What I hear isn't something new or out of the ordinary. Most commonly I hear things like "I don't deserve to be treated this way or that way" or "I deserve better" or "You've worked hard. You deserve it." So if these things are being said as a form of encouragement or a way of setting the standard higher for oneself then why does it bother me so much? Maybe because I truly don't believe those are the reasons those words are being said. I believe they come from a place within us that is a reflection of selfishness, pride, and arrogance - not to mention an entitlement issue. I don't necessarily think it is always meant to be said as a selfish, prideful, or arrogant statement but that doesn't mean that it isn't so. It's just our human nature.
I am certainly no biblical scholar nor do I have a fraction of the knowledge that they do but I chose to try and research what the bible says about one's deservedness. I have an ESV bible and a NIV bible and looked in each one to see what I could find. Well, let me back up a moment...
I looked up the word "deserve" and found the definition according to Merriam-Webster:
Deserve - to be worthy of: merit; to be worthy, fit, or suitable for some reward or requital.
To be worthy of? Interesting. Ok, so back to where I left off....
I looked in the back of my ESV bible and the word deserve was not listed so I looked in the back of my NIV bible. Deserve was listed as only referencing to 3 books of the bible - Exodus, Judges, and Isaiah. As I read each of the verses listed I noticed that "deserve" was not actually in the verses. Every verse or verses seemed to point towards grace and mercy.
Exodus 19:5 is speaking of God telling Moses what to tell the Israelites. God is telling the Israelites that if they fully obey and keep His commandments, then they will be His treasured possession.
Judges 2: 15-16 is referencing how God's presence was no longer with Israel because of their disobedience of worshiping idols. The next verse is God raising up judges to save the Israelites from their oppressors.
Isaiah 48:9-11 is God once again saving the Israelites from His wrath. However, He mentions that it is because of His namesake.
Although each of these verses were listed under DESERVE in the index, each one points to grace and mercy. The Israelites did nothing to deserve being a treasured possession. By worshipping false gods, they gave God no reason to save them from His wrath. Quite the contrary! The Isaiah 48 reference clearly states that God is saving them not by their obedience or goodness but by His namesake alone. God repeatedly poured out grace and mercy upon His people even when they repeatedly turned their backs on Him. Did the Israelites deserve God's wrath or did they deserve His grace and mercy?
What makes us so different today than the Israelites thousands of years ago? Nothing. We sin each and every day just like they did. Maybe we don't call our idols and gods "Baal" or "golden calves" just like they didn't call their idols and gods "television" or "computers" or "food" or "money". God hasn't changed. We have.
We need to be careful in thinking that we deserve nice homes, vacations, multiple cars, 6 figures in the bank, peace of mind in our worldly views, or a nice retirement because we "worked for it". I am not saying that some of us haven't worked hard but I'd be willing to bet that the 2 billion plus people living under $2 a day work much harder than us as some grow their own food, tend to their own livestock. walk to retrieve filthy water, clean their clothes by hand, and so on. If we think that hard work deserves material things and happiness then where are their (the 2 billion plus) fancy houses and vacations? Where is their retirement? Where is their peace of mind of having enough money and food to live on much less handing it down as an inheritance to their children? No where in the bible does it speak of God giving out blessings because of hard work or even good work. In fact, the bible warns us of such things but that's another blog. If any of us are fortunate enough to live comfortably on more than $2 a day, it isn't because we deserve it and the rest of the population doesn't. It is because God was gracious enough to allow us to have it. Yes, hard work does play in to that a bit but we must remember that ALL things belong to God and we don't have one more thing or one less thing that God hasn't allowed.
Are we really so self absorbed that we think we deserve these things? Yet we are also so quick to dish out consequences on others because we think they deserve it due to bad choices or mistakes. Yes, we all have consequences for such actions but who are we to administer them so merciless? All the while, we are begging for mercy when we are given punishment or consequences - whatever you want to call it.
My preacher read a quote aloud a couple of Sundays ago by a man named D.A. Carson. It said, "Do you really want nothing but totally effective, instantaneous justice? Then go to hell." Wow. Powerful statement. Maybe we should remember that statement next time we want to tell ourselves or others what we deserve.
On our best days, we are still no more than filthy rags in God's eyes. We all deserve damnation and separation from the one and only perfect and holy God. However, God is gracious, merciful, loving, and forgiving. God doesn't want separation from any of us. All He wants is our whole-hearted devotion to Him. That whole hearted devotion spills over into loving others, forgiving others, helping others, and all that God allows us to do in order to glorify Him.
I deserve nothing except that which I don't like to think about. Luckily, my filthy rags are white as snow! That is grace and mercy!
“Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. – Isaiah 1:18
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