THINK TOGETHER
What are some things that you do that earn you a score? (schoolwork, sports, games, chores)
READ TOGETHER
Imagine if people earned points from God. Be good get a point. Be bad lose a point. Do you think you would earn enough points to be allowed to go to heaven and be with God?
So far in the story of the Bible we have seen that people are pretty bad. From Adam and Eve, to Cain, to the flood, to the Tower of Babel, the Bible is showing us that if life were about earning points for being good and losing points for being bad, we would all have negative points. None of us would earn enough points to go to heaven and live with our perfect God.
But then comes one of the greatest verses in all the Bible. Listen to these words from Genesis 15:6 –
Genesis 15:6. And [Abraham] believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
Abraham? Who is Abraham?
When God saw just how bad the people of the world were, God decided to save the world through one single family. Abraham’s family. And so God found Abraham, and asked Abraham to come live with him and trust him. And God made promises to Abraham. Big promises. He promised to be Abraham’s personal God and friend. He promised to take care of Abraham and his family. He promised to give him a land to live in (it was called the “Promised Land”). He promised to give Abraham a huge family one day. And he even promised to bless everyone on earth through Abraham.
Wow! Abraham must have earned lots of points for being good in order to get all those promises from God. Right?
Nope. In fact, Abraham came from a pretty bad family and did lots of bad things. Oh, and he did some good things too. Just like you and me he did some good and some bad things. But God didn’t choose Abraham because Abraham was good. God chose Abraham because God is good. He is full of kindness and grace (do you remember what grace is?).
Read Genesis 15:6 again. It says that God “counted Abraham as righteous.” That means that God gave Abraham a perfect score. A 100%. Why? Why would God just count Abraham as perfect even though he wasn’t? Even though he had sinned and would sin again, and again, and again? Because all Abraham had to do was trust that God would keep his promises. Because God just wants us to have faith and trust him.
And because GOD DOESN’T KEEP SCORE.
Jesus would come and earn a perfect score. Jesus would always be good and he would never be bad. He would get a 100% at life. And now, like Abraham, we can be “counted as righteous” too when we trust that Jesus was perfect instead of us. Do you believe that only Jesus is perfect and that he wants you to have his perfect score with God for free?
For the rest of your life you will be scored. At school. In sports. In games. When you grow up and get a job. But remember, because of Jesus, God doesn’t keep score. He doesn’t keep track of how good or how bad you are. He loves you no matter what, and he will count you as perfect because you trust in Jesus. Not because you earned it.
Because of Jesus I can be counted as perfect.
With Jesus I can trust God and obey him because he loves me, not to earn his love.
DO SOMETHING TOGETHER
Play a game together (inside or outside) without keeping score. Talk about how when we play without keeping score it can be an act of worship, instead of an act of “trying to be the best.”
PRAY TOGETHER
Jesus,
Thank you for earning a perfect score for me because I never could. Help me to always trust that you love me no matter what.
Amen.
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