Saturday, August 17, 2013

Getting Away with It


Proverbs 14:14
I received a text message telling me that I had used 90% of my allotted minutes of calling time with seven days to go before my billing plan resets. I don’t know if I will make it without going over minutes. Usually we don’t have any problem with the number of minutes in our plan. But I made three hour-long calls this month. Those calls pushed us close to the edge. Someone has to pay for this mistake. I guess it will have to be me!
Does it bother you that some people seem to “get away with it?” They are obviously doing something that deserves an intervention of the judgment type, and yet they seem to continue without any negative repercussions for their actions. I am sure you can think of a couple people in your life who fit this category, perhaps even you!
There is another way to think about this, is that we all are getting away with it to one degree or another. It is not that each of us needs grace. It is that some people’s actions are so egregious, so damaging to others that your soul cries out for someone to stop them dead in their tracks.
We all live in an age of mercy. The LORD is not making final judgments the moment sin happens. Currently, people do get away with things. That includes us!
There is a day coming when faithless deeds will earn their punishment and rewards will be given for acts done out of grace. That day is coming! But it isn’t here yet. So we yearn for justice for other people and grace for ourselves.
Would it be possible to pray for grace for other people? Could we pray for those who persecute us, mistreat us, or harm us?
It is true that someday the scales of justice will be visible, and on that day there won’t be any questions about fairness. We will understand more fully than we do right now. We will see the quantity of grace that we needed in our lives. I imagine it will be much more than we think!
So next time you see justice not being served, remember that there is a day coming when justice will be fully satisfied. I am glad I live under the grace and mercy of Christ.