Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Missing the entire point of the four gospels.

To quote individual bible verses, as if Jesus gave us specific rules to follow, is to miss the entire point of the four gospels.

Jesus gave the people rule after rule, impossible demand after impossible demand. Finally, when a rich young man turned and walked away after Jesus demanded more than he was willing to sacrifice, the bewildered disciples turned to their master and asked, if this is what we must do to be saved, who can be saved?

It turns out it was all one big object lesson. He never really expected us to pluck out an eye or chop off an arm. He never expected us to live like the lilies of the field, having no material possessions, doing no work, just taking up space and expecting God to sustain us.

Nor did he expect compliance with any other supposed commandment. Nothing we can do for ourselves can cause us to deserve a positive reward in the afterlife. We're all a bunch of filthy sinners, a fallen race, hopelessly depraved.

History's most notorious criminal, and most generous philanthropist, deserve to rot in hell just the same. We all do, and not just for some dark misdeed in the past, but for the imperfect way each of us have lived this very day. God cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance.

But as Jesus responded that day the disciples asked who can be saved, with God all things are possible. He has provided a way.

That place in heaven we could never earn on our own good merits is ours for the asking, by His grace.

Most won't ask. Either they will be deluded by the sophistry of the secular world to disbelieve in a supreme being and an afterlife, or they will be too pious, too proud of their own supposed righteousness, worthiness, and obedience to accept that they cannot earn eternal glory.

There will be no worries of crowding in heaven. Heaven will certainly not be crowded. Though it could be packed, if people were not so stubborn and proud.