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Israel, I won’t lose my temper and destroy you again. I am the Holy God—not merely some human, and I won’t stay angry. Hosea 11:9 (CEV)
The difference between punishment and discipline hinges on the desired outcome. When a wrong is done, the human response is revenge. Those who do wrong must pay. It’s Justice.
What is it that gives the parent freedom in the courtroom to forgive the drunk driver that killed her child? What is it that empowers the father to visit the man in prison that molested his daughter? How can a spouse forgive when he/she has been cheated on, abused or humiliated? How can you forgive a God who claims to be loving but allows famine, cancer and war to tear the lives of people apart?
The answer boils down to a single word: value. It’s a matter of mercy over justice. Man seeks justice because justice demands repayment for sin. Punishment is the motivation for justice, but punishment will never fully repay for actions done.
To the mother that forgives the drunk driver, all the pain, all the anger, all the hatred and all the prison time in the world will never bring her daughter home. There is no amount of time in prison that will heal the scars the molester leaves on the life of a young girl. There is nothing that will heal a broken heart.
Man’s punishment is never intended to improve the life of the perpetrator. On the other hand, God seeks to amend, to build up, to correct. His actions are intended to correct an error so that the guilty person can continue on the journey stronger, more confident and more useful.
That’s not to say we should never send anyone to prison, or that justice should never be served. The justice system, flawed as it may be, is designed to physically protect us from those who would harm us, but that system was never intended to deal with issues of the heart.
God’s dealing with us is a simple case of mercy over justice; of natural consequences over penalty; of value over revenge. The two may look the same in some cases but one destroys value the other is intended to build character. One is motivated by love, the other by anger; one frees us, the other enslaves us; one brings eternal life, one brings eternal separation from a holy and loving God.
Whether you are sitting behind physical bars of a prison or emotional bars made from the scars of a life gone wrong, know this. The God of the universe isn’t into punishment for the sake of punishment; his goal in allowing you to go through whatever you are going through is to build character in you. He values you far beyond anything else in the world.
PRAYER: Lord, even though you have freed me through Jesus there are still times I want to keep others in the prison of their souls. There are times I live entrapped by my own guilt and shame. Help me to see the value you have in me and pass that value on to others. Amen.
I am innocent, Lord! Won’t you listen as I pray and beg for help? I am honest! Please hear my prayer. Psalm 17:1 (CEV)
He sat across the table from me and apologized. He told me the reasons for doing what he did; that he had no intention of hurting me; that as soon as things improved he’d make it up to me; that he was truly sorry for the way things had worked out.
The human mind is an amazing thing. I sat and listened intently. I looked him in the eye, did all the things a good listener should do in a situation like this. But in spite of the sincerity in his voice and eyes, I remember thinking, “I’m so sorry too. I’m sorry because I don’t believe a word you are saying.”
Was this the ‘proper Christian attitude’? Maybe not. But over the previous several months I’d seen him hurt other people by his decisions. I’d heard him say one thing and do another; make promises that he’d later back out of; fly into rage when someone crossed him. The bottom line is that his actions didn’t match his words.
I wonder how often, during my times of prayer the Father looks on my words and asks a similar question. Barnes writes, “True prayer is that in which the lips “do” represent the real feelings of the soul. In hypocritical prayer the one is no proper representation of the other.”
On a simple humorous scale, I remember praying around the dinner table. The simple “God is great” prayer was taboo. My father would lead us in a ‘real prayer’ because ‘God didn’t listen to those little rote prayers where you say the same thing time after time.’ Yet to this day I can recite the prayer my dad would say because he said the same thing time after time.
When my lips pray for my enemy, do they reveal the real agony of my soul? That agony brought on by the wounds inflicted on me? Or do they simply say some religious jargon based on scriptures that admonish us to pray for our enemies.
When my lips pray for deliverance from some secret sin, some hidden addiction, does my heart echo that desire, or am I already planning my next episode?
When my lips pray for my brother in pain, sin or some other distress, do they portray true human agony over the situation or is my heart rejoicing over my own piety in lifting others to the heavenly throne.
Perhaps the reason we often see so few answers to our prayers is because our prayers not only don’t reflect the will of the Father, they aren’t the true feelings of our heart. The prayer of the psalmist was based on his own honesty, his own integrity before the throne. We have the privilege of going before the very throne of a Father who knows our every thought. God doesn’t ask us to be perfect in our prayers, he asks us to be honest with ourselves and him.
PRAYER: Father, all too often my prayers are ill thought out, repetitious and religious in nature. Sometimes they lack sincerity and honesty because of lack of thought or pride on my part. Empower me in my prayer life to be honest with you and with myself. Thank you that you will listen to my heartfelt pain and honesty. Amen.
Lord, who may enter your Holy Tent? Who may live on your holy mountain? Psalm 15:1 (NCV)
You see the signs everywhere. The wording may vary, but the message is the same. Restricted Access. Employees Only. Authorized Personnel Only. No Admittance. All ways of saying that unless you have the right credentials, you are not welcome to enter a particular area.
My son and I went to a neighboring city one day to hear a famous comedian. Just so happens that this comedian married a woman from a church my dad pastured. I knew this guy before he was famous! Our family knew him as a goofy guy who loved Jesus and had a fantastic ministry to youth. I was excited to hear him and excited for my son to meet him.
As we entered the arena where he was to speak to approximately 20,000 men I had an idea. I approached the first security person and explained that I was a family friend of this person and hadn’t seen him in years. My parents knew he was there too and I just wanted to pass a note that I’d hastily written to him.
The guard looked at me warily but took the note and disappeared down a hall. A few minutes later he returned with a smile and welcomed me to follow him. I wasn’t met with a handshake. I was met with a hug. It was only minutes to show time so our conversation was short. However, he turned to his ‘body-guard’ and said, “Make sure these guys get good seats.”
We were ushered down yet another hallway and emerged in front of the stage. We were then escorted to two seats in the front row! The guys we’d traveled with were many rows back, but because of my relationship with this guy, I got preferential treatment!
In Old Testament times, very few people had a personal relationship with God. All of their communication with him was done through a priest.
The Psalmist asks the question, “Who may enter your Holy Tent?” The answer then was a few priests who would pass on your ‘note’ to the King of Kings. The answer today? You can! The forgiveness Jesus offers as a result of the cross and empty tomb allows you access to the most inner thoughts of God. You don’t need a priest. You don’t need a particular set of rules and words. You need only to accept Christ’s forgiveness.
I needed permission to access my famous friend, but the writer to the Hebrews tells us we can approach him with confidence because of Jesus. With Jesus by our side we can enjoy the presence of his Father for all eternity. “What a fellowship, what a joy divine, leaning on the everlasting arms; what a blessedness, what a peace is mine, leaning on the everlasting arms.”
PRAYER: Father God, I thank you that through your son Jesus I can come before you with complete assurance that you will accept me with open arms. I praise you for the fact that I don’t need a priest; I don’t need a set of rules to be accepted because you accept me as I am. Amen.
The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good. Psalm 14:1 (NIV)
“Do you believe in God?”
The answer to this question seems to have changed over the years. Used to be that everyone believed in God, or if they didn’t, they would never admit it. It was just too un-popular of a philosophy to think of a world without God. Reality is though, the question isn’t really “Do you believe in God”, rather it would be better phrased which God do you believe in. Those that say there is no God have really set themselves as the supreme deity and their personal view on life as being their ‘theology’.
Others believe in a Supreme Being of some sort. They look around and realize all this must have come from somewhere. Even the most primitive tribes have stories of the origin of man and the universe and all include in that story some great power that gave us all this. Ironically, only our ‘sophisticated society’ has come up with an explanation for origins that doesn’t include some supreme being. But simply believing in some super-power isn’t enough. These people may believe in some supreme being but they deny that this being has any influence in this world. He, or it is a king without a kingdom so to speak.
Perhaps the most dangerous and most numerous people are the many who profess to believe in God on the outside but not in their hearts. They may go to church and have all the religious jargon down. They may not go to church but still believe in God, but stay away because of all the ‘politics’. Their religious philosophy goes something like this, “I believe in God, but I can worship him wherever and however I want. I don’t need to go to church to worship God. Besides, none of us really know what God is like.” They don’t believe in a personal God who rewards or punishes.
The Psalmist has a word for those in the above mentioned three categories. It’s the word fool. He lumps them all together in one need little package. They are all fools. They are all people who don’t know, or refuse to acknowledge the existence of a personal God.
Belief in God begins in the heart. Outward activities offer no proof of inner commitment to him. The fool may say in his heart that God doesn’t exist and show the world otherwise, but a heart that is truly committed to God will show the character of God in thought word and deed.
What God do you believe in? It will show in your actions towards those who mistreat you and who differ from you. The God of the universe, the creator and sustainer of all we see is a personal, graceful and merciful God who earnestly desires a personal, passionate relationship with you through his son, Jesus Christ.
PRAYER: Father God, I thank you today that you do exist. I pray that you would change my heart to be in tune with you so that others will see you are real because of me. In the name of Jesus Christ my Lord I pray, Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 