“The Lord is in His holy t
emple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men. The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked, and the one who loves violence, His soul hates.” Psalm 11:4-5, NASB).
If the speed limit on a certain road is 55mph and you drive down that road at 65mph for 4 out of 5 days without getting a ticket…does that make your speed limt 65? Do your actions invalidate the posted limit? What if you drove past a State Trooper and he did not pull you over…does this change the law?
Certainly not…but this is precisely the view man takes with God at times. We engage in a sin or a pattern of sins. At first…alarms go off in our heads telling us of our wrongdoing. We sense guilt and shame and even a sense of dread at our potential judgment. However, when we continue in sin and are not judged…it seems that we may assess this to mean that we have misunderstood the Law or, perhaps, God has given us a special measure of grace. These conclusions are baseless but they do speak to the enemy’s actions. Satan loves to polute the pure Word of God. He convinces us to dwell on certain passages that make us feel good or give us a misappropriated hope of gaining health, wealth, and prosperity. However, there are countless reminders and warnings throughout God’s Word of the consequences of our unrepentant lives.
Now we would smirk at the very thought of the example I used about speed limits…but we appropriate that subtle logic in our own spiritual discipleship.
The Psalmist reminds us that God sees everything. He reminds us that when God closes His eyes (His eyelids test us), He is not unaware of our actions; rather, God is examining our character. He is exposing who we are when we think no one is looking. But GOD IS LOOKING and GOD NEVER OVERLOOKS our sin.
What if we paused before every action and asked if God is pleased in what He sees? I know that when I am driving, if I see a police officer I unconsciously lift my foot from the accelerator and look at the speedometer…even if I KNOW I am within the limits. I don’t want to be seen breaking the law.
Remember, God sees all. He judges righteously. He helps those who wrestle against the temptation to sin but He stores up wrath for those who refuse to repent (which means to seek forgiveness and turn from choosing sin). Those who trust Him experience the blessing of His power and presence for He is an ever-present help in times of need.
Recent Comments