The Price of Joining God's Family
I think that there are two different views of God.
The first goes like this:
There we are, a baby abandoned in a field with nothing. And God comes along and picks us up and says, "Hey, I am going to take care of you. But in return you must do what I say. You must never mess up, because if you do, I will throw you right back where I got you. I am giving you a lot, so don't even think about asking for anything, especially if you haven't been following my rules. So obey, or go back to that lonely field you came from, because I am giving you everything." So we try to obey out of fear.
The second goes like this:
There we are, a baby abandoned in a field with nothing. And along comes God and He picks us up. And He says, "You are now my child. Forever I will claim you as my own, and I will give you the finest things, and I will treat you like a child of the King. And I will love you no matter what, because though you were "worthless" in the eyes of men, in you I have found great worth and it is my joy to call you part of my family." And with this view of God we obey because we would do anything for this man, who took us from nothing and treated us like royalty. We obey because we know we will never be able to repay Him, but we want to do whatever we can for the One who took us out of ashes and into His home.
I only wish that more of these students would believe in the second view of God, rather than the first.
The first goes like this:
There we are, a baby abandoned in a field with nothing. And God comes along and picks us up and says, "Hey, I am going to take care of you. But in return you must do what I say. You must never mess up, because if you do, I will throw you right back where I got you. I am giving you a lot, so don't even think about asking for anything, especially if you haven't been following my rules. So obey, or go back to that lonely field you came from, because I am giving you everything." So we try to obey out of fear.
The second goes like this:
There we are, a baby abandoned in a field with nothing. And along comes God and He picks us up. And He says, "You are now my child. Forever I will claim you as my own, and I will give you the finest things, and I will treat you like a child of the King. And I will love you no matter what, because though you were "worthless" in the eyes of men, in you I have found great worth and it is my joy to call you part of my family." And with this view of God we obey because we would do anything for this man, who took us from nothing and treated us like royalty. We obey because we know we will never be able to repay Him, but we want to do whatever we can for the One who took us out of ashes and into His home.
I only wish that more of these students would believe in the second view of God, rather than the first.
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