The Jesus Bible Reading PlanSample

PUNISHMENTS FOR SIN

When parents respond to misbehavior with appropriate and measured discipline, the child is likely to think their parents are cruel and lacking grace. For many readers, God’s plan of discipline for sinners — spelled out in Leviticus 20 — seems cruel, harsh and even extreme. In most cases, all parties in the sinful activity were to be put to death by the community.

The promised punishments were actually generous warnings, shedding light on God’s desire that his people live and not die. His explicit commands helped the people know what conduct to avoid. The Lord, who is always just, repeatedly noted that offenders who disregarded his warnings would die — but their blood would be on their own heads (Lev 20:9, 11, 12, 13, 16, 27).

The list of behaviors and consequences also served to train the Israelites to obey their God while staying away from the dark practices of other nations. God wanted them anchored to his concept of holiness before they entered the new land he was about to give them (Lev 20:22 – 24).

In the New Testament, Jesus gave the community new instructions for responding to friends and family members in sin. He taught that the offender should be pursued with the goal of repentance. Jesus even outlined different scenarios and responses (Mt 18:15 – 17). Paul the apostle instructed that churches should remove sinners claiming to be Christians if they refused to repent from wickedness (1Co 5:9 – 13).

There is evidence that death as a consequence of defiance occurred beyond the Old Testament context. Paul explained to the Corinthian church that some of their people had become sick or died because they mistreated the occasion of the Lord’s Supper (1Co 11:27 – 32). Elsewhere in the New Testament we are reminded that the Lord disciplines us as a father disciplines the children he loves (Heb 12:5 – 11).

God requires holiness from his people and promises to assist us in the process. He will, through our obedience and close association with him — together with occasional necessary discipline — make his people holy (Lev 20:7 – 8). He will do this for his glory and for our good.

Jesus, thank you for expecting more of me. Thank you for your commands, your consequences and your discipline. Please continue to form me into the person you made me to be. Amen.