“It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Hebrews 10:31 (NIV)
The writer of Hebrews tells us that it is terrible (NLT), dreadful (NIV), terrifying (TPT) and fearful (ESV) to come under the judgment of the Living God! Yet, too many presume that His grace is sufficient for me to do whatever I want and He will still love me! There is a lie permeating through the church that equates God being pleased with us and His love for us. God’s love for us never changes, though He definitely is not always pleased with what we do, or say, or think. That is why John, addressing those who follow Jesus, says we must confess our sin (1 John 1:9). He is not talking to those outside the family of God, but to Jesus followers. He goes on to say those who follow Jesus should not keep sinning because “he is born of God” (1 John 3:6&9). Peter spoke similarly when he wrote that “judgment begins in the house of God” (1 Peter 4:17). God is calling us deeper into His presence, but our sin, which we excuse because of His grace, actually prevents us from coming close. Gordon McDonald wrote that “there is no bit of hell allowed in heaven.” So why should we expect sin to be allowed in His presence now. Remember Ananias and Sapphira actually died when they lied to the Holy Spirit. And as a result, “great fear seized the whole church” (Acts 51-11).
Please invite God to deal with sin in the church, starting with your own. Ask Him to increase the fear of God over His people! Cry out for Him to awaken those who have been deceived by this “hyper-grace” message that is operating in some parts of the body of Christ. Ask Him to show you any place where you have been presuming that He was ok with something in your life, when actually He is not. Ask God to show you how to come into alignment with His mind, will and holiness. And ask all these things for the church across our city!
