Feb 20, 2013
What God Promises Those Suffering Harmful Consequences Of Their Actions
My Father’s Fight of Faith
Last night I was on the phone with my father.
He said he had recently heard his chiropractor give a seminar. The seminar showed him that if he had followed his chiropractor’s advice years ago, he might have avoided some health problems.
So he left the lecture feeling regret that he had not followed the advice, and discouraged about what this might mean for his future.
But my father understands that there is a promise for every problem. He knows Jesus Christ is always standing before him with grace and power to meet his every need.
And he told me — “I knew I needed to fight the fight of faith.”
How To Fight
So what did he do? He remembered a promise Jeremiah gave Zedekiah after Zedekiah had acted foolishly.
Here’s the story. Babylon had laid siege against Jerusalem. And Jeremiah repeatedly urged Zedekiah to surrender, and promised that if he surrendered, he would be spared (Jer 21:8-10; 38:2-3).
And what did Zedekiah do? He did not listen to Jeremiah’s words. He did not believe he should surrender. He continued standing against Babylon —
But neither he nor his servants nor the people of the land listened to the words of the Lord that He spoke through Jeremiah the prophet. (Jer 37:2)
Time passed. Then Zedekiah calls for Jeremiah and asks if he had another word for him from God. Jeremiah did, and it was frightening — “You shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon” (Jer 37:17).
Sounds like it’s a done deal. Zedekiah missed his chance. He acted foolishly and will face the consequences.
But not so fast. A little later Zedekiah calls for Jeremiah, and asks for a word from God. And Jeremiah’s word is wonderful news to all who face consequences for foolish actions —
Obey now the voice of the Lord in what I say to you, and it shall be well with you, and your life shall be spared. (Jer 38:20)
What This Means
When we see that we have been foolish or sinful, it’s tempting to avoid God, because we think we’ve blown it and all is lost. But that’s not the case.
Jeremiah 38:20 teaches that no matter how foolish or sinful we have been in the past, if we turn back to God now, then all will be well.
That doesn’t mean we avoid all negative consequences. But it does mean God will once again be rejoicing to do us good (Jer 32:40-41), and will orchestrate everything to bring us the heart-satisfying joy of knowing Him (2Cor 4:16-18).
So my father was encouraged by this promise. He turned his heart to God. He trusted Jesus’ grace and mercy. He admitted that he should have taken the chiropractor’s advice more seriously. He resolved by God’s grace to change.
And as he prayed his spirits rose, because he knew that whether his health improved or not, God promised in Jer 38:20 that it would be well with him. God was rejoicing to do Him good, and He would have God as his Treasure.
How About You?
Maybe you have been foolish or sinful. Maybe that’s brought you pain and hardship. And maybe you have avoided God, thinking all is lost.
It’s not.
If you will turn back to Jesus Christ now, confessing whatever you have done, trusting Him to forgive you, and resolving by His grace to change — He promises —
It will be well with you.
Thoughts? Comments?
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And here are some related posts you might find helpful —
- What Are The Promises Of God?
- How To StrengthenYour Faith
- How To Be Content
- How You Can Escape the Giant of Despair
This is indeed encouraging news. I don’t know how many times that I have sinned and then wanted to avoid God. But the promises from Jeremiah are indeed good news. Thanks for sharing Steve!
You are so welcome, Ron!
Powerful. Never saw that before. thanks for sharing Steve!
Glad you found this helpful, Jason. And thanks for letting me know 🙂
“If we confess our sin God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sin and to cleanse us from our unrighteousness.” I am standing on this one even as I type. Its so encouraging to have a God that understands our weakness. Still it’s so hard to face him sometimes. That is one of the conseqences of sin that I get so tired and discouraged with. Thanks Steve for the biblical reference of turning to God after we have blown it, so that we may have our hope restored.
You are so welcome. I, too, find it hard to turn to Him when I’ve blown it. But how encouraging that He invites us to come as we are, through Christ.
Onward!
Steve Fuller
How does one after admitting and confessing his sin, go about making the changes necessary to conquer that sin?
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 2:12
Paul urges us to turn away from worldly passions, and start the process of renewing our minds by the power of the Spirit of God. I find it interesting that the following verses in Chapter 12 all have to do with the importance of being connected to a body. One important aspect of AA is first admitting that one is powerless against their ability to handle the temptation of alcohol. The second important aspect of AA is being part of a community that is fighting to be transformed from being a slave to the power of alcohol, to learn how to live victorious apart from it.
We as Christians are still filled with indwelling sin, constantly this world, our flesh, and the powers of darkness are trying to conform us to our old worldly ways. This is where I believe AA has it right on, we in our own strength are powerless against the power of sin, and we need the compounding help of community, and God’s Spirit to abort the power of indwelling sin in our lives.
In my experiences in following Christ, those who wander away from community, or shield people away at arm’s length, never fully learn (renew their mind) what is good, acceptable, and perfect. We need each other, Christ poured Himself into His disciples, they lived as a community, they were in the world, but not of the world.
That’s an important emphasis on community, Paul. Thanks for sharing!
Steve, found your phone call with your Father very interesting as we live near them here at Atherton and I see your Father at our weekly prayer meeting and my wife, Myrna, is with your Mother in a prayer meeting.
By the way, I walk early in the morning (5:30) and there is always a light on at your folks. I assume one or both are having a devotional time.
You and your folks are in my prayers.
Sincerely, Glenn
Hi Glenn,
Thank you for sharing your connection with my parents — I love hearing about that connection. And I am not surprised that their lights are on at 5:30 — they both diligently seek the Lord in prayer and the Word and fight the fight of faith daily.
In Christ,
Steve Fuller
It is encouraging and a blessing to me to see faith passed down from one generation to the next. Father to son in this case.
Hi Anne —
So good to hear from you. And, yes, my father is a powerful encouragement and mentor to me. God is so good.
In Christ,
Steve
Thank you for the encouragement and hope during a hard time.
You are so welcome, Claudia.