A Twenty-Dollar Dog on a Thousand-Dollar Rug

“He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” (II Timothy 1:9-10 NIV)

Last week, I was introduced to a song I had never heard before, which, as was its intent, paints a perfect picture of the wonderful grace God gives to us.  Entitled, “20 Dollar Dog,” the song tells the story of a mutt out in the cold being let into the warm house by his owner.  The dog plops down on a thousand dollar rug and lies content there under his master’s feet.  The dog is there only by invitation and because the master loves him; nothing in his breeding has earned him the treatment he is receiving.  

In a culture that trumpets how valuable we are, how we can be whatever we want to be, that we are special, undeserved grace can be a difficult concept to grasp.  In fact, many would consider the comparison to a 20-dollar dog to be insulting.  Rather, we tend to think we are deserving based upon how we’ve lived our lives. We’re good people.  We may not be great, but we’re good, which, in our minds, should count for something.  

Yet the biblical reality is that no one is good but God (Luke 18:19). Each of us falls short of His standard (Romans 3:23).  We’re all 20-dollar dogs waiting, hoping to be let into the warm comfortable house of our master so we can lie on that $1000 rug.  We have nothing to offer but our less-than-desirable selves.  

The overall theme of the Scriptures is two-fold: First, we are sinners and nothing we do can change that.  Second, we are loved in spite of our sin.  In order to have a relationship with the Lord, we must embrace both aspects of this theme as reality.  We deserve to be left out on the porch in the cold, but the Master’s love compels Him to let us in.  

Today, know that you are allowed to lie on that expensive rug not because of anything you have done, but purely out of your Master’s own delight of having you lay at His feet.  And if you still find yourself on the porch trying to figure a way in, the way to do that is to humbly acknowledge you never will.  At that, the door will open and the invitation to come in will be given.  

© Jim Musser 2015