In my 30-35 minute drive to and from work I have the oppurtunity to listen to some great sermons by a handful of different people. John Piper is probably who I listen to the most during these drives. The past week I've been listening to a series he did in 1995 on Love. There were four incredible sermons in the middle of this series focusing on the depth of Christ's love for us. Check out one or all of these manuscripts. They will do much do enrich understanding in the incredible sacrifice and gift of Christ. Or go here to get the audio versions.
The Cost
It's Undeserving Objects
It's Lavish Benefits
It's Freedom
Monday, August 14, 2006
Sunday, August 13, 2006
What do we deserve?
Last Friday, at the bank that I work at, there was a very upset person who was trying to cash a check. She was upset becuase we as employees were following procedure by making sure the check wasn't fraudulant. And the funny thing was, she wasn't a customer at our bank. (For those of you who don't know, banks are not obligated to cash checks for non-customers). So, she eventually comes storming in and complains to every one of my superiors that she was treated like a criminal because we didn't cash the check immediately.
All that to set up the point of this post. I began thinking...wow, she really has such a deserving mentality. She comes into a bank that she does not even bank with and demands that her thoughts are heard by others. She demands respect. She demands an audience. She demands change in policy. She demands that we have to cash her check. It really is upsetting to me that most Americans have this mentality that somehow because we are born, we have a right to certain things. People think they deserve their nice houses, nice cars, good jobs, and a healthy, fun, care-free life. WHY?!? Because our society teaches us this idea. But it is certainly a flawed, and destructive way of thinking.
So after much outward critique, I moved inward as I felt convictions rising to the surface reminding me of all the things that I also think I deserve. Don't I my friends and family? Don't I deserve money to be able to buy things? Don't I deserve at least to be able to drink clean water? To breathe? The answer is NO. Everything in this life is undeserved grace given from above, from the Father of lights...God. We only deserve death. That's it. We rebel against and reject the God who made us. We despise the God who sustains our very life. We ignore HIm. But yet He continues to show us favor.
How much sweeter the gospel becomes when we actually get to the place of seeing how desperately undeserving we are of God giving us eternal life with Him. I did not have one ounce of goodness in me. I was dead. God made me alive. Let's help each other with this marvelous Truth, and thus give God His due glory.
All that to set up the point of this post. I began thinking...wow, she really has such a deserving mentality. She comes into a bank that she does not even bank with and demands that her thoughts are heard by others. She demands respect. She demands an audience. She demands change in policy. She demands that we have to cash her check. It really is upsetting to me that most Americans have this mentality that somehow because we are born, we have a right to certain things. People think they deserve their nice houses, nice cars, good jobs, and a healthy, fun, care-free life. WHY?!? Because our society teaches us this idea. But it is certainly a flawed, and destructive way of thinking.
So after much outward critique, I moved inward as I felt convictions rising to the surface reminding me of all the things that I also think I deserve. Don't I my friends and family? Don't I deserve money to be able to buy things? Don't I deserve at least to be able to drink clean water? To breathe? The answer is NO. Everything in this life is undeserved grace given from above, from the Father of lights...God. We only deserve death. That's it. We rebel against and reject the God who made us. We despise the God who sustains our very life. We ignore HIm. But yet He continues to show us favor.
How much sweeter the gospel becomes when we actually get to the place of seeing how desperately undeserving we are of God giving us eternal life with Him. I did not have one ounce of goodness in me. I was dead. God made me alive. Let's help each other with this marvelous Truth, and thus give God His due glory.
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