Two and a Half Men -- A Change of Pace, a Change of Grace

In the past, I commented on how the two dysfunctional brothers Charlie and Allen Harper were two sides of the troubled coin of law and condemnation that plagues mankind.

Allen tries to follow the rules, get along with everybody, and basically gets taken advantage of time and again. He is a picture of works-righteousness, and the suffocating despair which it entails.

Then there is Charlie Harper, an uninhibited exibitious debauchee he drinks, woos, and beds every woman he meets while making millions writing trite kids' tunes and making millions more happy. Unlike his downtrodden brother, Charlie pushes life to the limits, running from one madcap scheme of pleasure to another, fleeing from any form of commitment.

Allen tries to get it right, Charlies tries to get it on, and neither is filled with grace.

With Charlie Sheen's public and sudden departure from the show, Ashton Kutcher has replaced the dissolute dilettante Charlie in the lead role of "Two and a Half Men."

He plays Walden Schmidt, a billionaire with broken heart who is willing to help out brother Allen.

Unlike the reprehensible Charlie, Warren is seeking something more for himself. He possesses great wealth, and is more than happy to share it with Allen.

In one sin, the still-living brother is once again down on his luck, having attempted abortively to end his life in the ocean. Schmidt tells Allen that he would be more than happy to help him out.

Self-reproaching and demeaning as ever, Allen admits that he could never pay back a loan from the well-off billionaire. Schmidt replies that he sees no point in loaning his money to people, since he never gets it back, anyway. It would be a gift, he promises Allen.

Still, Allen cannot bring himself to receive this open charity. Reluctantly, Schmidt ups the offer, permitting Allen to pay rent.

Allen agrees, then asks if he could have gotten, say $100,000 if he asked. Schmidt affirms, after which Allen attempts once again to drown himself.

Allen Harper's inherent reluctance to accept any charity is the same pride-poverty spirit that inflicts humanity. We are laden down with condemnation and self-recrimination, undoing every good work and spurning every good gift. Only by being brought to the end of ourselves do we finally accept Christ's final and eternal atonement for us at the Cross, whereupon He also wishes to freely give us all things.

Despite the saving grace of God, believers still live as though they have to "pay rent" for everything else, like Allen Harper in "Two and a Half Men." Yet nothing could be further from the truth.