I don't know why, but there are lots of religions based on the idea that you have to earn your way to Heaven/Paradise/eternal bliss. If that were true, I think most of us would be in a lot of trouble.
One of the interesting things about the God of the Bible is that He is a God of grace--He gives people help they don't deserve. Here's something that stood out to me in today's passage:
It was clear they didn't believe God,
had no intention of trusting in his help.
But God helped them anyway,
commanded the clouds
and gave orders that opened the gates of heaven.
He rained down showers of manna to eat,
he gave them the Bread of Heaven.
They ate the bread of the mighty angels;
he sent them all the food they could eat...
Interesting, huh?
I'll be clear: I'm not saying that God's grace extends to eternal salvation for all mankind. (The Bible is pretty clear that to receive salvation, people have to first believe in God and ask for His forgiveness--see Romans 3:9-26 or 1 John 1:9.) I'm also not saying that God's grace is a carte blanche to intentionally mess up and disobey Him (see James 2:14-26 for more on that topic).
What I am saying?
God is just and God is love. The two ideals aren't mutually exclusive. God offers us so much we don't deserve at all--just because of His goodness. We may not see that grace every day (during this blog journal, we've already talked about the fact that sometimes bad things happen to good people). But every day is--in itself--a gift you and I don't deserve. We have a lot to be thankful for.
Tomorrow: Psalm 80-85
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