So many times in the church I have heard, “You must do __________ to stay in favor with God”. You can fill this in with many different words: love, forgive, stay pure (this could mean so many different things), stay obedient, repent, ask for forgiveness, and the list could go on. I am sure you have a word you could put in there–if you feel brave add it below in the comments. This is a subject I cover extensively in Time To Really Live Free because this is a big subject within the church. Much of what we learn as humans though comes through something called process content learning. For more on that read Chapter 7 in Time To Really Live Free.
Today though let’s shake off the thinking of the world and enter into God’s Kingdom—where everyone is equal. One of my favorite sayings is
“Jesus came to level the playing field” -Darlene Gaston
And ooooo…if you want to find out who is really religious say that and you will know by their reaction. We each have favor from God, in the same amount and it never changes according to our behavior. How do we know this? Simple, Jesus told us:
““God’s kingdom is like an estate manager who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. They agreed on a wage of a dollar a day, and went to work. “Later, about nine o’clock, the manager saw some other men hanging around the town square unemployed. He told them to go to work in his vineyard and he would pay them a fair wage. They went. “He did the same thing at noon, and again at three o’clock. At five o’clock he went back and found still others standing around. He said, ‘Why are you standing around all day doing nothing?’ “They said, ‘Because no one hired us.’ “He told them to go to work in his vineyard. “When the day’s work was over, the owner of the vineyard instructed his foreman, ‘Call the workers in and pay them their wages. Start with the last hired and go on to the first.’ “Those hired at five o’clock came up and were each given a dollar. When those who were hired first saw that, they assumed they would get far more. But they got the same, each of them one dollar. Taking the dollar, they groused angrily to the manager, ‘These last workers put in only one easy hour, and you just made them equal to us, who slaved all day under a scorching sun.’ “He replied to the one speaking for the rest, ‘Friend, I haven’t been unfair. We agreed on the wage of a dollar, didn’t we? So take it and go. I decided to give to the one who came last the same as you. Can’t I do what I want with my own money? Are you going to get stingy because I am generous?’ “Here it is again, the Great Reversal: many of the first ending up last, and the last first.”” Matthew 20:1-16 MSG
May God’s understanding of things flow into your heart today, Darlene
