“What will you do on the day of reckoning?… To whom will you run for help?… Where will you leave your riches?…” Isaiah 10:3
Some phrases we use to encourage people sound something like… “Don’t worry if you make a mistake. Don’t worry if you mess up. Don’t be too hard on yourself.” Now, these are great pearls of wisdom, but there comes a time when they become overused. People will hold on to them as a license to continue living lives riddled with bad habits.
We all make mistakes, and I’ve probably made more than most people out there. But there comes a time in our lives when we need to step up. A time when we realise that when I make the same mistake over and over again, it doesn’t really qualify as a mistake anymore, but it now becomes a choice. And when we get to this point, then advice like, “Don’t be too hard on yourself,” has more of a detrimental affect than anything else. Because when we get to the point where we choose to make bad decisions, there will be consequences. And if we are exonerated from those, then it simply leads to pushing the boundaries even further. It simply gives us license to continue living selfish lives.
As Christians, we often also get this wrong. Grace is something we love to talk about and preach about. Grace is the most beautiful thing ever, but there is something we need to remember about it. For grace to happen, there needs to be repentance. For me to receive God’s grace, I need to accept Jesus Christ and repent. That doesn’t mean saying sorry. That means living sorry. It means that I turn my life around and walk in a different direction. It means that my actions, my words and my thoughts now reflect Jesus. What I know in my head, needs to sink deep into my heart.
God is certainly a God of 2nd chances, because if He weren’t, then we would all be lost. But He is also a God who needs to be feared. He loves justice. And that means we need to get what we deserve. But because of His love for us, He made a way through His Son Jesus Christ. How dare we then cheapen His grace by living abysmal lives as so-called Christians. The day will come when we will have to give account of our choices and our lives. On that day there will be no, “Don’t be too hard on yourselves.” On that day there will be no 2nd chances. On that day, there will be nowhere to run.
It’s time we start showing God the reverence that He is worthy of. It’s time that we make a choice to live for Him, rather than run after the soothing words of mere mortals that will make us feel better about our own bad choices. It’s time to stop looking for excuses to fuel our bad behaviour, and start stepping into a life where we take responsibility for our choices.
Have an amazing day!
Mark Davidson
