LOOKING INSIDE

During the matches of the FIFA World Cup we are bound to see a lot of yellow and red cards pulled out of the officials’ pockets. These cards are for infractions to the
rules. We may not like the place and timing of the cards, but they are part of the game. Without them there would be chaos. Since this is the FIFA World Cup, for the most part, FIFA sets the rules. We expect the rules to be followed, and when a player does not follow the rules we expect the player to be carded.

The same is true in life. When the rules are followed chaos is minimized. When it comes to eternal life, it is God who sets the rules. As the Eternal One and the owner of His house – heaven, it is important to consider His rules for gaining entry. Jesus Christ said, “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Matthew 5.48. Later, when Paul was writing a letter to people in Rome he made clear how impossible this is. Romans 3.23 says, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Everyone has fallen short of God’s standard. No one is right and righteous
their whole life. In the World Cup a red card means you are out of the match. When it comes to eternal life, we are all “red carded” (as the Bible puts it, “fallen short of God’s glory”). We are out of “the match”. Paul also wrote that our breaking God’s rules – what the Bible calls sin – is deserving of death. “The wages of sin is death,” Romans 6.23. Wages are what we earn or what we deserve for what we have accomplished. Not a nice situation. The good thing is that God does not want to leave us there!