Friday, December 31: Measurements

Another year has flown by, once again proving the analogy that once a vehicle reaches the top of the hill, gravity greatly increases the downhill speed. The farther over-the-hill we are, the faster that time seems to pass. Measuring that speed can be difficult, at best, but measurements depend most upon the one doing the measuring. Often in the Bible, God tells us about the integrity He requires when His children are measuring:


You shall have honest scales, honest weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin: I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
Leviticus 19:36


One of the least rewarding jobs on farms 50 years ago was picking cotton. Paid by the pound, it took painstaking time and effort to fill a sack with cotton, only to find out how little weight the sack contained. Placing a few rocks in the sack could increase the pay quickly, but would not be an honest representation of the weight of the sack. In the same manner, dishonest businessmen in biblical times weighed the scales in their favor. The problem was so pervasive that buyers had great difficulty finding a vendor with an honest scale.


As Christians, God holds us to a different set of rules, and a different grading scale, as well. Non-believers measure their lives in mostly monetary ways. “More” seems to be the operative word, with more pay, more vacation, more possessions and more size in regard to housing. It is a slippery slope when as believers, we find ourselves drawn to the same trappings of the world that entice non-believers. God reminds us in 1 Timothy 6:10 that the love of money is the root of all evil. On the other hand, Paul reminds us how we are to view our lives before we came to know the Lord.


8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Philippians 3:8-11

How important should those possessions be to us? Count them all loss! Our desire still should be for more, but rather than more possessions, Christians should desire more knowledge of God. That should be heart knowledge! Our faith, hope and love should all increase as we continue to draw closer to the Lord. There is no greater thing than knowing Him, and nothing apart from God can satisfy our thirsty souls!

O God, You are my God;
Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water.
Psalm 63:1


As Christians, our perspectives should change in regard to how we measure ourselves. Instead of trying to “keep up with the Joneses,” we should measure ourselves against God’s Word. To demonstrate our love for God, we should focus on obeying His commandments. We know that while we are on this earth we will continue to sin. That is not an excuse for us not trying to follow each and every one of God’s commandments. Yet the greatest gift is in how God measures us! Certainly, there will be people in hell who have committed fewer sins than some of the Christians in heaven. Being a Christian has nothing to do with our actions, but instead, depends on God’s act. By following Jesus, we have accepted His gift, grace, which is the forgiveness of our sins. We are measured by the life of Jesus, just as He was measured by our sinful lives when He took the punishment for our sins at Calvary.


Each year, thousands of people take the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). If the outcome of the SAT had to do with eternity, instead of college, Christians would have a huge advantage. While unbelievers would be sweating bullets, knowing that their entire futures ride on the outcome of this test, Christians would get to sit and watch while the One who wrote the test was taking the exam for us! Of course, He made a perfect score for us, solidifying our future. That is the only grading scale that we can measure up to!


Though our old lives should be counted loss, we gain Christ Jesus!


6 Now godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 8 And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
1 Timothy 6:6-10