As I got a little closer, the door came open wide,
And when I came to myself, I was standing inside.
I saw a host of ANGELS, they were standing everywhere.
One handed me a basket and said, “My child, shop with care.”
Everything a human needed was in that grocery store.
And all you couldn’t carry, you could come back the next day for more.
First, I got some PATIENCE: Love was in the same row.
Further down was some UNDERSTANDING: you need that everywhere you go.
I got a box or two of WISDOM, a bag or two of FAITH.
I just couldn’t miss the HOLY GHOST, for it was all over the place.
I stopped to get some STRENGTH, And COURAGE to help me run this race.
By then my basket was getting full, But I remembered I needed some GRACE.
I didn’t forget SALVATION, for SALVATION was free,
So I tried to get enough of that to save both you and me.
Then I started up to the counter to pay my grocery bill,
For I thought I had everything to do the MASTER’s will.
As I went up the aisle, I saw PRAYER: And just had to put that in,
For I knew that when I stepped outside, I would run into sin.
PEACE and JOY were plentiful, they were last on the shelf.
SONG and PRAISE were hanging near, so I just helped myself.
Then I said to the angel, “Now, how much do I owe?”
He smiled and said, “Just take them everywhere you go.”
Again, I smiled and said, “How much do I really owe?”
He smiled again and said, “MY CHILD, GOD PAID YOUR BILL A LONG, LONG TIME AGO.” (collected on the internet)
If only it were that easy!! Go pick up a basket, fill it with the godly characteristics that you know you need, and avoid the messy part: the process of dying daily, crucifying self, submitting to the will of God, and embracing God’s discipline. But that’s not how real growth works. Don’t get me wrong: God gives us the gift of His Holy Spirit, the product of which is the fruit. And undeniably, salvation is free. However, when we enter into the covenant with God at baptism, we are required to uphold our part of the covenant. We know that God expects us to keep His commands (1 John 3:10; 1 John 5:3). We know that we demonstrate our faith in God through our actions (James 2:18). The rub comes in the battle of our carnal nature with that new creature in Christ, begun at baptism. (Romans 7) Our carnal nature is enmity against God. (Romans 8:7) It is not natural for us to act like God’s children. Or perhaps it is.
Jonathan and Christopher are good kids. (And no, I’m not prejudiced.) They really do want to please Ron and me most of the time. But they have a strong will of their own. Jonathan’s is very evident, and he’s exhibited it from the time he was very little. When I had fixed something for supper which he didn’t particularly like, he was very vocal about not eating it, regardless of its nutritional value, his hunger, or the consequences. Christopher is much more subtle and has been, likewise, since he was little. At one point, he went through a stage where more marker ended up on his tummy than on the paper sometimes. We had many talks about it, which always ended in tears and promises not to mark on his tummy anymore. But he couldn’t seem to resist. So at the end of the day, as I readied him for bed, he’d hold his hands over his tummy and tell me to close my eyes. He didn’t want me to see the new evidence of his marking on his tummy. Regardless of the varied demonstration of their will when they were little, both slowly yielded to Ron and me. One by one the battles were won: neither still wear diapers, both learned to say please and thank you without prompting, both have learned to try new things, to come when called (the first time), and to follow directions. But it was not easy to yield as small children - and the teenage years bring their own set of challenges and areas in which they must learn to yield!!
Growth is rarely easy; that’s why they are called “growing pains.” (Hebrews 12:11) We like our comfort zone. We want our own way, and we don’t like change. In fact, we strongly resist change. So how do I get my boys to submit to my will? And how does God convince us, His children, to submit to His will and leading? Through discipline! (Hebrews 12) As Christians, we don’t call it discipline very often. Our pride would like us to believe that it is merely “suffering”. Romans 5:3 tells us that “we rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Those are all desirable traits! Furthermore, there are enough scriptures telling us the benefits of suffering that we somewhat graciously acquiesce to the inevitable fact that we, as Christians, are going to suffer. We even tell ourselves and each other that we are to consider suffering pure joy (James 1:2). Then, once we know it’s inevitable, we almost come to the place where we almost like the idea of being something like a martyr - suffering because we are a Christian.
But, let’s put it in the terms of Hebrews 12: discipline. Here we are cautioned not to “make light of the Lord’s discipline.” I doubt there are many who like to think about their parents’ discipline - and then transfer those memories and feelings in an analogous way to their spiritual walk in Christ! Yet, that’s what the writer of Hebrews is telling us. “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!” The difference is, of course, human intentions and capabilities versus God’s intentions and capabilities: “Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.”
No, it is not easy to become holy, to have a basketful of godly characteristics. You can’t just go pick them up, because of the shed blood of Jesus Christ, at Heaven’s grocery store. It is a time-consuming, growth process. It is much more like planting and harvesting a garden than simply shopping at the grocery store. “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. (Hebrew 12:11). I hope you’re growing well. Selah!