Sin Has Consequences

# 170 - Today's Du-votional comes from: 1Sa 13:13 “And Samuel said to Saul, "You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which He commanded you. For now the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. (1 Sam 13:13) Sin has consequences. Those consequences are in the hands of God who says in Ro 9:15, "I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion." Don't ever try to get into the game of questioning God's punishment for sin. Just know and believe that He is the Father and He knows the perfect amount of discipline for every situation. Know and believe that, “all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Rom 8:28) Because of Saul's disobedience, he would be the first and last of his line to serve as king in Israel. Saul's disobedience cost him, but God used this punishment in order to enthrone a king who would be a man after His heart, namely David, and of course out of the lineage of David would come the Messiah, Jesus Christ. But even as we mention David, there were consequences for his sin with Bathsheba as well. He was forgiven when he confessed his sin, but 2Sa 12:10,11 tells us that the sword would never depart from David's house. His life would be earmarked by violence, and his own wives would be caught up in unfaithfulness, and the child conceived with Bathsheba would die. (2 Sam 12:14) These were all consequences that God allowed in David's life because of his sin. Sin has consequences. Thankfully through faith and forgiveness in Jesus Christ, these consequences are not eternal. They are temporal, and even those temporal consequences work out ultimately for God's eternal purposes and glory. You and I both know that our sins have altered circumstances in our own lives. Sin exacted a price. Some pay seemingly steeper prices than others, but we dare not get into the comparison game here. Rather we need to seek God's grace and strength to help us deal with those ramifications. Looking to Him, to help us endure and finish the race.