Earning Heaven

As the bible story goes, a vineyard owner hires some people to work all day in the vineyard.  Every few hours he hires more to work what is left of the day.  Finally, some are hired who end up putting in one hour.  They all get the same pay.  The guys who worked all day, and had agreed to the wage they received before going to work, complained.  They thought they should get more because they worked more.

I find it the same way in religious church practice.  Many people who spend their lives following the rules and going to mass weekly, expect to get a better deal than those who don't. They cannot get away from the idea that you earn salvation by your efforts.  The above story shows the God of generous love.  God is Love.  The occasional church goer, the one who does not keep all the rules, is just as loved by God as the regular church goer.  If God chooses to have us all in heaven, this is God's choice.

So, why be good?  The complaint is that if we are going to get heaven anyway, why do all the "right" things?  Why bother?  So that you can develop a deeper relationship with God through your worship and way of life, is one very important reason.  So that you can worship the God who deserves some worship.  If all this being church good simply makes you self-righteous, well, God loves you anyway.