Have you ever seen a child whose parent warns them with impending discipline, but never follows through?
What sort of lesson are they teaching their kid? Could this child be learning that the rules don’t matter? Or that the rules don’t apply to them? Or that it’s ok as long as they say “I’m sorry”? I understand that there are many situations and circumstances, but in the general sense discipline is a crucial part of a child’s development.
Perhaps parents that do not discipline their kids are able to justify it because “they’re just a kid, they can’t get into that much trouble. Besides, I’ll protect them from any real danger.” And perhaps they are right. For a while. But what happens when that kid grows up? How many times can you say “sorry I didn’t come in yesterday” before your boss gets fed up and fires you? That parent can go in to the office, and plead all they want, but their kid broke the rules and now they’re facing the consequences of their actions.
A mature and loving parent can see this eventuality, and does their child a great service by teaching them that there are consequences to their actions. The child may express genuine repentance for their wrongdoing, which is an excellent step; however, there still must be consequences for actions. A parent who disciplines their child does not love their child any less. I don’t know how many times I heard “this hurts me more than it hurts you” when I was a kid – I doubt there are loving parents who enjoy disciplining their children, but those that do so anyway have stepped beyond themselves, and done what is best for their child.
So, if a mature and loving parent does what is best for their child by allowing them to face the consequences of their actions, then why do we find it so hard to accept that God does the same? I don’t know if God directly disciplines us, but He will not remove the consequences of our actions. As soon as we have repented of our sins, He has forgiven us. But He does not stop the consequences that we have set in motion.
Too often it seems that folks get stuck on this issue, and see God as some sort of enforcer, just waiting for us to mess up. But that is not supported in scripture nor in the life of Jesus. It is quite the opposite. “God did not send His son to condemn the world, but to save it” (John 3:17).
God wants nothing more than for us to be in joyful and fulfilling relationship with Him. But what sort of loving father would He be if He were to warn us against certain things, and never allow us to experiences the consequences of those actions? Paul put it most succinctly: “you will reap what you sow” (Galatians 6:7).
But the glorious and hopeful truth is that as soon as you have repented, your relationship with Him has been restored, and through His son He has rescued you from eternal separation from Him. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ” (Romans 6:23).
