Once again, Jesus lays out the truth of our absolute dependence on God for our salvation. In the Sermon on the Mount, He upps the ante on the Pharisees by spelling out the impossible entrance requirements for the Kingdom of God: no lusting, no anger, violent removal of any limb that causes one to sin, perfection itself. And here again, we see that even the rich, those assumed to be blessed by God because of their righteousness, cannot enter the kingdom of God. Easier for a 1000 lb. camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle. And then comes the Point. Who then can be saved if even the most righteous and blessed among us cannot? “What is impossible with humankind is possible with God.”
Get that? “What is IMPOSSIBLE…” It is impossible for us to live lives righteous enough to enter God’s Kingdom by our own accord. Yet still some think they can, or more importantly that others should be able to. We constantly judge others as less worthy of God’s Kingdom than we are, or we judge ourselves as less worthy of God’s Kingdom than anyone else. Both thoughts are foolishness, and here’s why.
Colin, Komichi, and Jayden are standing on a San Diego pier jutting out into the Pacific. “I bet I can jump to Hawaii,” Colin muses. “You’re on!” Jayden replies. So Colin jumps as far as he can into the Pacific, and travels 3 feet. “Ha,” he splutters as his head reemerges. “Beat that!”
Jayden then, standing back from the edge of the pier, takes three long strides and leaps into the Pacific. He travels 6 feet. “Beat you!” he calls to Colin who looks chagrined.
With a roll of her eyes, Komichi walks back to the start of the pier, takes a long run and dives off the pier into the Pacific. When she comes back up for air, she finds she has jumped 12 feet! “I am so much better than you, Jayden, and I won’t even talk about your pathetic attempt, Colin,” she jibes. And all three feel superior – or inferior – to the others.
Yet none of them got to Hawaii.
Leave a Reply
Want to join the discussion?Feel free to contribute!