s den of faith like Daniel? He did not know if God would save him from the mouths of the lions. It was the “substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Heb. 11:1b).
Jesus was also all in. On his last day of life as a human “He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew Golgotha, where they crucified Him…Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” (John 19:17-19). Jesus was all in to save us, so much so that He went willingly to the cross to die for us. (John 10:17). Jesus said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” (Matt. 16:24). Are we willing to have the faith to deny ourselves and take up the cross of Jesus and follow him? Are we all in and ready to dive headfirst into the unknown of faith and follow Him?
Are we all in to serve and have faith in our God? Joshua was all in. “And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the river, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Josh. 24:15). Are we willing to put our former self behind us and follow Jesus? Joshua took the leap of faith and so should we.
David and Goliath wanted a diving board higher than one meter. Soon, they asked to learn to dive off the three-meter-high dive of faith. I was scared to teach them how to do this. They would have to climb the ladder blind. Walk to the end of the three-meter bouncing diving board blind. If either would stumble or fall off the diving board, they could be killed. Faith is an amazing thing to see. It was not long before both David and Goliath had learned to not only jump off the three-meter board into the unseen water, but both also learned how to dive blindly from the three-meter board. Yes, there were some hard-hitting belly flops but faith without diving is dead. They were all in to swimming and diving and inspired many others to accomplish more in the pool.
How faithful are we to dive all in, blindly to follow Jesus? Are we all in like David and Goliath the blind swimmers? “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every wight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Heb. 12:1-2).
It’s all in or nothing. Like Joshua and his household, we should be all in to serve the LORD.
