By Joe Slater
I suppose you’ve seen those obnoxious insurance commercials insisting that you should switch to that company because you’ll only pay for what you need. Unless your name is Rip Van Winkle, you know that all insurers let you select the coverage you want. If your vehicle has no loan against it, you aren’t required to have full coverage. Not exactly news, right?
How does “only pay for what you need” apply to our relationship with God? Just how much religion do you need, and what will it cost you?
Some would say they don’t need much at all. “I’m a good person. I don’t drink or cuss or smoke or . . . (you extend the list as far as you like). So why would I need religion?” Let us be reminded: “There is none righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10). I doubt that you’re any better than Cornelius (Acts 10), who needed to hear “words by which you and all your household will be saved” (Acts 11:14). Cornelius needed full coverage; so do you!
As to what it will cost you, the premium is astronomical. If you had all the money in the world, you couldn’t start to commence to begin to make a down-payment on the interest! Fortunately for us, Jesus paid the price for our redemption: His blood (1 Peter 1:19).
There is a sense, however in which it will cost you everything. Jesus said, “Whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:33). We’re not talking dollars-and-cents here. We’re talking about dedication and willing surrender to the will of Christ – not half-hearted lip service, but genuine commitment to the Lord.
Jesus paid for everything you need. Do you mean it when you sing, “I surrender all”?
I suppose you’ve seen those obnoxious insurance commercials insisting that you should switch to that company because you’ll only pay for what you need. Unless your name is Rip Van Winkle, you know that all insurers let you select the coverage you want. If your vehicle has no loan against it, you aren’t required to have full coverage. Not exactly news, right?
How does “only pay for what you need” apply to our relationship with God? Just how much religion do you need, and what will it cost you?
Some would say they don’t need much at all. “I’m a good person. I don’t drink or cuss or smoke or . . . (you extend the list as far as you like). So why would I need religion?” Let us be reminded: “There is none righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10). I doubt that you’re any better than Cornelius (Acts 10), who needed to hear “words by which you and all your household will be saved” (Acts 11:14). Cornelius needed full coverage; so do you!
As to what it will cost you, the premium is astronomical. If you had all the money in the world, you couldn’t start to commence to begin to make a down-payment on the interest! Fortunately for us, Jesus paid the price for our redemption: His blood (1 Peter 1:19).
There is a sense, however in which it will cost you everything. Jesus said, “Whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:33). We’re not talking dollars-and-cents here. We’re talking about dedication and willing surrender to the will of Christ – not half-hearted lip service, but genuine commitment to the Lord.
Jesus paid for everything you need. Do you mean it when you sing, “I surrender all”?
- Joe Slater serves as minister of the Church of Christ in Justin,
TX. He may be contacted through the congregation's website:
http://justinchurchofchrist.com
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