What kind of consequences could we face?
Look at what He tells the Israelites in verse 5.
A. The removal of God’s blessing (peace) – Without peace, distress, conflict, and panic follow
(Read v. 3) – When a prophecy starts off like this, something bad is about to happen. When peace is gone, it messes with the whole family. We try hard as parents to protect our kids from bad things, yet bad things still happen.
The bad thing here was the coming destruction of Jerusalem. War tears apart communities spiritually, physically, and emotionally. Today, suffering from financial problems, job loss, or even death can uproots the peace within a family. Sin compounds the problems because sin repels the peace of God.
B. The removal of His love – Without love, wicked and selfish desires fill our hearts
(Read v. 2) – God was protecting Jeremiah from heartache. God cared enough for Jeremiah to tell him not to get married because his marriage would have been affected as well. Jeremiah already had enough to deal with.
Sin destroys true love because only God’s love is powerful enough to aid us in pushing aside selfishness and allow us to think of others as God sees them. Sin twists the heart and our personal opinions of ourselves (we either get the big head or start hating our life).
C. The removal of His mercy (compassion) – Without mercy, we lose sympathy and compassion for others
(Read v. 6, 7) – Despite the continual warnings, God was preparing Israel for the worst disaster to strike the land. Men, women, and children would die. So many people would be grieving that they would not be able to console one another.
Sin takes a drastic toll on our ability to show compassion for others. Without God showing us mercy we do not have a real example of mercy to imitate. Compassion from God fuels our ability to show mercy and have compassion.
Sin kills from the inside out. Sin is the reason we are sick, hungry, hate filled, destructive, immoral, and the reason we die. Sin has consequences, and there is not anything we can do to rid ourselves of the stench of sin.
Kind of like getting skunked. I have never been skunked but I have driven by dead ones. They stink. They make the whole surrounding area stink. They make the inside of your car stink – even if you had your windows closed and the vents of the air conditioning circulating only in the car. That smell could penetrate the inside of a rock. I don’t know about you but I like getting away from that smell as quickly as I can.
The funny thing about skunks is that they look cute and cuddly. The bad thing about a skunk is that they are wild and can turn on you in a moment. And when they turn, it’s over. The smell gets on you and you have to use other smells to get rid of the smell. You could try perfume but then you smell like a rotting flower. No, you have to get that thick red tomato sauce. It has to cover you whole body. Then you go around smelling like tomatoes for a few days.
Consequences of sin mount up. The longer we choose to walk in sin, the heavier the guilt becomes. Grouchy, unkind people carry the stench of sin. Christians, who walk with secret sins, carry the stench of sin. Christians, who would rather keep living at the edge of hell, carry the stench of sin. The only way this stench can be removed is through the mercy and through the love of God. God uses His love and mercy to give us peace. We need the mercy of God because our sin demands our life; it demands blood to be shed.
Yet, many people in and out of church spend their lives like the Israelites. They are happy living as close to hell as possible without dropping in. Occasionally they jump in to test the fire. “Oh yeah, it’s still hot.”
Jesus calls these people lukewarm – or what I call fence sitters. They know what the refreshing power of God feels like, and they stay close enough to try to benefit from it from time to time. They also are just as happy enjoying “sinful” pleasures every now and again. They do not mind sitting on the fence of pleasure because getting involved with anything of God might spoil their fun.
The scary thing about fence sitting (being lukewarm) is that they can be lulled into the belief that it is okay with God. “He hasn’t struck me dead yet.”
When times of suffering hit a nation, a community, a family, or an individual, the last thing they need is to face the weight of the consequences of sin alone. This is why God provides hope, to show us that He will be with us. This is why He gives us the story of Israel, to show us what facing the consequences is like without Him.
In order to face the consequences to sin, we need to repent (if we haven’t) and turn back to God (get away from the edges of hell). When we turn back to God, He is faithful to restore His love, His peace, and His mercy.
My wife has a T-shirt from a Christian group she was a part of in college that asks, “Do I Smell?” We need the fresh smell of Jesus cleansing power in our lives. That is the only true help while suffering through the consequences of sin.
- Why does sin have consequences?
- When was the last time you remember experiencing the love, mercy, and peace of God?
- Are you or someone you know going through a tough time right now? How can you help them or what hope are you clinging to? Read Hebrews 10:26-39
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