Two men went into a neighborhood to find houses to resell.
They each found a house and they were very near to the other. The houses were
very similar since they had been built around the same time by the same
builder.
The first man, Charley Makepeace went through the house he
bought and said let’s get this house looking good so that we can resell it for
a nice profit. So they fixed the cracks in the plaster and caulked where the
siding had splits. In the living room the ceiling light didn’t work so they
plastered over the switch and removed the fixture and plastered over that hole.
The kitchen floor was recovered by putting down a thin sheet of plywood and
then putting down new vinyl. After all the cracks were filled and everything
looked straight they painted the whole house and put it back on the market
listed for a nice profit.
Tom Straight went in and found the problems with the house
and then set about to fix them. Some of the siding had to be replaced and all
of the electric had to be redone so it would be safe. Some of the drains were
replaced so the water would flow better. In the bathroom the floor was taken up
and some of the structural pieces replaced and then the floor was put back down
with new vinyl. The house was repainted inside and out. He then had the house
inspected and an appraisal made. The house was certified safe and put on the
market at a price pretty close to Mr. Makepeace’s house, for a smaller profit.
If you went into that neighborhood to buy a house, which of
these two houses would you prefer to buy?
A lot of people believe in a God who accepts you just the
way you are and is only interested in external improvements. They call this
Grace. While other people believe in a God who wants to go through their life
and change them from the inside out into people who genuinely resemble their
Lord. This second group know that sometimes this process is painful and
unpleasant but the result is genuine and therefore worth it. This second group
calls this Grace.
It’s something to think about.
Matthew 7:24-27
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