WHAT WE DESERVE

Looking at two passages today, both Exodus 6:8 and Luke 23: 15b and 41, we find "Let my people go,"  and "Indeed, he has done nothing to deserve death...We are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man (Jesus) has done nothing wrong."


"Did the Israelites deserve to be enslaved, whipped, and beaten ?  Did Jesus "deserve" to be crucified? Do we "deserve" to have pain, sorrow, and trouble in our lives?  Did we "deserve" the 9/11 attack on our land?  Do we "deserve" the attacks now made against the world by those who would have us dead or under their power?


"The stories of the Old and New Testaments are there to show us that we don't necessarily get what we "deserve," but that God can use our pain and suffering for His glory.  Most of the time we humans cry out, "Why me, God?" and "What did I ever do to deserve this?" Yet the stories in scripture show God is in control and God Wins!  But at the time we go through it, it sure doesn't seem like He's winning over evil or pain or suffering and death.  We may not see the win but it is there somewhere, as promised in Romans 8:28, "All things work together for good for those who love the Lord."


 Because Jesus promised eternal life to all who confess, "Jesus is Lord," perhaps we will see the "win" in eternity. Let us hope someday we will see...and understand more clearly.


"Lord, we thank you for this lesson; help us to understand it.  And Lord, we thank you that we don't always receive what we sometimes really deserve.  Amen."


Jo INMN