Not Close Enough

Bible Reading: Romans 3:22-26; 2 Corinthians 5:21

Let’s go ride on the Midnight Storm next,” Brennan called to his brothers. Theo

and Alec agreed, and they all hurried over to the line of people waiting for a turn on the big roller coaster.

They were almost to the turnstile when an attendant stopped them. “Hold on there, buddy. Let’s see how tall you are.” Brennan looked nervously at his older brothers as he walked to a sign with a big line on it. He stood as tall as he could while the attendant checked his height. “I’m sorry,” the attendant said, “but you’re about an inch too short to go on this ride.”

“But it’s so close! Can’t you just let him on?” asked Theo.

The attendant shook his head. “It’s not close enough. For safety reasons, every rider must be at least forty-eight inches tall.”

Brennan was disappointed, but he urged his brothers to go on the ride without him. “I’ll just wait here,” he said.

That evening, the family talked about the fun they’d had at the park. “But don’t you think they should have let me on the Midnight Storm?” Brennan asked.

“Yeah,” said Theo. “I mean, only one inch too short! That should be close enough.”

Dad shook his head. “Close doesn’t count in a lot of things. Math answers have to be exactly right, and words on spelling tests can’t have a single wrong letter. It reminds me of another area of life where seeming like we’re close doesn’t help.”

“What’s that?” asked Alec.

“We might think that if we live a good life according to people’s standards, that makes us good enough to get to heaven,” Dad said. “But in God’s eyes, we still fall short. Each one of us is a sinner who has done wrong, and nothing we do can make us good enough to be in God’s presence.”

“That’s why we need Jesus,” said Theo.

Dad nodded. “As God’s perfect Son, only He meets God’s standard. When we trust in Him, He takes away our sin and gives us His righteousness, or goodness. Then we meet the mark in God’s eyes.”

Brennan grinned. “Compared to that, Midnight Storm doesn’t seem like such a big deal. I guess I can wait till next year to ride on it.”

-Lisa D. Cowman

How About You?

Do you do lots of good things? Do you obey your parents, help around the house, respect your teachers, treat other people well, and in general try to live a good life? That’s great—people may even see you as a good person. But God says you’re still a sinner. The only way to meet His standard is to receive the righteousness of His Son, Jesus.

Today’s Key Verse:
Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (NKJV)

Today’s Key Thought:

Jesus gives us His righteousness