Thursday, March 10, 2016

Lost Wallets and the Certainty of Jesus

Reilly Flaherty lost his wallet. According to NBC News, the Brooklyn man attended a show at a local theatre and lost track of the billfold.  He assumed the contents gone, canceled his credit cards, and applied for a new drivers license. Then, unexpectedly, Flaherty received an envelope in the mail. The envelope contained some of the wallet’s items and a note explaining why the rest of the wallet was not returned.

The note read, “I found your wallet, and your drivers license had your address so here's your credit cards and other important stuff. I kept the cash because I needed weed, the MetroCard because, well, the fare's $2.75 now, and the wallet 'cause it's kinda cool. Enjoy the rest of your day. Toodles, Anonymous." The person who found the wallet kept what was useful (to her or him) and politely returned what was not. Reilly posted a picture of the handwritten note on Instagram with the caption, “Thanks…I think?”

Flaherty’s story illustrates a common experience in our world: good works come with a catch. Someone does something seemingly nice and considerate. Then, as you look into to the behavior, you realize it is kind of good…sort of nice. Inevitably, bad attitudes, ulterior motives or some sort of self-interest taint the blessing. We are left thinking, “Thanks…I think?”

Good thing that isn’t how Jesus works. Jesus saves His people with no strings attached. The blessing of salvation in Jesus Christ is pure blessing and nothing more. In Galatians 5, the Apostle Paul writes, “It was for freedom that Christ set us free;” The blessing of freedom is the reason Jesus blessed us with freedom. That is the point. There is no ulterior motive or hidden agenda that leaves us "sort of" grateful or appreciative "to a degree."

As you go through the coming week, praise the Lord for blessing you with no strings attached. Enjoy the perfect, untainted, holy work of Jesus. As you do, you will blessed by God for God's sake. You will also be able to hold onto the things God gave you - like a wallet.

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