Birth Defect

Does goodness equal love? A good child is loved. A bad child is hated. It is understandable how a child could grow up believing those things. I think I grew up believing that the longer I was a Christian, then the less I would struggle with sin. But we all know that perfection is unachievable. So where is the line? How good is good enough? How many offenses would it take to lose the ones I love?

These questions and fears drive us to strive for perfection and, ultimately, may lead us to deceive ourselves and others about the very existence of any sin in our lives. If we deny the existence of these failures, then maybe we still deserve to be loved?

What an insecure existence!

Jesus wants to set us free from this cycle of good works, failure, deception and insecurity.

The truth that we are born sinful is considered a very negative teaching by those outside the church. But this truth is the very beginning of our freedom - knowing that Jesus loved me anyway! It doesn't even matter how many bad things I've done. I need a Savior because of who I am, not what I've done. So, if we are born sinners, then there is no amount of good deeds we can do to fix that "birth defect."

Jesus took on flesh and walked among us. He is well aware of our frailty. But He does not despise us for that weakness, just as a parent does not despise their children for their dependence. In fact, Jesus said we cannot enter Heaven unless we come as a little child.

I have heard it taught that those childlike qualities that Jesus is referring to are blind faith and trust. But I think it is referring more to the weakness and innate dependency of a child.

Children don't work! They trust that their needs will be met even though they do nothing to earn it. Imagine a child who will not accept any help or gifts and insists on earning everything. Not only is that frustrating and insulting to the parents, but, chances are, the child will make a huge mess every time they attempt to do "good works."

I can imagine how frustrating it would be to me if my young child insisted on helping me fix dinner. What if I was fixing a complex meal and I just wanted the child to sit and watch? I like having someone else in the kitchen to talk to as I work. But if that child insisted on helping by climbing on the counter to reach a dish and by cracking the eggs and measuring the flour, I would no longer want that child in the kitchen. How absurd would it be if I told the child to just sit and wait patiently to be fed but the child felt like they didn't deserve to eat if they hadn't worked for the meal?

That must be how frustrating it is for God when we are unable to trust Him.

Why is it so easy for us to imagine the ideal parent? Even if we have never seen an example of an ideal parent, we know what that relationship should look like. It's because God, as our Heavenly Father, has put that knowledge into our hearts. Every child is hurt when their earthly parents do not live up to that ideal. but the reality is that it is unfair to hold our parents up to God's standard. Those hurts and disappointments we feel are supposed to draw us to God.

The ideal parent:

• feeds and clothes a child whether they ask for it or not
• comforts a child when they are hurting
• lovingly disciplines a child in order to instill positive character qualities
• allows some difficult situations to occur if those events will ultimately benefit the child
• allows a willful child to do some things on their own, even if the child is not really ready, in order to reinforce the child's dependence is some areas
• is most proud when the parent sees their own qualities emerging in the child