Consequences!
And Nathan said to David,
“The Lord also has put away your sin;
you shall not die. However, because
by this deed you have given great
occasion to the enemies of the Lord to
blaspheme,
the child also who is born
to you shall surely die.”
2 Samuel 12: 13-14
The hardest and most valuable lessons for
children to learn is there are consequences
for their sins. Sins may be forgiven, but the
impact of the sin does not disappear with
forgiveness.
If an older child breaks a toy belonging to
a younger sibling, the guilty child can be
forgiven, but there will be a consequence.
He will have
to use his weekly allowance
to purchase a replacement toy.
Mercy is the biblical term for not getting the
punishment we deserve. But mercy doesn't
do away
with consequences. Our God is
“longsuffering and abundant in mercy.” He
reserves the right to visit the consequences
of sin on future generations (Numbers 14:18).
As David was forgiven for
his double sins
of adultery and murder, the consequence
of his sins would be the death of the child
conceived in immorality.
Mercy spares you from punishment.
It doesn’t always spare you or
others
from the consequences of your sin.
"We are free to
choose,
but not free to choose the
consequences of our choice."
Spiros Zodhiates