Wednesday, August 17,
2016
The people are like the dead branches
of a tree, broken off and used for kindling beneath the cooking pots. Israel is a foolish and stupid nation, for
its people have turned away from God. Therefore,
the one who made them will show them no pity or mercy. Yet the time will come when the Lord will
gather them together like handpicked grain. One by one he will gather them—from the
Euphrates River in the east to the Brook of Egypt in the west. In
that day the great trumpet will sound. Many
who were dying in exile in Assyria and Egypt will return to Jerusalem to
worship the Lord on his holy mountain. Isaiah 27:11-13(NLT)
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"Punishment Island" is a
feature documentary about a tiny island in remote Uganda where women were
abandoned for getting pregnant before marriage.[ii] The premise of why this place exists is
heartbreaking; not only are the women abandoned, but obviously so are their
unborn children. It is an ignorant and
harsh punishment.
But can we lump all “punishment” into
that category? There are some forms of
consequence that belong with aberrant behavior. Murder is a prime example; there must be some
consequence, otherwise the import of that victim’s life is blunted. Theft robs both the victim of his property and
the thief’s self-respect. The need for
recompense and turning things right-side-up is immutable.
I unearthed the notes I saved from my
very first sermon ever preached. It was for
evening worship at a little Baptist Church on June 7, 1978. The title was “Chastisement”. (I do have a copy of the audio, but hardly
have the nerve to listen to it!)
While most of the sermon was a cross
between a topical Bible study and an apology for taking up people’s time, there
was actually a little meat to be had for understanding one of the elephant-in-the-room
questions: WHY? Why must we be held accountable for our
actions and disciplined?
It’s certainly much easier to
describe WHAT discipline looks like – a rule gets made, broken,
and recompensed. There is punishment,
discipline. That’s legalism.
But, WHY must it be
this way? Why can’t we just forget about
it all? That is a question that moves
past the legalism of what must be done, and
travels into the realm of WHY God does what only God does…LOVE!
The apostle Paul gives us the redemptive
reason behind all God’s judging:
Yet when we are judged
by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along
with the world. 1 Corinthians 11:32(NLT)
God’s purpose in chastising,
disciplining, even punishing is to save us from ultimate condemnation – the death
of our souls.
In a children’s time message this
past week I showed the children my old house slippers, broken and
worn-out. And I showed them the rubber
soles which could be recycled. Even if
the shoes were past useable for me, they were not past having a purpose. And then we ended with this statement:
Remember in those times when you feel broken and used-up, you don’t have to stay that way; let God recycle you.
For You Today
Even when
you feel like you’ve been abandoned to Punishment Island, God is right in
the middle of your circumstances. Keep
praying; His hand may be heavy at the moment, but His love is still working.
Go to VIDEO
NOTES
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