Born Again and Miserable

And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel. So He delivered them into the hands of plunderers who despoiled them; and He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, so that they could no longer stand before their enemies. Wherever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for calamity, as the Lord had said, and as the Lord had sworn to them. And they were greatly distressed. Nevertheless, the Lord raised up judges who delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them. Judges 2:14-15

But Didn’t God Just Say to Israel….

“I led you up from Egypt and brought you to the land of which I swore to your fathers; and I said, ‘I will never break My covenant with you.’” Judges 2:1b

God has not, nor will He ever rescind His promise to Israel and I firmly denounce anyone, Christian or otherwise, who suggests God is somehow through with the Jew. The Lord has unmistakably declared here, and many other places in the Bible, that He will never go back on His word. However, God is also clearly asserting that there are severe consequences for those who choose to sin. That Godly principle applies to both the Jew and the born-again Christian.

As a dog returns to his own vomit, So a fool repeats his folly. Proverbs 26:11

As an illustration we find a faithless Israel (in the first Book of Judges) disobeying the Lord. God told them to drive-out the Canaanites, but instead (on several occasions) allowed them to remain in the land as long as they paid taxes. In other words, rather than obey God, they saw an opportunity to profit from their circumstances; “Why fight, when we can make money,” they probably thought. As a result [God said] that these enemies would be a perpetual thorn in their side. Look around Israel today and we see just how true God’s word is.

The application for the Christian is exactly the same. We are saved—that is God’s promise to us, but in our disobedience; i.e., our choosing to sin, we heap consequences upon ourselves. Unless we repent, these consequences will plague us until the day we die. Yes, by the righteous blood of Christ our sin has been washed cleaned and we are forgiven, but our consequences will linger.

Nevertheless, the Lord raised up judges who delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them. Judges 2:16

Sin angers God; not because the activity is bad [necessarily], but because sin is bad for us. Our Father loves us and wants us not to suffer needlessly. However, having said that, God allows the consequences of sin to fester in that in them we might be brought to a place of humility; a place where we might say, “Enough is enough,” and return fully to the Lord of mercy and Grace.

No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

Ever Heard This Lie?

“God will never give you anything you can’t handle”

Many read the 1 Corinthians verse and erroneously come up with that unfortunate paraphrase. That is not what the passage implies—God does not ever put us in a position where we must rely on our own strength. A more accurate summary of the verse would be that, “God will never give us anything that He can’t handle.” In other words, we find our way into a mess, a trial, or a temptation, and it is God who will always make the way of escape. If the Christian chooses not to escape (like we see Israel doing in the second Book of Judges), then we wallow in our despair not being of much good to the Lord or anyone else.

I also will no longer drive out before them any of the nations which Joshua left when he died, so that through them I may test Israel, whether they will keep the ways of the Lord, to walk in them as their fathers kept them, or not. Judges 2:21-22

As far as Israel is concerned, the Promised Land will always be theirs—nothing they do or don’t do can revoke God’s directive. The same can be said for a Christian’s salvation—short of one hundred percent rejection of Jesus Christ on every level (blasphemy of the Holy Spirit), our salvation is intact. If however we opt to sin in our salvation, we can know with certainty (as Israel is our witness) that our sin will find us out and we will be perpetually plagued with the consequences of those sins—God will use the enemy to bring us to a place of repentance. It almost goes without saying that if we don’t want these kinds of trials in our lives, then we should not sin.

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