BBD 09.04.08 Vetted
Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>
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09.04.08
Vetted
Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow
citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been
built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself
being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted
together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being
built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. - Ephesians
2:19-22.
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of
God, to those who believe in His name. - John 1:12.
A word that has been in frequent use in recent days in the US presidential
campaign is "vetted" or "vetting". The word comes from the world of horse
racing where the health of horses are checked out by veterinarians and then
the horse is referred to as having been "vetted". The word has been taken up
by the media which uses fact checkers to check the accuracy of stories and
that process is referred to as "vetting". The word is also now used in the
development of software where there is "vetting" of code prior to a build
being approved or passed on for further testing. In addition, we have all
been exposed to the use of "vetting" or "vetted" in relation to the checking
of the background of prospective candidates for political office.
While I was a probation and parole officer I would conduct pre-sentence
investigations of those convicted of criminal acts but not yet sentenced. It
is helpful to the judge to know as much as possible about a person's life
history prior to sentencing. Some of the things that may be checked are the
criminal history, employment history, financial records if applicable,
references are interviewed, employers are interviewed, family members are
also interviewed if possible, and victims are interviewed. If the individual
has only recently turned 18 (or if a lifetime pattern of behavior is
suspected), teachers may be interviewed and school discipline records may
also be checked. The more time available for the investigation, the more
thorough and complete it will be with a picture of the person emerging.
As Christians we are children of God meaning that we are part of the royal
family of the Lord of lords, and King of kings. What if God had a similar
vetting process for all who are prospective candidates to become His
children? Can you imagine how that might take place? Let us suppose an
investigative angel is dispatched to do the vetting of a prospective
Christian's life. The angel will begin with the basics. "Mr. Prospective
Christian (PC for brevity) I will need to ask you a few questions." "Let's
see, how many lies have you told in your lifetime." PC replies that he is
not sure but thinks it must have been only three or four. The angel begins
looking for something in a book and finally says, "Mr. PC it is recorded in
God's book that you have lied two million five hundred fifty-six thousand
one hundred and two times which includes the one you just told about the
number of times you have lied." "Now let us consider another of God's
commandments, you know the one about not stealing." The interview is brutal
as each of the PC's violations of the Ten Commandments is considered. The
Angel then informs PC that Part II of the investigation will consist of
interviews with family members, relatives, friends, neighbors, employers,
and all those who have been encountered in their life.
The truth is that God does have a vetting process for those who want to
become a part of His royal family. However, God's vetting process is much
briefer than the one described and much simpler. It consists of one question
and that question is this, "Do you know my son, Jesus Christ, as your
personal Savior?" Jesus makes this truth very clear in John 14:6 where He
states, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father
except through Me."
Copyright © 2008. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals
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