The Grace Game

Paul Young, author of The Shack, shared his favorite joke. I love what this story tells us about Grace. What an incredible gift we have been given! We are saved by grace, not by what we can earn or think we deserve. This mindset changes everything!

A pastor dies and he’s up at the pearly gates, but he’s not sure whether he can walk in, so he shuffles around wondering what to do.

Just then, St. Peter shows up, so the pastor addresses him. “Hello, Peter . . .  Um, pardon me, but I don’t know how this works. Do I need a hundred points or something to get in?”

“What do you think?” Peter replies. “Well,” the pastor says, “for thirty-five years I served in our local soup kitchen every week.” “OK,” Peter says, “I’ll give you a point for that. “All right. And for fifteen years I faithfully served my flock as a pastor.”

“I don’t know...” Peter replies, rubbing his chin. “C’mon!” the pastor insists. “Fifteen years!” “Oh, all right, I’ll give you a point for that too.”

The pastor thinks, “Wow, that’s my whole life, and all I have are two points.”

Just then, a fellow walks by the pastor, and without even thinking about it, goes right through the pearly gates. The pastor recognizes the man. He was a nice enough guy on earth, who went to church a few times a year and owned a shop downtown.

But the pastor’s not happy. “Wait a minute, Peter. You mean to tell me that guy has a hundred points, and I have just two?”

Peter looks him in the eye and says, “No, he just doesn’t play that game.”

If we are trying to impress God with our accomplishments, we are playing a losing game. It is by grace we are saved!