By Pastor Chad
I’m not sure how it is in your household, but it is common in the Meeks household to bargain. If my kids want to go over to a friend’s house, Holly and I will regularly say something like: Sure! But first clean your room and take out the trash. We make a verbal agreement (of sorts). You want something, and we want something. You want to go hangout with friends, and we want your chores done. Granted, the chores are going to be done whether they go somewhere or not, but we offer them some incentive to get it done right.
My youngest son will often try to make a deal with me. “Dad,” he’ll say, “if you take me to Sonic, I’ll mow the lawn.” Now, he’s going to mow the lawn either way, but he wants some bargaining power in our relationship. He wants to make a deal that benefits both of us.
That’s how contracts, deals, and bargains work. Each party has responsibilities and each party gets something. If one side doesn’t hold up his or her end of the deal, the contract is broken. When humans relate to other humans, this is a common method of interaction and industry.
In my message on Sunday, I claimed that we must come to Christ on His terms, not ours. In John 10, we see religious leaders demanding that Jesus state plainly that He is the Messiah. They wanted the Messiah to fulfill His obligations according to their terms. But we don’t bargain with Christ.
We are not equal to Christ. We don’t make deals with Him. Our relationship with Him isn’t a contract, it is a covenant; but it is a covenant arranged and orchestrated by Him. We don’t have bargaining power with God. We cannot demand He meet us halfway. We do not set the terms of this relationship. We can’t. He doesn’t owe us anything, and yet we owe Him everything. He doesn’t need us, we need Him. He is “holding all the cards.” He has all the authority. This, however, should not scare us or anger us. This is good news! God – the infinitely loving, compassionate, gracious, kind, good, and just Being – is the one arranging a relationship with us. He is the one working out the process and the steps. All we must do is trust in Him. That’s His condition: have faith in Him.
One key ingredient we can never underestimate in our relationship with Christ is humility. Humility before God is key to approaching God as He asks. In fact, humility is a characteristic that really precedes faith. Why? Biblical faith is a submission before God. If one is going to submit to God, one must humble himself or herself before Him. James 4:10 says, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.” Humility is necessary to have the faith Jesus requires in our walk with Him. Humility that understands we don’t deserve God, but He is gracious to save us. Humility to understand we can’t bargain with God, but He has made all the arrangements for us to have the abundant life. Humility to surrender control of your life to the Lord of the Universe. Humility to follow Him.
To hear the full sermon, click here.