Recently I was reading an advertisement, and it had an asterisk at the end of one of the sentences. This led you to the bottom of the page where there was some important information. After adjusting my bifocals, I could read, “Offer not available to employees and their families … Offer not available to residents of Alaska and Hawaii …” There were all these restrictions to the original statements made in bold print.

Often, I feel like when we read the Bible, we add an asterisk where one does not exist. We believe that the idea in that passage has restrictions. Those words do not apply to us.

Sometimes we add this little piece of punctuation to keep us from feeling bad about faith. We know Jesus wants us to go and make disciples, but that doesn’t apply to the young, newlyweds, new parents, parents of teens, and senior citizens. Surely Jesus understands that we cannot keep that command at this point in our lives?

Sometimes we add the asterisk because we don’t feel good enough. Sure, God loves the world, but he doesn’t like adulterers, fornicators, drunkards, and sinners. Jesus came for good people, and I am not that good. Surely God’s love in Jesus doesn’t apply to my life.

My thought for today is simple; don’t add an asterisk where one does not exist. God loves you. He also has commands he wants everyone to follow. You are not the exception. There are no restrictions listed in the fine print, no matter how close you look.