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Tim and the Car
When I was in high school, there was a fellow I knew named Tim. Although Tim was not one of my close friends, we did have mutual friends and associated from time to time. Now, in the mind of a teenager, one of the greatest things you could own is a car. And, Tim was no different than any other teenager in his estimation of the value of a car. So, one day when Tim came to school really excited, we soon learned he had just bought his first car. After school we all got a glimpse of this new wonder, which turned out to be a 1967 or 68, Dodge “Humongous” (or something like that). This thing was probably the first automobile to be called a “boat”! Man, it was big, dark green, and in dire need of paint and body work.
Of course, this did not dampen Tim’s excitement. I believe I remember that over the next few weeks, he began to sand, bondo, and prime the rusty spots. Before long it looked like he was camouflaging it for military action. The thing that stands out to me, however, is that one day Tim came in and said that the car was now ready to paint. He went on to say that he was first going to prime the whole car. And, if the primer coat ended up looking all right, rather than going on and painting it, he was going to wax it and leave it! Can you imagine that? After doing all that work to get it ready to paint, then just waxing the primer and leaving it gray? I can’t, but Tim saw no problem with it.
As funny as Tim’s actions still seem to me, I now realize that Christians often follow the same path. Yes, remember the excitement surrounding your obedience to the gospel — the exhilaration of being raised up from the waters of baptism to walk “in newness of life” (Rom. 6:3-4)! Remember how important reading, studying, and growing in Christ were in those early years. You wanted to know the answers, didn’t you? But, how many of us here must now admit that after we had taken the proper steps toward salvation and begun to prepare our lives for service to God, both publicly in the church (i.e., as teachers, etc.) and privately (i.e., as personal workers, etc.), have chosen the much easier route of the “status quo”? Rather than making the needed, continual, effort to grow in Christ and receive the true joy and fulfillment waiting for those who are committed, we have proverbially settled for “waxing the primer” and being happy with a job half done (2 Pet. 3:17-18).
We all need to be reminded of the blessings of “life and godliness” and the “precious promises” found in Christ (2 Pet. 1:3-4). These blessings should motivate us to show diligence in making our call and election sure by adding to our faith virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love (2 Peter 1:5-7). For, brethren, Peter goes on to say that “if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ...Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 1:8-11).
