Good morning and happy Saturday. I hope that you had a good and productive week. Most of us are still excited about the Chief’s win last Sunday and their upcoming Superbowl game. After a long 50 year wait in KC, the Chiefs are going to the Superbowl. How awesome. They have a great team, have played hard and smart. Many would say Andy Reid deserves a Superbowl championship. He has certainly had a stellar career as a head coach and has worked very hard toward that goal. I hope he achieves his dream in Miami.
That little word “deserves” has been used a lot lately. I have heard it in a wide variety of commercials in the past few months. People are encouraged to buy a certain perfume because they deserve it. Others are motivated to join a particular fitness center because they deserve it and its incredible amenities. For those that aren’t interested in working out, you can have a medical treatment, a procedure, or some other weight loss plan all because you deserve it. Those hawking financial services often use the ploy that you deserve some luxurious lifestyle. From food products, automobiles, candy, to vacations, the mantra is the same – you deserve it.
I just wonder if that is actually true. What does it mean to deserve something?
By definition, deserve is to be worthy, to merit, fit or suitable for some reward or requital.
I guess it would be one thing to say that you earned enough money that you can afford the product that is being advertised. It just seems odd that they continual emphasize the idea that people deserve something almost to the point of implying that it sets them up as superior to those that don’t. It comes across as some kind of elitist statement. It certainly is an attempt to stroke one’s ego. Now, is it bad to reward yourself for hard work and/or the blessings that God gives you? No, so long as your motivation is correct. God gives us things to enjoy for sure. He also entrusts us with things to be used for His glory and honor. The problem comes when we take what He provides and primarily use it for our own exaltation.
Luke 12
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” 15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”16 And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ 18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ 20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ 21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
One of the beautiful things about being a Christian is the mercy and grace we experience from God. As you know, because of our sins, we actually deserve death. In our rebellion, we rejected God. We deserved to be punished for that forever. However, because of His mercy, we don’t get what we actually deserve. In His grace, through the cross of Christ, God provided what we certainly did not deserve. He allows us forgiveness and eternal life through our faith in Jesus Christ. It is when we understand that and allow the truth of what God has done to impact our lives, we can be better equipped to answer the question of what we deserve in this world.
Something to think about.
Hope to see you tomorrow. I will be sharing a vision message on where I believe God is leading us in 2020 and beyond.
Pastor Larry
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