17/02/2021 - THE WAY GOD TREATS US

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He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. Psalm 103:10

David learned that God’s conduct towards humanity was from Father to children. He gives a good example of that when He doesn’t treat us according to our sins and doesn’t repay us according to our wicked procedures. If God had taken our errors in consideration, it would be difficult for us to endure the Lord’s treatment. He is a consuming fire, and even if He didn’t destroy us, we’d have permanent marks. Divine grace was the means He used to redeem us. Hallelujah!

The Bible says that the wages of sin is death (James 1:15). However, when we become believers, this sentence is cancelled. By knowing that, it is our duty to confess what we’ve done wrong in order to be forgiven: If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). When we proceed this way, we receive a benefit that removes guilt and the strength of sin against us.

When people stand in Christ, they’re not submitted to sin’s demands. When we’re baptized, we’re freed from the sinful body that was acting as our lord. Now, if we decide to walk astray, we will become servants of that body again. When we become believers, temptation has no dominion over our bodies anymore. We must confess our transgressions so we won’t become like robots in the hands of the devil. We are free in Christ!

When someone commits transgressions repeatedly, it’s a sign that they haven’t truly repented. If they had done that, Satan wouldn’t have them in his hands anymore. Those who confess only part of their sins are playing with repentance. The problem is that on the last day, these people will be commanded to march on to the lake of sulfur and fire, because they haven’t been set free. This is more serious than we think: therefore, abandon the life of sin.

Achan, who was responsible for the defeat in the city of Ai, thought that God wouldn’t denounce him, but he was very wrong. The Lord not only evidenced who was the evil man who caused His people to be defeated, but also commanded him to be killed. Achan thought he could get away with this: he took accursed things and hid them inside his tent (Joshua 7:1). But the Most High had already given orders that no one should do that. Sin is rebellion against the Holy God.

Sins that are not confessed keep you under the dominion of the devil. You could then start doing things you didn’t want to do, like it happened to Judas Iscariot, who was a thief. As there were no signs of repentance in him, he betrayed Jesus and later hung himself, taking the path of eternal perdition. We can’t play around with lives! If people don’t repent, they will march on to hell, and that’s very serious!

The Lord wants to treat you with love, forgiving you of your sins. However, you must repent and never take the path of iniquity again. Peter warns against those who do that, comparing them to the dog that returns to his own vomit and a sow, who having washed, returns to her wallowing in the mire (2 Peter 2:22). Those who turn back deny divine forgiveness and return to their past without God.

In Christ, with love,

Dr. Soares