Measuring Tool | Previous Challenge Entry

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TITLE: Measuring Tool | Previous Challenge Entry
By Jackie Smithwick
10/14/20
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Recently we moved into a new house. One of the necessary tools needed to get settled in was a measuring tape. It is necessary to know just how a piece of furniture will fit in our living room or how a mirror or wall hanging will be positioned on a wall. When I think of all the times I have needed a ruler, yard stick, or measuring tape I am reminded of how important measurements are. Many tools are needed to build a house, or anything for that matter, and we could certainly examine the usefulness of each one but, I have come to the conclusion that the correct measurement for any project is a definite priority.

Sometimes we measure the distance between two points by inches, miles, or other units of measure. Sometimes we measure the distance by the time it takes to go from one point to another. Sometimes we measure the goodness of a person by integrity, morality, healthy living, culture and even ways I would rather not mention. Measuring the worth of a human being has become a national past-time these days, but I am here to say only God can make that measurement. He decides who will live and who will die, and He gives value to all human life.

If Jesus had not come to die for every human being then we may have the right to judge another by this or that. However, Jesus did come to die for all, so the worth of a person should never be measured by us humans. The reason we should never measure the worth of another is because none of us have measured up to the perfection God laid down in His law. The law, the ten commandments, is God’s measuring tape and lives that cannot measure up will fall short and fail. Because we cannot measure up to God’s laws, there is a great gap between where we are and where God is. The gap was closed however, when Jesus came. Praise God!

Whether it is a ruler with 12 inches, 30.48 centimeters, 72 picas or any other unit name the distance from the beginning of the ruler to the end is still the same. I believe whether a life is tiny or huge the distance from beginning to end, and value, is the same in God’s eyes. Why oh, why cannot we see life in the same way?

The ten commandments are God’s laws and I like to think of them as God’s measuring tool. They are the rules we must obey in order to please God. However, everyone knows it is impossible to keep these rules, or laws completely. When a building project is mis-measured it will not stand the test of time. Sin equals a mis-measured life which equals separation from God. God knew we would need help here, so He made a plan. The plan is called the plan of salvation and we find it marked out clearly in His word. A good place to start of course is John 3:16, and then maybe move on to the Roman Road, which is Romans 3;10, 3:23, and 6:23.

Here too, is a measurement to consider. I have heard it said that the distance between heaven and hell is the distance between our head and our heart. I suppose this could be anywhere from 12 to 18 inches. Sometimes it is a short distance, but often it takes hours, weeks, months, or even years for the truth of the Gospel to hit the heart. It took years for my heart to accept such miraculous love, but when the journey from my head to my heart was ended I experienced peace that was, and still is, beyond understanding.

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