Forgiveness and Consequences

"Lord our God, you answered them; you were to Israel a forgiving God, though you punished their misdeeds."" Psalm 99:8

Though this is written about the Israelites it pertains to us, also. Let's talk about consequences. God is to us, also, a forgiving God. As a matter of Biblical fact, He removes our sins from Himself, as far as the east is from the west and buries our sins in the deepest sea, to be remembered no more. These are His promises to us. Just think about how far the east is from the west. It is totally and completely far. As far as it can get. And, the deepest sea we have not even seen, explored, measured, or figured out. Pretty deep, I think. These wonderful pictures allow us to realize how forgiving God is, and just how much he loves us, and how far His grace extends.

Sometimes, we begin to presume upon that grace and forgiveness to the extent that we think that along with that forgiveness, comes the elimination of consequences. If you read the stories of the Israelites, they were not only forgiven a lot, but they also suffered a boatload of consequences. His kindness brings us to repentance, but I think we need the consequences to learn our lessons. We must need to suffer, look how many times we repeat our sins. If we learned from forgiveness exclusively, we'd surely have become much more obedient by now.

What is it about us that makes it so hard for us to learn quicker? I think we probably get the lessons; it's just so hard to change, and make permanent adjustments, in order not to fall into the same traps, again. It indeed is a lifelong process. But, we should not give up. We should try harder and do better next time, even if there are a lot of next times.

Now, here is the difficult part of the devotional today. Over time, we ought to be able to measure our maturing, in real terms. Do you know what I mean by that? There ought to be some spiritual progress that is noticeable, not only in our hearts, but in our behaviors, also. This is what we call transformation and victory. Not momentary relief or emergency rescue from our latest misdeed, but repentant recognition of the need to transform. Transformation comes from the renewing of our mind. The renewing of our minds comes from study of the Word. The study of the Word comes from personal discipline.

Discipline is probably what we all need. It is the action point of punishment. We must 'plan' to change, take steps to be accountable. Follow through on an action plan to transform our patterns and habits. If we just endure the punishment or consequences, and then fall back into our previous behaviors, we miss the purpose of God. We miss the blessing of why He forgives, why He shows us grace, and why we suffer through the consequences. So, let us all reflect on the benefits of self-discipline, before we repeat our next set of consequences. Interesting thought.

If not, we become numb, detached, overwhelmed, and satisfied with the status quo. Sound familiar? I don't know about you, but I am more sick and tired of the status quo than I am of the consequences. Join me in redoubling our efforts to grow up some, sooner, not later. As a matter of fact.... real soon, like starting now.

In Him, Pastor Fred

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