For the past several days the Apostle Paul has been talking about man's tendency to create his own rules instead of following God's rules. With numerous examples he has demonstrated that rebellion against God does not set a person free, but actually entraps a person in his own sins. Things keep going from bad to worse when a human being drifts farther and farther away from a loving God.
Paul has made the statement that when rebellion persists long enough, God takes a "hands off" approach with that person and allows him to do whatever he pleases without hindrance. We discussed that this is both the wrath of God and the mercy of God. Wrath, because the one who does not repent and turn around even as his circumstances grow continually more dire will eventually receive the due penalty for his sins. Mercy, because in many cases the person comes to recognize that being the god of his own life has caused him nothing but catastrophe, so he repents and turns to the Lord.
In today's passage the apostle will explain to us that we must never take the kindness or patience of God as proof that He does not care what we do and that there will be no penalty for rebellion. It's vital that we do not come to think of His patience as inexhaustible, or that there will not come a day when He will stop dealing with our hearts, or that we can have the casual attitude of, "God loves me and will always be there waiting for me when I decide to stop sowing my wild oats. There will always be a day in the future when I can decide to live for the Lord." We aren't promised another breath, much less another day, which is why the day of salvation is always today. (Isaiah 49:8, 2 Corinthians 6:2)
When we concluded yesterday Paul was chastising his listeners for being hypocritical in their judgment. They have pointed the finger at others for committing the same sins they themselves are committing. They've looked down on others and thought in their hearts, "This person is a sinner. God has said not to do the things he's doing, so God is going to judge him." Yet at the same time in their hearts they think they themselves will escape the same judgment. Paul wants them to understand that their thinking is skewed. "Now we know that God's judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God's judgment? Or do you show contempt for the richness of His kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?" (Romans 2:2-4)
God's patience with us in our sin isn't a sign that He takes a lax attitude toward sin. Like any good parent, God would rather teach us to live the right way by kindness rather than by discipline. When you see your child doing something that is destructive or dangerous, you tell them to stop, don't you? And when you tell them to stop, you want them to immediately obey your voice. You don't want to have to deliver a spanking or place them in a chair for timeout. Sometimes you even tell them more than once to stop, because you really don't want to have to cause them the distress of discipline. God is the same way. He wants us to hear His voice and immediately obey it. He will often warn us several times before taking any disciplinary action. He doesn't want to cause us distress or grief, but He will if He has to. Paul is cautioning the Romans---and all of us as well---not to let it get to that point. God's patience doesn't mean we can disrespect Him, just as a parent's patience doesn't mean his child can disrespect him. God's patience is a display of kindness toward us, giving us an opportunity to repent before our situation goes from bad to worse.
The prophet Jeremiah once said that it is only because of God's great mercy that we are not consumed. (Lamentations 3:22) We don't deserve a thing from God. We have broken His laws and commandments. We have felt free to ignore Him and go our own way. We have spurned His love and followed our worldly desires. God would be well within His rights to destroy us all, but He does not because He is merciful. Yet this doesn't mean we can take His mercy for granted. In refusing Him time and time again our hearts grow hard and calloused. Our consciences stop bothering us very much. Our hearing grows so dull that we no longer notice the Holy Spirit's voice pleading with us to repent. We don't ever want to reach the place where God says to us, "Have it your way then." We might not ever come back from such a place because we will be too used to sin and too used to turning God away.
Today is the day of salvation. We don't know what will happen tomorrow or even if there will be a tomorrow for us on this earth. This is why the Bible cautions us, "Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts." (Psalm 95:7-8, Hebrews 3:7, Hebrews 3:15) Today is all we have. When the Lord speaks, we must respond. There is no better time than today. If we keep putting it off, the "someday" when we intend to make things right with a holy God may never come.
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