Deal Making with God

This story illustrates an all too common human tendency. We believe that we can manipulate God by our behavior. If I am good today, God will surely notice and reward me in some way. Or, looked at from the opposite perspective, the thinking may be along the lines of I know I didn't do everything I should have done today, but surely it is not fair for this to happen now. Such thinking is at cross purposes to the essence of the gospel. Only the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ on my behalf can turn aside the fierce and just wrath of God. Yet even as Christians, we are tempted to make deals with God--seeking to earn his blessing by being good.

Children are quick learners. They understand the deal-making mentality--they were born with it. It is our natural inclination to think that we can make deals with God. All of the things that Jesus accomplished for his people on the cross--justification for sin, the ability participate in the process of sanctification towards holiness, the rich inheritance of God's mercy--are things that the natural mind believes can be achieved by making deals. So your children begin life as self-justifiers. They believe they can justify their own guilt. They believe they know how to be good, because "good" for them is doing what makes them happy. And lastly, your children believe that they are entitled to a rich inheritance because they have justified themselves. Practically, it looks like this: a sibling has a favorite toy. All the young child sees is that he should have the toy, especially since his sibling has had it a long time. Therefore, he is justified in taking it. This is acting in own best interest, which is consistent with the belief that personal pleasure, rather than holiness is the goal of his life. And after he has the toy, by whatever means, he is pleased because this immediate inheritance of the toy is rightfully his. As the child grows and learns about God, apart from the saving work of Christ, he sees God as someone with whom he can make deals to get what is rightfully his. So, he learns to make deals with God. For this child, God's purpose in life is to make him happy.