Punishment From Whom?

“Just as I swore in the time of Noah that I would never again let a flood cover the earth, so now I swear that I will never again be angry and punish you. [Isaiah 54.9]

What?

So, if the curses found in Deuteronomy 28 are punishment for sin, and, we still experience them with widespread occurrence, where are they (the curses) coming from if in fact God said through Isaiah that He would never again be angry and punish us?

Is it possible that we deal with an enemy whose 'modus operandi' is deception?

God's wording in the verse above is rather forceful. The words "never again" have to mean something, right? And, the fact that God compared His promise about "never again" in regard to punishment to His promise about "never again" in regard to flooding the earth clears up any doubt about what He means.

It is no surprise that these significant words are found in the very context of the prophecies about Jesus as the Suffering Servant of God chosen to redeem mankind!

Jesus is the key. He is the door. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Jesus paid it all (read Isaiah 53).

Okay, so now I have to process all I have felt up to this point in my brief history about what to do with repentance. I have to remember that Jesus began His earthly ministry with the word, "Repent..."

It would appear that there remains a need for repentance. However, the main reason for repentance is our failure to believe in Jesus. Is it possible to believe in Jesus however without feeling remorse for the pain and suffering our sinfulness caused Him? I don't think so and I believe this is where a 'humble and contrite spirit' in us is paramount.

But back to the punishment... How do we deal with punishment (curses) at work in our lives? How do we deal with sickness? How do we deal with poverty? How do we deal with loss and pain? If it is not God punishing us, who is at the helm of all the punishment rampant in the earth? Who is this thief? Who is this murderer? Who is this destroyer? Who is this liar?

Is it ironic that Jesus said the following:

The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. [John 10.10]

For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. [John 8.44]

Perhaps then our forgiveness is not found so much in our repentance for everything we do wrong as much as it is found when we identify with Jesus by forgiving others. I am just thinking here...

Unless we just ignore all the promises in the Bible, ignore all the talk about blessing and curses, ignore all that Jesus said and did, and generally just live with no Bible standard in our lives, then we HAVE to reconcile it all. 

Sickness is a curse - it is punishment for sin. Poverty is a curse - it is punishment for sin.

If, in fact, Jesus paid the full price and suffered once for all our sin, then there must be another explanation for why we still experience pain and suffering. There must be something or someone responsible - maybe even something or someone our Lord Jesus dealt with to show us too how to deal with ourselves... Something or someone whose work does not give glory to itself but to God:

As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. “Rabbi,” his disciples asked him, “why was this man born blind? Was it because of his own sins or his parents’ sins?” “It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him. ” [John 9.1-3]

I don't think God said through Isaiah (beginning scripture above) what He said for no reason. I do not think God said I will be angry and punish you no more and then walk away and leave us helpless to punishment - that would be like saying, "I will help you" and then walking away without helping!

Jesus showed us how to overcome Satan! He carefully instructed us how to live and demonstrated how to beat the devil. His focus was however the Kingdom of God - the devil was and is just a 'fly to be swatted.'

Oh, I wish I knew all there is to know about this! But I will continue to be paying attention. I will continue to learn. I am purposed to walk in every blessing from God and help others do the same.

Father, please keep speaking to my heart.