Luke 23:39-43
Luke 23:39-43 (English Standard Version) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
39One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him,[a] saying, "Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!" 40But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." 42And he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." 43And he said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."
Footnotes:
Luke 23:39 Or blasphemed him
I remember the first person that I ever fired. Joe was a reliable worker, punctual and friendly with everyone he met. We even managed to have some discussions around matters of faith in Christ. Needless to say, I was very disappointed when he did something that left me no option but to let him go. As we had that conversation, he apologized for what he had done and I forgave him for that break in trust. He headed back behind the counter and I had to stop him.
“Where are you going, Joe?” I asked. “Back to work.” he replied. “But you don’t work here anymore.” I stated.
How could that be, he wanted to know. I had just forgiven him so he should still have his job, was his reasoning. I explained to Joe that there was still a penalty for his actions. At that point, Joe began accusing me of being a false Christian because I had accepted his apology but still fired him.
I did not immediately remember the text from Luke where Christ forgives a thief of his offenses but yet does not remove the punishment of his actions. Christ could very well have called legions of angels to come down and rescue them all from death but as many things, there are consequences for our actions. In the case of the thief, death was the penalty for his sin. In Christ’s case, death was the penalty for OUR sin.
Does this seem unfair? There are many examples in scripture where God has a deep and meaningful relationship with people but yet there is a horrible price to be paid for their sinfulness. Numbers 20:10-13 details the sin of Moses and his punishment of not leading the people into the Promised Land. In 2 Samuel chapter 12, Nathan confronts David over his adultery with Bathsheba. In verses 13 and 14 we see God forgiving David. “The Lord has put away your sin” is the news from the prophet Nathan. But he continues with the consequence, “Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.”
Our society today places great focus on public confessions. We think how great a person is because they have “fessed up”. Let him off the hook. The public embarrassment is enough and there should be no further penalty.
There is an interesting balance here. Without civil laws and rules (which God has ordained) there would be chaos in the world. There are many examples (especially in Exodus and Leviticus) where restitution is demanded to correct a wrong. Another way of thinking of this is that it is the consequence. As Christians, we are to forgive when someone has wronged us, but there are also penalties and restitutions that must be made. We should not expect to skate away without repercussion for our wrongs.
Blessings
Mark
39One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him,[a] saying, "Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!" 40But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." 42And he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." 43And he said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."
Footnotes:
Luke 23:39 Or blasphemed him
I remember the first person that I ever fired. Joe was a reliable worker, punctual and friendly with everyone he met. We even managed to have some discussions around matters of faith in Christ. Needless to say, I was very disappointed when he did something that left me no option but to let him go. As we had that conversation, he apologized for what he had done and I forgave him for that break in trust. He headed back behind the counter and I had to stop him.
“Where are you going, Joe?” I asked. “Back to work.” he replied. “But you don’t work here anymore.” I stated.
How could that be, he wanted to know. I had just forgiven him so he should still have his job, was his reasoning. I explained to Joe that there was still a penalty for his actions. At that point, Joe began accusing me of being a false Christian because I had accepted his apology but still fired him.
I did not immediately remember the text from Luke where Christ forgives a thief of his offenses but yet does not remove the punishment of his actions. Christ could very well have called legions of angels to come down and rescue them all from death but as many things, there are consequences for our actions. In the case of the thief, death was the penalty for his sin. In Christ’s case, death was the penalty for OUR sin.
Does this seem unfair? There are many examples in scripture where God has a deep and meaningful relationship with people but yet there is a horrible price to be paid for their sinfulness. Numbers 20:10-13 details the sin of Moses and his punishment of not leading the people into the Promised Land. In 2 Samuel chapter 12, Nathan confronts David over his adultery with Bathsheba. In verses 13 and 14 we see God forgiving David. “The Lord has put away your sin” is the news from the prophet Nathan. But he continues with the consequence, “Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.”
Our society today places great focus on public confessions. We think how great a person is because they have “fessed up”. Let him off the hook. The public embarrassment is enough and there should be no further penalty.
There is an interesting balance here. Without civil laws and rules (which God has ordained) there would be chaos in the world. There are many examples (especially in Exodus and Leviticus) where restitution is demanded to correct a wrong. Another way of thinking of this is that it is the consequence. As Christians, we are to forgive when someone has wronged us, but there are also penalties and restitutions that must be made. We should not expect to skate away without repercussion for our wrongs.
Blessings
Mark
posted by BreadBakers at 12:12 PM
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