WE SHALL NOT DIE - Reading With the People of God #17নমুনা

Truth and Consequences

“You got me in trouble!” Oh, I hear that all the time as a teacher. My response, “Who did something wrong? Did I get you in trouble, or did your choice get you in trouble?” As you can imagine, it is usually the latter that is true. We then discuss that we, ourselves, must face the consequences of our own actions; good or bad. The word ‘consequences’ has gained a mostly negative definition these days, but our reading today sheds light on the fact that consequences are just a result of something that happened. They can be negative or positive.

Isaiah must have been awestruck to receive an actual vision from God, full of the consequences of what it means for His people to be completely surrendered to His Sovereignty. To lift God to His rightful place and worship Him as everything is put into place the way He designed must be an incredible experience. However, the “day of reckoning”, which we can think of as consequences, change for those who do not follow everything God set in order. For all who follow Him, the consequences are, indeed, positive; but for those who are prideful (and, therefore, sinful), the consequences are dire.

This passage is not meant to frighten us about God, but to remember who He is, and that He can do what He pleases. He has ultimate power, and we are made to submit to His authority. The great news is that He loves us, and it pleases Him to do that. However, when we make poor choices, He must, by definition of His righteousness and sovereignty, allow the consequences to follow.

Jesus reiterates this in our New Testament passage about the unjust steward as well as the contrast of the rich man and Lazarus. I like reading this through the Amplified Version to better understand that Jesus is pointing out natural consequences, and that even the consequences that seem to make sense at face value actual carry the reality of not understanding God at all. It is not only the Pharisees who do not realize the difference between making choices that seem right, and making choices that ARE right according to God’s design. We, too, come face to face with choices that seem logical, when in fact, they are not really following God’s plan.

After reading, ask yourself about the motives of your choices; not only the big choices, but the small ones as well. In the end, will the consequences bring you closer to God’s truth, or keep you from it?

Primer contributed by Gaylyn Mott, Christ follower, teacher, musician, yarn artist, member of Cornerstone Community Church of Chowchilla