No one sees the Wizard

“No one gets in to see the Wizard. Not nobody. Not no how.”  As we drove from North Carolina towards New York yesterday, the kids were watching videos on the DVD player and our daughter watched the Wizard of Oz. I could only hear the movie as I was driving and this part of the movie really stuck out to me as I listened to the interaction between the Wizard and Dorothy and her friends.

After they finally got in to see him because of Dorothy’s ruby red slippers, they all make their plea to the Wizard to get the things that they were missing in their lives. Dorothy wanted to go home to Kansas. The Scarecrow wanted a brain. The Tin Man wanted a heart. And the Cowardly Lion wanted courage. The Wizard sends them out to bring back the broom of the wicked Witch of the West and he would grant them their wishes.

The world, and sometimes Christians, see God in the same way. They feel that if they complete some task or some set of works that God will be pleased with them and finally accept them and give them their hearts desires. Unfortunately, God doesn’t work that way. There is nothing we can do within our own strength or anything we can complete that would make us acceptable to God. Even all the works that Mother Teresa did are considered dirty rags in the sight of God.

We can never “do” enough to earn access or favor with God, the Bible makes that clear. We can only come to God in faith and belief in what His Son, Jesus Christ, did on the Cross of Calvary.

The Apostle Paul told the Ephesians that “by grace we have been saved through faith. And this is not of your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one can boast.”  Heaven would be hell if we had to spend all of eternity listening to how much good everyone had done to get there. Instead, everyone will have the same story, they got their because of the shed blood of Jesus Christ and that’s it. All praise will go to God and not ourselves. Oh what a day!!!

Have a great day and God bless.