Well apparently it had something to with a little girl and her dad. Little girl wanted something or other and not having enough money went to her father.
Father said contribute what you may and he would cover the difference. Their point being that is how salvation works. You can’t put in enough, ever, but god being a benevolent father will always cover the rest.
- - - - - - - -
That is the story of the bike. It is a fairly famous analogy taken from one of the leaders, Stephen J. Robinson. IIRC, it was first given in General Conference then an article in the Ensign, and now is in books etc.
It makes me sick to read it. It just makes Christ someone we use to get what we want (exaltation). The LDS really do not understand how they denigrate Christ and His sacrifice.
In reality, salvation is not like a girl whose dad helps her pay for a bicycle after she has saved all she can. Instead it is like this (yes I realize this is not possible under American law, that doesn’t change it’s intent):
A man has spent many years committing various heinous crimes. Eventually he is caught and goes to trial. He is convicted and sentenced to die by slow torture.
After the sentence is handed down, a gentleman who has never committed ANY crime stands up and tells the Judge that he wants to be tortured and put to death INSTEAD of the offender and asks that the offender go free.
The judge who wants to be merciful yet knows justice must be satisfied. He agrees to let the innocent man suffer in the place of the offender.
The offender is so grateful that he goes up to the substitute and falls at his feet thanking him, kissing him, hugging him.
Problem is, if we could contribute ANYTHING to our salvation, then we could contribute ALL. Grace would cease to be Grace, and instead become works.
Another interesting quote from the article (full “parable” at end):
“I do not believe Christ can do what he claims. I have no faith in his ability to exalt me.” - Notice that instead of us giving glory (exalting) Christ, it is about Christ exalting (making Gods of) US.
LDS PARABLE OF THE BICYCLE
As my wife and I talked that night about feelings of inadequacy, I groped for some way to help. I finally remembered something that had happened a couple of months earlier. In our home it is now called the parable of the bicycle.
I was sitting in a chair reading. My daughter, Sarah, who was seven years old at the time, came in and said, “Dad, can I have a bike? I’m the only kid on the block who doesn’t have one.”
Well, I didn’t have the money then for a bike, so I stalled her. I said, “Sure, Sarah.”
She said, “How? When?”
I said, “You save all your pennies, and soon you’ll have enough for a bike.” And she went away.
A couple ofs weeks later I was sitting in the same chair when I heard a “clink, clink” in Sarah’s bedroom. I asked, “Sarah, what are you doing?”
She came to me with a little jar, a slit cut in the lid, and a bunch of pennies in the bottom. She said, “You promised me that if I saved all my pennies, pretty soon I’d have enough for a bike. And, Daddy, I’ve saved every single one of them.”
My heart melted. My daughter was doing everything in her power to follow my instructions. I hadn’t actually lied to her. If she saved all of her pennies, she would eventually have enough for a bike, but by then she would want a car. I said, “Let’s go look at bikes.”
We went to every store in town. Finally we found it—the perfect bicycle. She was thrilled. Then she saw the price tag, and her face fell. She started to cry. “Oh, Dad, I’ll never have enough for a bicycle!”
So I said, “Sarah, how much do you have?”
She answered, “Sixty-one cents.”
“I’ll tell you what. You give me everything you’ve got and a hug and a kiss, and the bike is yours.” Then I drove home very slowly because she insisted on riding the bike home.
As I drove beside her, I thought of the atonement of Christ. We all desperately want the celestial kingdom. We want to be with our Father in Heaven. But no matter how hard we try, we come up short. At some point all of us must realize, “I can’t do this by myself. I need help.” Then it is that the Savior says, in effect, All right, you’re not perfect. But what can you do? Give me all you have, and I’ll do the rest.
He still requires our best effort. We must keep trying. But the good news is that having done all we can, it is enough. We may not be personally perfect yet, but because of our covenant with the Savior, we can rely on his perfection, and his perfection will get us through.
As Janet and I internalized how the Atonement works, we wept. “I’ve always believed that Jesus suffered and died for me,” Janet said. “But now I realize that he must save me from myself, from my sins and my weaknesses.”
I rejoice in the words of 2 Nephi 2:8: “There is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah.” [2 Ne. 2:8] There is no other way. Many of us are trying to save ourselves, holding the atonement of Jesus Christ at arm’s distance and saying, “When I’ve perfected myself, then I’ll be worthy of the Atonement.” But that’s not how it works. That’s like saying, “I won’t take the medicine until I’m well. I’ll be worthy of it then.”
One of my favorite hymns reads: “Dearly, dearly has he loved! And we must love him too, and trust in his redeeming blood, and try his works to do.” (“There Is a Green Hill Far Away,” Hymns, 1985, no. 194.)
Truly, we must try to do his works with all that is in us. But then, having done all, we can trust in his redeeming blood to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.
If we will enter into that glorious covenant Jesus offers us and give him all that we have, holding nothing back, trusting in his ability to make up for what we lack, he will exalt us. With him pulling with and for us, we can move forward in confidence toward our celestial home.
the original story is better. KJV