Luke 22:42
Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.
Daddy, if I am really good, can I have ice cream?
Mommy, if I clean my room, can I go to the park?
If I exercise all week, I can eat out on Saturday!
If I lose weight, I can go on vacation.
There is nothing wrong with rewards and incentives. We all respond better when we get something for our efforts. If you don’t believe that, ask yourself how long you would continue working at your job without a paycheck!
There is one place where rewards and incentives don’t apply. God! No matter how good we are we cannot earn our grace. We cannot earn our salvation. We can’t even gain blessings and the answers we want to prayers for our “goodness.”
How can I say this with such boldness? That is easy. Can you come up with anyone full of more goodness than Jesus? He is perfect. He is blameless. He is sinless. He asked for one thing, he really wanted out. He didn’t want to suffer. His will was to find another way. He asked to please “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”
If anyone deserved a reward, it was Jesus! He did everything he was asked. Yet he was not rewarded with what he wanted.
So what makes you think you deserve something just because you have been a “good Christian”? It doesn’t work that way. Grace and blessings are gifts. God loves to bless his children. Blessings come in many shapes and sizes. Yes, they even come as “No!”
God loves you right where you are, even when you make mistakes. That is one blessing I am glad I don’t have to earn. I am pretty sure I am not the only Christian who stumbles and fells. I am sure glad I don’t get the rewards that I deserve.
Thank you, Jesus, for taking the reward I deserved and giving to me grace and unfailing love that I will never earn.
Copyright © 2018 Tabetha Frick All Rights Reserved.