What if we actually got what we deserved – and lived with it, too? What if sexual immorality resulted in incurable diseases, and what if unwanted pregnancies couldn’t be eliminated? What if the glutton had to mend fitness and dietary habits in order to lose weight, and what if the lazy and undisciplined were actually left on the street to starve?
Oh, but we’ve got STI treatments, abortion, lap band surgery, and government aid to cover for us, so why fret? Thanks to the 21st century, we can bypass the consequences and just keep sinning. Unlike the days of Lamentations.
All her people groan as they search for bread; they trade their treasures for food to revive their strength. 1:11
No need to give up your iPhone or cable T.V. to buy groceries. Just sign up for WIC.
Infants and babies faint in the streets of the city. 2:11
In America? Nah, we’ve got the foster care system.
Should women eat the fruit of their womb, the children of their tender care? 2:20
Barbaric! Let’s sanitize it, legalize it, and call it “pro-choice.”
In the dust of the streets lie the young and the old. 2:21
Not if Section 8 can help it.
We read Lamentations, eyes wide and mouths gaping, surprised to find that people literally suffered the consequences of their sin, and it actually wasn’t very pretty. By comparison, 21st-century America seems to have gotten off scot free.
But have we?
Just because we have the technology, the tolerance, and a multitude of government institutions doesn’t mean we’ve bypassed the consequences of sin. No, sin always has consequences.
Then how do we explain the “cleanliness” of America’s depravity?
America is not as consequence-free as it seems. Lap-band surgery may reduce a person’s weight, but it doesn’t take away poor health choices. Abortion may remove the “consequences” of “unprotected sex,” but then abortion has its own consequences. And even in America, “the greatest country on earth,” many people are left on the street – over 500,000 thousand of them, in fact.
Consequences run deep. Even when all looks beautiful on the outside, the heart still has consequences of its own. A perfect family photo of smiling faces may not tell the whole story. Calculate the hurt, bitterness, helplessness, emptiness, and regret, and you’ve got a mound of consequences that no one may ever see.
Sin is never without consequence. Let’s say we get away with it and no one finds out. Nothing bad happens as a result, and we wonder whether sin is really that big of a deal. At this point, we have two options: heaven or hell.
See, payment for my sin must be made. Someone has to suffer for it. And if it’s not going to be me, then who will?
Enter Jesus. He provided the way so we wouldn’t just keep sinning. His cross was our consequence.
And lest you think the Christ-less are never punished, think again, and think post-earth.
So in the end, sin has consequences: Blood-bought eternal life, or hell to pay.
Would you really rather just keep sinning?
[image credit: unsplash.com]
Journey of the Word 
Oh my. It is so hard for our culture of victimization and disease to understand sin. Thanks for your strong words today.
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Lydia – it is so true that there are consequences for our walking in sin and also grace in redemption in a Savior who so willingness paid the price for us. Your words ring true, no matter how hard they may be to read… they are truth written in love. Your neighbor today at #LMM
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Anyone who spends much time around people who refuse to acknowledge their sin, will see the consequences of sin in one way or another – eventually. My own family has had the opportunity to see this rather sadly this year in people whom we have known for years. But, from the perspective of those farther from the reality, these people show an outward shell that looks very well put together and hides the consequences of the sin.
When someone who professes to be born again continues on and on without ever acknowledging their sin problem or its consequences (present or eternal), we eventually have to wonder if they really do know the Lord after all, for the goodness of God leads us to repentance. Romans 2:4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? A repentant life will acknowledge the consequences Jesus suffered for us and will strive against sin rather than wallowing in it.
Thank you for this thought provoking post.
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Your reap what you sow. All the time. Every time. You said it well. Cover ups don’t work. There will always be a time to face the consequences. That’s why choosing to walk uprightly is always the best choice. Thanks.
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We think we are really good at hiding our ours sins, eventually, they are exposed one way or another. We are only kidding ourselves when we think we have hidden them. God sees and knows them all. So thankful that when we repent there is always forgiveness. Your neighbor at Coffee for Your Heart.
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Another problem with sin is that it gets really boring after awhile. The chap who collared Adolf Eichmann coined a phrase – ‘the banality of evil’.
So true!
Your neighbour at Thought-Provoking Thursday.
http://blessed-are-the-pure-of-heart.blogspot.com/2016/11/your-dying-spouse-233-feedback-for.html
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This is a powerful truth that many so called believers reject! The pushing of Grace to hide or absolve ourselves of the consequences of sin…errors in teachings and ideologies that encourage sin.
Thank you for your boldness in writing this at such a time when truth is unpopular.
Blessings to you
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Yes and amen, Lydia! I love the way you explain things. Sin always has a consequence, and the consequence is never worth it. Now or later. Thanks for writing the truth with such boldness and clarity!!
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Thank you!
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The need for the gospel in our nation is great. It is up to each of us to be ministers of the love of Christ to each person we encounter today. Karen Ehman’s new book (Listen, Love, Repeat) is a great resource for sharing the love of Jesus in our everyday lives. I appreciate her gentle, consistent approach to sharing the hope of the cross with others. (your #heartencouragement neighbor)
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