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Genesis 30bc:

Reading # 126

Punishment for sin

Hi everyone, 

I realised after I wrote last week’s thoughts that I was not that clear regarding heredity and example, so here I wish to try and fix that up as best I can.  If you are still not sure what I am getting at when I have finished, just ask.  As I see it, heredity is God’s way of passing on rewards and benefits as well as problems, and example is how we consider what others have done. However, both can be twisted, with heredity made to look like a deliberate act of punishment on God’s part, or that the example has His blessing when it was a wrong action.

Jesus is our only perfect example of Christianity in action under these conditions, while His ancestry shows what He inherited.  All the other personalities of the Bible are a combination of good and bad behaviour, so we have to check with the Spirit as to which action was correct, and even if it was, is it for us to repeat at this moment?

Our inherited characteristics require a different approach.  Our hearts (emotions) are “deceitful above all things” even as Christians, so we need to listen carefully to the Spirit in regard to our own internal promptings.  Jeremiah 17:9.

 Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s sins appear so terrible and deliberate, and the Son of God’s forgiveness so absolute that it looks as though we can do anything and get away with it!  But this is not so! The “seed” will bear its result, but this is under natural law (e.g. the DNA helix), not the deliberate hand of God.

We have a clear example in the Bible.

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John 9:

1 As Jesus passed by, He saw a man which was blind from his birth. 2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? [Whose fault was it?]”

3 Jesus answered, “Neither has this man sinned, nor his parents [maybe it was one of his grandparents?]: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him [He will be a good example for Me].”

4 “I must work the works of Him that sent Me [I must do what He would do], while it is day: the night comes, when no man can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 

6 When He had thus spoken, He spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay, 7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam”, (which is by interpretation, Sent).  He went his way therefore, and washed, and came [back] seeing.

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It was not normal for Jesus to use anything but His word for His cures, but in this case He wants us to dig a little deeper, so He introduced the dust of the earth and His saliva to get our attention.

It was generally believed by the Jews then (and by many professed Christians now) that sin is punished by God in this life. (“God, why are You doing this to me?” is a very common complaint.)  Every affliction was regarded as THE PENALTY imposed by God for some wrongdoing, an action either of the sufferer himself or of his parents. Some even believed then (and maybe now?) that a child was punished for its parents’ sins!  This is not really correct.  See Ezekiel chapter 18, and note verse 20.

It is true that all suffering results from the transgression of God's law and is passed down from parent to child to the third and fourth generation, but this truth has become perverted.

Satan, the author of sin and all its results (Hebrews 2:14; John 8:44), has led men and women to look upon disease and death as proceeding from God - as PUNISHMENT arbitrarily inflicted on account of sin, instead of a wage or result.  Romans 6:23.  For this reason one upon whom some great affliction or calamity has fallen has the additional burden of being regarded as a great sinner, and this was how the disciples saw the blind man. (How do we regard those who died in the terrorist attacks?) This idea appears so close to the truth and yet it is so far away from it!!  To counter this thought the Spirit recorded this episode for us.

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Luke 13:

1 There were present at that season some that told Him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2  And Jesus answering said to them, “Suppose you that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? 3 I tell you, Nay: but, except you repent, you shall all likewise [in the same way] perish.” [He who lives by the sword (or anger) will perish by the sword (violently)].

4 “Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think you that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? 5  I tell you, Nay: but, except you repent [and accept My protection], you shall all likewise perish.”

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This is not necessarily to lose eternal life, but by not listening to the daily advices of the Spirit though neglect or rejection it is to lose our natural life.

This was the manner in which Satan prepared so many of the Jews to reject Jesus.  He who "has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows" was looked upon by them as "stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted” by Him. Isaiah 53:4, 3.  They hid their faces from Him and sided with God as they imagined Him.  He was “cursed” by God in their sight and they felt justified in their treatment of Him.

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Galatians 3:

13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, “Cursed is every one that hangs on a tree.”

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This is true, but these words do not say how the curse comes, or even what it is.

God has given a lesson designed to prevent any misunderstanding in this matter but it is often overlooked.

The history of the patriarch Job shows that suffering is inflicted either by Satan or by human action, and is overruled by God for purposes of mercy.  See Job 1:8-12.  But Israel did not understand the lesson. The same error for which God had reproved the friends of Job was repeated by the Jews in their rejection of Christ. 

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Job 42:

7 And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words to Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you, and against your two friends: for you have not spoken of Me the thing that is right, as My servant Job has.” . . .

12 Now a thing was secretly brought to me [only the privileged know this, but I’ll share it with you], and my ear received a little thereof. 13 In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, 14 fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake. 15 Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up [it was a frightening spirit]. 16 It stood still, but I could not discern the form thereof [it hid itself]: an image was before my eyes [a vague shape], there was silence, and I heard a voice, saying, 17 “Shall mortal man be more just than God?  Shall a man be more pure than his Maker? 18 Behold, He puts no trust in His servants; and [even] His angels He charged with folly [mistakes]: 19 how much less in them that dwell in houses of clay [humans], whose foundation is in the dust, which are crushed before the moth? [who are born to die.]”

20 “They are destroyed from morning to evening: they perish for ever without any regarding it”   . . .

Chapter 5:

7 “Yet man is born to trouble [in God’s plan], as the sparks fly upward [a certainty]. 8  [If I were you] I would seek to God, and to God would I commit my cause [and ask what can you do to stop the punishment]”  …

17 Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects [punishes]: therefore despise not you the chastening of the Almighty: 18 for He makes sore, and [then] binds up: He wounds, and His hands make whole.” [The end justifies the means.]

19 “He shall deliver you in six troubles [if you are good]: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch you. 20 In famine He shall redeem you from death: and in war from the power of the sword. 21 You shall be hid from the scourge of the tongue: neither shall you be afraid of destruction when it comes. 22 At destruction and famine you shall laugh: neither shall you be afraid of the beasts of the earth. 23 For you shall be in league with the stones of the field: and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with you.” [Your present anxiety and experience shows that you are a great sinner!] 

24 And [if you behave yourself] you shall know that your tabernacle [body] shall be in peace; and you shall visit your habitation, and shall not sin. 25 You shall know also that your seed shall be great, and your offspring as the grass of the earth [your kids and grandchildren will be OK]. 26 You shall come to your grave in a full age [in God’s good time], like as a shock of corn comes in in his season.” 

27 “Lo this, we have searched it, so it is; hear it, and know you it for your good.”

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This is all so close to the truth and yet so far from it, that it is frightening to those who know and love God.  It is a true report of what was said, but the words themselves are NOT true, so be careful when you read the Bible.

Even Christ’s disciples held the belief of the Jews in regard to the relationship of sin and suffering, so He took the opportunity given Him by the blind man. While Jesus corrected the disciples’ error, He did not explain the cause of the man's affliction, but told them what would be the result. Because of it the attitude of God would be clearly seen. "As long as I am in the world," He said, "I am the light of the world."  The cause is not important in God’s eyes, the suffering resulting from the lack of knowledge is.  Proverbs 29:18; Hosea 4:6.

Then, after having anointed the eyes of the blind man, He sent him to wash in the pool of Siloam, and the man's sight was restored. Thus Jesus answered the question of the disciples in a practical way, as He usually answered questions put to Him from curiosity. The disciples were not called upon to discuss the question as to who had sinned or had not sinned, but to understand the power and mercy of God in giving sight to the blind. It was evident that there was no healing virtue in the clay, or in the pool wherein the blind man was sent to wash, but that the virtue was in Christ. 

So that is how God deals with our “punishment” theory.

At the end of the story we are told that a group of Pharisees had gathered near, and that the sight of them brought to the mind of Jesus the contrast ever revealed in the effect of His words and works. He said, "For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind." [He came to show the truth which could then be accepted or rejected.]  John 9:39-41. 

Christ had come to open the spiritually blind eyes, to give light to them that sit in darkness of error. He had recently declared Himself to be the light of the world (John 8:12), and the miracle just performed was proof of His mission. The people who beheld the Saviour at His first advent were favoured with a fuller manifestation of the divine presence than the world had ever enjoyed before - the knowledge of God’s way was revealed more perfectly than in the past. But in this very revelation, judgment was passing upon men and women. Their character was being tested, their destiny determined by their choices made in this new light. 

The demonstration of divine power that had given to the blind man both natural and spiritual sight had left the Pharisees in yet deeper darkness. Therefore some of His hearers, feeling that Christ's words applied to them, inquired, "Are we blind also?" Jesus answered, "If you were blind, you should have no sin." He meant, if heredity had made it impossible for you to see the truth, your ignorance would involve no guilt. "But now you say, ‘We see’."  You believe yourselves able to see, and reject the means through which alone you could receive sight – you are willingly ignorant.

To all who realize their need, Christ comes and offers infinite help. But the Pharisees would confess no need; they refused to come to Christ, and therefore they were left in blindness, - a blindness for which they were themselves guilty. Jesus said sorrowfully, "Your sin remains [with you]" and so it did.

I’ll be back next week with more on Jacob,

Ron

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