either "do" or "done"…

all other religions are spelled “do”. CHRISTianity is spelled “done” – it’s done!

we can really see the distinction between “do” and “done” when you look at the stories told by various faith systems. in fact, there’s a story that’s told in buddhist literature that’s very similar to the story JESUS tells about the prodigal son. at least they start out very similar. in both the stories, young men kind of rebel against their father and they go off to a distant land on their own and then everything sort of falls apart for them and then they decide they want to come home and be reconciled with their fathers. they both start out the same. but in the buddhist story the young man comes home and what does the father do? he forces him to pay the penalty for his past misdeeds by spending years in servitude. but what happens in the CHRISTian story? the prodigal son comes home and instead of forcing him to work off his past misdeeds, the father opens his arms and gives him unconditional love and unconditional forgiveness and grace and he embraces him and he enfolds him. there’s a difference.

the bible says in titus 3.5 (tev), GOD saved us. it was not because of any good works that we ourselves had done but because of HIS own mercy that HE saved us.

that’s not to say that CHRISTians don’t do good works. they do. but it’s not to try to make themselves right with GOD. it’s after they have received this free gift of GOD’s grace that they say, “i can’t believe that GOD loves the likes of me!” and they’re so overwhelmed by gratitude of what GOD has done that it’s very natural for them to express that love of GOD toward other people by doing good things. now they’re indwelled by the power of GOD in order to achieve that. so it’s not that CHRISTians don’t believe in doing good deeds but it’s not the way in which they become reconciled with GOD. that is a freely offered gift of grace.

so other religions are irreconcilable with CHRISTianity in terms of how you become reconciled dispel the myth that all paths lead to GOD.

just a thought from the front porch…