So
far in my musings about the meaning and purpose of life, I have tried
to show that there is a God who exists and that he is greater than
all that we can imagine and he created and owns everything and
doesn't need our advice and counsel to figure out how to run the
world. The second thing we looked at is the Bible's teaching that
God's purpose for all he does is his glory. We were created by him in
his image in order to reflect his glory and majesty and when we get
side-tracked from that we lose our focus and then find ourselves
without meaning and purpose. Finally I tried to explain the Bible's
point of view that all of us have sinned against God by not
acknowledging him and by not being thankful for his provisions for us
and finally disobeying his just commands.
Most
people view God as being a kind old man who doesn't really expect
much of us. He wants us to be happy and helps us now and then but
pretty much stays out of our way. When it comes to some sort of final
judgment, God realizes that we all pretty much do our best and
nodding his approval, welcomes us into his home. The problem with
this is that it is not at all the way the Bible describes God. The
Bible describes God as being a just God. Being just means that he
cannot just ignore sins against him. He loves people, but in that
loving, his character of justice cannot simply overlook sin. Think
about it this way. How would you feel about a judge who let the same
criminal go over and over because he really liked the guy. Suppose
the criminal was in court for his 50th murder in the act
of committing a robbery. Would you be pretty content with that judge
if he just keep letting this man go because he was a nice guy and was
really likeable? We all know that such a judge is not just and should
be removed from the bench. And yet we are hoping that God is like
that judge.
The
God presented to us in the Bible is completely just and will not
overlook sin. He has already demonstrated that to us in this world
by putting all creation under a curse. We know something is wrong. We
have a sense about how people should ideally get along, and yet we
see so much abuse, fighting and killing in the world that we know
something is wrong. We picture what an idyllic garden should be like
and yet there are constant attacks on that garden by weeds and pests
of one kind or another. We are trying to grow a few beautiful roses
right up next to our sunroom and suddenly one morning every bud was
gone. A deer had come up to the house and had eaten every bud that
was available. That same deer has to be careful to avoid being
attacked by a predator or killed by a hunter or run over by a car.
We
know things are not like we think they should be and it's not because
we're just lazy and want an easy life. We know things are out of
whack somehow. The Bible explains that God cursed the ground because
of us – because of our sin. Paul writes in the book of Romans, “For
the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of
Him who subjected it
in hope; because
the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of
corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
For we know
that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together
until now.”
So
my thoughts today are aimed at understanding that God is a just God
and he will and has responded to our sin and disobedience with
appropriate punishment.
Numbers
14:18 “He will by no means clear the guilty.”
Ezekiel
18:4 “The soul that sins shall die.”
Romans
3:23 “For all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of
God.”
Next
time we'll look at God's solution to our problem.
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