Jeremiah 5:12 They have lied about the Lord;
they said, “He will do nothing!
No harm will come to us;
we will never see sword or famine.”

It is a very dangerous thing to deny that God judges His people. We like to pretend that sin has no consequences, when nothing could be further from the truth. Immediately after the 9/11 attack churches saw a sudden increase in attendance, but that didn’t last long. Every time there is a hurricane or a wildfire, people are quick to deny that it could be in any way divine retribution for the sins of society. Rather than confessing moral issues, we twist science into a pretzel and blame it all on “climate change,” and in the process deny God more and more. Human hubris seems to know no limits! That’s not to say that relatively innocent people don’t also suffer for the sins of society, but it is to say that society is made up of individuals, and it is individuals who sin. We tend to think that our individual sins won’t affect society as a whole, but that is simply not the case. Repentance, likewise, is an individual matter. That’s why when Emperor Constan­tine declared the Roman empire to be Christian, persecution dropped off but very little else changed, and as a result the Church itself was corrupted. We bemoan the sins of society, and indeed, we should be vigorous in combatting various societal ills, but it all comes back to the actions and attitudes of individuals, and that includes us. When Nehemiah and Daniel recognized their respective situations, they repented on behalf of society, but they included themselves in that. We need to remember that it’s not just someone else’s fault. We serve a holy God, and we must never forget that.

Ouch! I have lived what many people watching me have considered a “holy” life, but I have ignored God and even directly disobeyed Him more times than I could even calculate. I too am totally dependent on His grace. As I pray about situations I cannot do so from some sort of high horse, but must acknowledge my own weakness. That’s not to say I’m not to be bold in the Lord, knowing that my sins are dealt with by the blood of Christ, but it is to say that I’m not to put myself mentally into some special category, immune from temptation and the consequences of sin. When bad things happen, my first response is to ask the Lord what part I had in triggering them, and my second response is to ask what He wants to do in me through them. Jesus told us explicitly that bad things would happen, (John 16:33) but if I will operate in humility and obedience, He will bring good things out of the bad. (Romans 8:28) I just need to strive to live so that I won’t be the target of those bad things, but rather no more than “collateral damage.”

Father, thank You for this reminder. Help me indeed live in full humility and obedience, acting as Your agent to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8) and bring Your rule and reign, for the salvation of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!