Have you ever wondered what happened in the lives of those who were touched by Jesus? After Jesus had spoken to the Samaritan woman at the well, did she go home and continue sinning (John 4:1-26)? Was the life of the woman who washed Jesus' feet with her own tears and dried them with her own hair transformed from the moment she knew her sins were forgiven (Luke 7:36-50)?
I imagine them going home, still buzzing from their experience, telling people that they had met with the living God.
But then night falls, and the demands that were placed on these women by the men who used them - the men these women LET themselves be used by, are once again too strong for any physical or emotional desire to overcome. Were these women able to turn completely from their sins, keeping that one encounter with Jesus branded on their memories? Or did that memory fade away with time, something of a distant dream? Did doubt creep in, the cold fearful shock of waking up once again to the evil world they lived in, a chill that was too paralysing and painful to fight against?
I imagine the difficulty trying to explain to those who had not met Jesus how precious and valuable life had become to them, the new understanding that to be forgiven meant to seek a new, pure life in the presence of the Lord. I imagine the pain of guilt when they discovered that there is no possible way that we as humans cannot sin.

When God touches our lives, we will be forever condemned in our every sin. How else could it be when the light reveals the shadows and darkness in our lives? We cannot escape being reminded of the power of the Lord once we have realised that He is our Saviour. Perhaps this is what Jesus meant when He commanded that all who wanted to follow Him must deny themselves and take up their cross daily (Luke 9:23). The walk of a Christian is a narrow path (Matthew 7:13); it is the most difficult walk a human being can choose.
Even today, in an age where we have access to a growing number of Bible translations and books explaining what the Bible is telling us, youtube videos and podcasts with teachings on Christianity, we find it no less difficult than the sinners of Jesus' time, when there was no New Testament, and even access to the Old Testament was restricted to certain people.
Perhaps those who met Jesus face to face found it easier to follow his teachings on a daily basis, because they had experienced the simplicity of a grace and mercy that goes against our modern day noise of science and knowledge. Certainly, they would have had their struggles, their own fears and doubts. But their joy at being forgiven seems to have been so overwhelming that they must surely have been touched in such a way that would stay with them for the rest of their lives.

So where is our joy at being forgiven? When will we come back to the simple faith that pleased Jesus so much? His parting words were so often in praise of the people's faith that brought forgiveness. Not once do we read of how Jesus pronounces a person saved because of their knowledge and understanding of the Word. In fact, such understanding can bring an arrogance that hardens our hearts, just like it did to the Pharisees.

I am learning this very lesson. All attempts at understanding our Creator will fail, for He is too mighty and too great to be understood. If we understood Him, there would be no need for that simple faith. We do not need books or podcasts, or teachings to teach us the grace of God. We can learn from them, and develop a knowledge of what God has done in the Bible and in other people's lives, and that in itself may trigger a deeper desire to know more of God, to experience more of Him in our lives, to feel His presence and to admire His forever enduring love. Perhaps we do not even need the Bible for that matter - for it is not an analysis of Himself that God wants, and no analysis will bring us closer to God.
The Bible is a precious gift, but we must be careful lest we worship the search for a better understanding of God over the search for God Himself.

It all boils down to one thing: that simple faith that is seen in the women described above, because they were able to understand the simple truth that they were sinners. Being humble is being simple. And this is all that God requires to be able to forgive us and work in our lives.
If only we could be humble enough to be simple!