Scripture & Exhortation

Ladies,

Okay, I don't know what happened to all my encouraging messages, lol. I've been in here talking about idolotry, sin, and God's wrath a lot...but hey, sometimes you need to hear these things too. God will not have us ignorant. Just because we are not aware of something, does not mean that we are excused or free from the consequences. I wanted to name this Sin, Punishment and Consequences but, i figured no one would click on it . There will be more than one part, to this...in fact there may be several because there is a lot to cover. Please go into the bible study this week. This message is so important to God's heart ladies, let's get this right!!

Okay, to start, I want to begin with one of my favorite scriptures, Romans 8:1, "There is therefore no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus." This is a beautiful scripture because it reminds us that the sin debt has been paid in full. And we ultimately will not be condemned for our sin. So we are excused right? I can stop typing right? Wrong. It's not that simple and as it turns out, there are real consequences for our sin and this is the pupose of this topic.

Okay, so since Christ died on the Cross for those of us who are saved, God does not PUNISH us for our sin. If he punished us, that would make him an unjust God for punishing us twice. Now if you are not saved, your sin debt has not been accepted, so you may very well a recipient of the punishment of God, especially the eternal consequences. Therefore christians, If things are going wrong, its not necessarily because you did X, Y, Z back in the day( I will get back on this later). But what about Correction and Consequences. According to the bible, "God corrects the ones he loves." Correction, therefore may bring on some troubles that may be perceived as punishment. Further, in the natural realm, there are obvious consequences to sin. For example, if you fornicate there is a chance that you could get pregnant or perhaps get an STD( but there are deeper spiritual consequences, I will also get back to this later).

Okay let's start with Correction. Paul give is an analogy in Hebrews 12:7. It basically compares God to a father that lovingly chastens his sons to correct the bad behavior. Chastens is such a sweet sounding word, isn't it,lol. I'm sure God's chastening is NOT pleasant, but imagine being in the hands of an angry God. I would much rather prefer his chastening than his punishment! Okay so as an analogy, wouldn't it be unloving for a father to allow his daughter to be promiscuous without correcting her? I am sure he would go to great lengths to correct the behavior before it causes her great danger. So think about it ladies, If God's number one goal is to make you like his son..would he not also lovingly allow us to endure harshness to get us right? Therefore, its is possible for us to suffer great loss in order for God to get you to reach this goal. Therefore we must recognize the behavior and correct it so that you don't endure unnecessary correction or loss.

If you don't believe that God rebukes us, turn to Psalm 38:1. David writes, "O Lord, rebuke me not in thy wrath: neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure. For thine arrows stick fast i me, and thy hand presses me sore. There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin...Verse 7"For my loins are filled with loathsome disease: and there is no soundness in my flesh.
I am sure we all feel life is tough enough without the arrows, being pressed sore, and loathsome disease! Let's first recognize the sin in our lives and then get this right ladies! Though we are sinners, God has made a way for us to avoid sin (this will be covered later). But thank God for mercy and grace. Okay, on to part2!