Devotion - Wednesday, January 16

I have been watching the Netflix series "The Good Place."  It is the story of a young woman who dies and is greeted by a host with the news, "You are in the good place."  There are some teaching moments in the plot; but mostly it is entertainment.

One teaching moment is found in the premise.  What happens to us when we die?  Are our acts on earth graded and based on those do we end up in a bad place or a good place?

I read this morning Ephesians 2:1-10.  Paul speaks of being set free from the trap of sin.  Paul does write of eternity and being with God; but his writings do not merely address what comes next.  He is clear that being a follower of Jesus changes life now.  And that change is for the better.

Eleanor, main character in "The Good Place," is the one who exposes that doing the right thing is simply better.  Doing the right thing keeps us in a right relationship with others, with the world, with our creator.  

Paul's writings reveal that it is a trap of the evil one which allows us to think that lying or cheating or stealing or harming will somehow make our lives fuller.  It is a trap!

The way of Jesus is not some arbitrary set of rules, intended to be a buzz kill.  The way of Jesus sets us on a path toward peace, contentment, community.  The way of Jesus is the way to the good place.