As
an aspiring writer, I have been frustrated with how difficult it is to publish
my books.
Granted,
I published a book related to a couple of my dearly departed pooches, but this
required a layout of several thousand dollars, and it was left to me to market
the limited number of copies which I ordered.
And
all the while, people who have been gifted with little or no literary skills,
but who have been gifted with famous names hire ghost writers, and their books
immediately land on the New York Times Best Seller List.
I
mean, “What’s up with that?”
They
have the name, but they come up short in the “works department.” I lack the
name, but (from my perspective) I excel in the (literary) works department.
Granted,
I’m biased, but a large number of people have praised my written works, and I
have chosen to believe they know what they are talking about.
In
terms of the foregoing paradox, I have made the statement, “I would rather be
judged by my works, than my name, (or the lack thereof”).
And,
of course, in the broader scheme of things, when we talk about the quality of our
lives, our very character (and a resulting good name) is defined by our works,
i.e. how we behave ourselves around other members of our species.
However,
in spite of appearances, this particular blog has little or nothing to do with
publishing a book, nor salvation as the result of good works.
Pt.
2
Interestingly
enough, the King of kings, and Lord of lords, the Alpha and Omega, the First
and the Last, and the Beginning and the End has absolutely no regard for my
name, nor my works; (at least in terms of how and why we have “been accepted
into the beloved”).
Afterall,
Ephesians 2:8-9 assures us,
“Not
by works of righteousness which we have done, but by His mercy He saved us…”
And
in the third chapter, verse twelve of the Book of the Revelation, we are informed,
“He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the
temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write
on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new
Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name.”
My value to God is not based on the name my parents
bestowed upon me at birth. But rather, my value to the Almighty can only be
attributed to the One who loved me and gave Himself for me, and His
justification of me by the Name that is above all names; so much so that God
will, one day, inscribe His name on our bodies.
Neither is my value to God based on the works which
I will ultimately accomplish in this life. “Not by works of righteousness…”
There is nothing I can do to merit the forgiveness, and acceptance of my
heavenly Father. But rather, my wherewithal to walk boldly into the Holy of
Holies, and call God “my Father” is based on the finished work of my Savior,
the Lord Jesus Christ.
Afterward
While
the publishing companies of the world will go right on denying gifted writers
the opportunity to publish their works simply because they lack a famous name,
as a believer I am thankful that I serve a God who has accepted me, not for my
name, nor for my works, but rather, as the result of His Son’s sacrificial gift
of Himself on an old rugged cross.
By William McDonald, PhD. Excerpt from (Mc)Donald's Daily Diary. Vol. 88. Copyright pending
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