March 28
Punishment for Insulting the
Spirit of Grace (Part 2)
Of
how much sorer punishment, suppose
ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and
hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy
thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? (Heb. 10:29)
Yesterday we saw how this passage can make God
appear to be vindictive. However, we learned from further study that it is not
so much that God is seeking “payback” for offending Him. The passage is
actually teaching that when people reject His grace He is left with no choice
but to allow them to suffer that which grace had freed them from.
This describes God’s method of what we understand to
be punishment. It is important that we understand the method by which God is
said to punish if we are to understand the truth concerning His loving
character. Many people read statements like the one in Heb. 10:29 and think
that God directly energizes events that bring punishment upon people. An often
stated but little recognized principle of Scripture is the fact that when we
push God away, we lose His protection.
For example we read statements in Scripture such as “The Lord is with you, while ye be with him;
and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will
forsake you” (2 Chron. 15:2b) and “because
ye have forsaken the Lord, he hath also forsaken you” (2 Chron. 24:20b; see
also 12:5). In Jeremiah punishment is directly connected to God's forsaking, or
rather, removing His presence and protection:
And
when this people, or the prophet, or a priest, shall ask thee, saying, What is
the burden of the Lord? thou shalt then say unto them, What burden? I will even forsake you, saith the
Lord. And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people, that shall say,
The burden of the Lord, I will even
punish that man and his house
(Jeremiah 23:33-34)
Remember that all of this comes about because the
people have first forsaken God. The curses in Deut. 28 are the results of the
people forsaking God, pushing Him away, and He in turn forsaking them and
leaving them to suffer the consequences of their rebellion (Deut. 31:16-17; see
also Psalm 81:10-16). When we reject the Blood of Jesus and the Spirit of grace
we reject all the benefits that accrue from it.
Visit our web page: www.vindicatinggod.org
Visit our church's web page: www.cvbibleteachingcenter.org
To learn more about God's mode and method of punishment consider purchasing our book, "How? A look at God's Character in light of Biblical passages that are inconsistent with love"
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