If you’re familiar with the game of roulette, you understand that the way to make money is for the bet you place on the table to correspond to the number that comes up.
This can happen in a variety of ways. You place your chips on the odd numbers, or the even numbers, or the high or low numbers, or you pick a specific number to bet on.
Now, one of the strategies in this game is to make a few different bets. You decide that you don’t want to just put your money on 27, you want to spread it out, so you also put money on even numbers, high numbers, and black. That way, your odds of winning something are higher.
Do you realize that’s the way many people approach Christianity? They try to hedge their bets.
What do I mean by that? The thought process is often something like this, “Well, I believe in Jesus, but I don’t want to be cursed so I’ve got to make sure I follow the law of Moses…but not all the law (pork tastes too good), just the moral law. You know what, I better throw a little karma in there just to be safe, and I want to make sure I’m not cursed with a curse as Malachi says, so I’ve got to make sure I tithe. My parents’ weren’t really believers so I wasn’t circumcised so I need to schedule that soon, and I’ve got to keep the Sabbath but I’ll pick a different day because Saturday is my lawn mowing day, and…”
Do you see how easy it is to to ADD something to Jesus and the finished work?
Paul didn’t even recognize this as Christianity.
“I say to you that if you become circumcised Christ will profit you nothing. And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. Galatians 5:2-4
Now, obviously Paul isn’t saying if you’re circumcised you can’t be a believer. But he is saying if you put your faith and trust in anything other than Christ or in addition to Christ, if you hedge your bets and spread them around the table, hoping that at least one of them will hit and you’ll walk out with at least as much as you started with, Jesus is of no benefit to you.
What’s the solution?
We need to go all in on Jesus. You can’t have a little of Moses, a little of Jesus, a little of _______ and hope that it’s going to benefit you in any way.
Paul is saying the only way for Christ to be of any benefit for you is if you don’t even have any other choices. There are no other bets to be made.
You’re like the guy at the roulette table who says, “I’m going all in,” and puts EVERYTHING on one outcome. There is no backup plan. You’re either going to win or lose based on the strength of that bet.
I’m here to tell you, you’re either winning or losing, walking in the New Covenant or the Old based on where you’ve placed your faith, and if you’ve place it on anything other than Jesus, than Jesus will be of no benefit to you.
Stop trying to add to what Jesus has done. Go all in on your faith in Him alone. He has already done more than enough.