I have a confession. I am obsessed with information. I enjoy learning, processing information, and making connections to gain an understanding. It can be an obscure and seemingly unnecessary fact, but it will catch my attention. Did you know that on 12/31/1974, for the first time in almost 40 years, private U.S. citizens were allowed to buy and own gold? It seems somewhat random…right? Now, this could become an entire conversation about the current state of the global economy and how this decision has impacted it. However, that is more of an off-blog topic.
When I first saw this fact, I immediately knew why this was allowed. Because I love documentaries (part of my information obsession thing), I remembered that President Richard Nixon had done away with the gold standard in 1971. The gold standard was when a country would have to own enough gold to back the currency that they were printing, giving money its value. The countries could not print more money than gold that they owned. For example, $100 in gold that was owned by the U.S. government was stored to print $100 in circulated paper bills (no gold, no money). When the gold standard was dropped, money began to be valued against other currencies (with the U.S. dollar being the anchor of comparison). In essence, my money is better than your money.
Then, I thought about human nature and how we determine if we are a good person based on comparing ourselves to other people. ‘I may do this, but at least I don’t do that!’. In God’s “economy”, that has no value. You can be the best person in your power and that means nothing to Him. Isaiah 64:6 tells the condition of all of us. But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. Because He is a Holy God, the “good things” that we do to be acceptable to Him are like a rag that you used to clean your oven or tires. It is like walking in a home decorated in pure white and you are covered in mud. This is how our self-driven efforts to be righteous are viewed when presented to our Righteous God.
The only value in God’s “economy” for righteousness and the forgiveness of sin is the blood of Jesus. Anything else falls short and has an empty value. Today, I can boldly declare that I am backed by the “Blood Standard”! Are you? If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)
For more on being in relationship with God, read Adopted.
Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments section.
To receive new posts in your inbox, click Subscribe.
Copyright 2019 T.L. Lockley. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
