goodnews-aaron

[goodnews-aaron]

Gym Membership

A parable for those who claim to be a follower of Jesus yet do not gather with an assembly of believers.

Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day [of Judgement] drawing near.

There once was a man who was standing with his friends, and he told them that he was a member at a local gym.

One of his friends asked him, “What do you do at the gym?” He responded, “Oh, I don’t do anything there. I don’t really see the need to.”

The second friend was perplexed and asked, “Have you made any friends there to help you exercise?” He responded, “No, I haven’t. You don’t need other people to exercise.”

The third friend asked him pointedly, “Do you even go the the gym at all?” The man responded, “Definitely not! I don’t have the time, and I don’t need to go to have a membership.”

The first friend said, “That might be true in the short term, but on one day every year, the boss comes in and cancels all inactive memberships. When that happens, you will be worse off than when you began. You will lose your health and have wasted your money.”

So, the man went to the gym owner and cursed at him, telling him how unfair the policy was. Later that year, his membership was canceled.

[goodnews-aaron]

The new humanity is like this:

The Clean Child

A child comes to his father covered head to toe in dirt. He asks his father to wash his hands, but the father replies, “Let’s get you cleaned up in the bath.” The father sees every bit of the child’s filth. He sees the true depth of the uncleanliness of the son, so he addresses the whole problem. The son only thought his hands needed cleaned, but now, because of a loving father, the son is fully cleaned. So it is in the new humanity.

[goodnews-aaron]

The new humanity is like this:

The Four Tenants

A landlord gave four of his tenants free rent for a month. The first tenant thought the landlord was foolish and did not accept the free rent. She was convinced that she could continue to provide the rent money she needed. Yet when disaster came, she was unable to pay her bills and lost her apartment.

The second tenant was grateful for the free month and used the money to spend on whatever he desired. He threw parties in the apartment completely trashing it, had walls torn down to open up the space, and played music so loudly the other tenants could not rest. When the landlord discovered what he had done, he lost his apartment.

The third tenant accepted the free month of rent with gratitude, but he banked on the landlord’s kindness and stopped paying his monthly rent completely. Soon afterwards, the landlord evicted him, and the tenant said to the landlord, “But you were so kind to me. I thought you’d let me keep staying for free.” The landlord replied, “I have shown kindness, but there is still a cost to live here.”

The fourth tenant was overjoyed by the generous deed. She decided to use the extra money to invite her friends and neighborhood widows over for dinners at no cost to them. She gave her guests gifts and was generous whenever anyone was in need. She improved the apartment to make it more comfortable for others, and even after the month of free rent ended, she continued to be generous. Impressed with how she responded to his gift, the landlord spoke to the woman, “There is still a cost for living here, but I will cut your rent in half.” The woman prospered and had peace in her life. So it is in the new humanity.