Flaunting Christian

For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard.  And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.  And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, And said unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you.  And they went their way.  Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise.  And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all day idle?  They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us.  He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.  So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.  And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.  But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more: and they likewise received every man a penny.  And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house, Saying These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.  But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny?  Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.  Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own?  Is thine eye evil, because I am good?  So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.  Matthew, Chapter 20, verses 1-16.

I’m ashamed to say that as a Flaunting Christian, I relate all too well with the first laborers who wanted more than what was promised for their extra time and effort.  If I’m truly being honest, there have been times where I expected preferential treatment because I tried to be good and follow all the rules.  I have deliberately flaunted the good choices I have made in hopes that teachers, employers and family members would like me better than others. 
Well, it may have possibly worked since the people mentioned are human beings who could not see my ulterior motives, but God doesn’t get suckered into struggles for attention.  He loves us all the way we are.  So the prostitute, the rock star, the janitor, the prisoner, the president, the drug addict, the school teacher and anyone else who loves Jesus as their Savior can go to heaven.  There is no preferential treatment there! 

Since this is an example of the positive influence God has made on my walk with Christ, this may not reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verses.

Too Much Stuff Christian

So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My disciple.  Luke, Chapter 14, verse 33.

I spent all day yesterday packing up my classroom.  My husband has taken a job in a state that we had previously lived in.  I thought it would only take a few hours to finish packing, but it was 7:00 p.m. when my husband and I finally pulled away from the school.
I was amazed because I had given so many teaching resources away during the year and still had so much stuff.  One of the teachers came by and made a comment about how I should get rid of all the stuff.  I was appalled with the idea.  I couldn’t get rid of all my stuff.  It was important to me!
As a Too Much Stuff Christian, the stuff in my life becomes too important and gets in the way of my relationship with God.  I would hate for Jesus to tell me that I couldn’t come to heaven to be with Him because my stuff had become more important than He was.
I had to come back and add this to what I had written this morning.  My husband came home and I was preparing to paint the bathroom before we put our house on the market.  I said something about taking all my paint to our new house so I can try my hand at sponge painting the next house we buy.  He said it would take too much room and we can get more paint after we move.  I got upset with him for even thinking of getting rid of it.  Then I realized that I hadn’t learned very much from writing about this earlier.  I was still having a hard time letting go of stuff!
God had perfect timing by having me deal with this particular passage right now.  It wasn’t one week earlier or a month later.  It was the exact same day that I am having stuff withdrawal issues.  Isn’t it wonderful that God could time this so precisely?  He knows as well as I do, I really need to continue to work on this one!!!!!
Here are some related passages:
*In that day, he which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it away: and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back.  Remember Lot’s wife.  Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.  Luke, Chapter 17, verses 31-33.
*Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.  Matthew, Chapter 24, verses 17-18.

Since this is an example of the positive influence God has made on my walk with Christ, this may not reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verses.

Focused Christian

Then said He also to him that bade Him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbors; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompense be made thee.  But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.  Luke, Chapter 14, verses 12-14.

This passage lets me know that when I do nice things for others I need to make sure that I’m doing them for people who really need it and not to do it to gain some sort of personal recognition for my actions.
It’s sometimes a hard one to live by because as a Focused Christian, it makes me look at my motives for doing favors.  Yes, I have found there have been times when I was choosing to do things for someone to draw attention to myself.  Now, I’m trying to be more discreet in my favors to avoid this self-focus.

Since this is an example of the positive influence God has made on my walk with Christ, this may not reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verses.

Judgment Day Christians

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see Me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord.  Luke, Chapter 13, verses 34-35.

When I was reading my Bible this morning, I was thinking about how God uses picturesque language throughout the Bible to give us a mental picture of what He is trying to convey to us.  This passage is a good example of that.
I can picture a mother hen spreading her wings trying to focus her children to go in the correct direction, just as Jesus does for us.  Do we listen?  No, just like kids we say we want to do things our own way and tend to wander off, losing our focus.  Now, when something traumatic happens in our lives or the lives of our loved ones, BAM, we are right back on target, asking God to help with this situation.
As Judgment Day Christians, do you think Jesus will have pity on us who decide at that moment that we are finally ready to become Christian when our lives haven’t reflected that dedication all along????
Here is a related passage:
*O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.  For I say unto you, Ye shall not see Me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord.  Matthew, Chapter 23, verses 37-39.

Since this is an example of the positive influence God has made on my walk with Christ, this may not reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verses.
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