“He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities.” (Psalm 103:10 NKJV)
“You may discipline us for our many sins, but never as much as we really deserve.” (Psalm 103:10)
“He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.” (Psalm 103:10 NLT)
“He has not dealt with us according to our sins [as we deserve], nor rewarded us [with punishment] according to our wickedness.” (Psalm 103:10 AMP)
“He has not dealt with us as our sins deserve or repaid us according to our offenses.” (Psalm 103:10 HCSB)
“For he has not done to us according to our sins, neither has he rewarded us according to our evil.” (Psalm 103:10 ABIPE)
As I began to ponder verse 10 Daddy started challenging some foundational presuppositions that I have made about how He deals with sin (past, present, and future), especially prior to the cross. David wrote this Psalm long before Jesus came to this earth and took care of the sin problem. He wrote this as a man who at best could have the Holy Spirit come upon him, and pardon him, from the outside – in. Living prior to the completed work of redemption, He was not a “born again,” “redeemed,” “new creation.” He did not have the Holy Spirit living within him. He was a “servant,” not a “son.” And yet, he describes living in the freedom from sin that I thought was only available to those living in the New Covenant, with better promises. He understood the goodness of God.
Once again, Daddy is taking me back to the account of creation found in Genesis and opening my eyes to the truth. According to this account, Daddy did not separate Himself from Adam and Eve. He came to them, and when they heard Him coming they hid from Him in shame. He was not ashamed of them, they were ashamed of themselves. It is clear from the actual account that Daddy desired to continue with His daily walks. When He confronted them He simply asked questions designed to help them see clearly what they had done. There is no hint of judgment or condemnation in their initial conversation. When He did talk to them about the consequences of their sin nowhere did He say anything about them being cut off, or separated from Him. He simply pointed out the difficulties that their actions had now brought upon them and their descendants. He judged the serpent, not His children. That lines up perfectly with what was said about Jesus, “I have come to save the world and not judge it.”
I think it is telling what was not written as a consequence of Adam and Eve’s actions. First, while they were warned in advance that they would die, no where was that death described as eternal separation from their Father. By the way, Daddy warned them that they would bring death upon themselves. He diod not say, “I will kill you.” After they sinned they were told about difficulties that would enter their lives as the consequences of their actions, but again, being eternally separated from their Father is no where described. Daddy is challenging me to allow Him the freedom to take me back again to the foundations of my “religious mindset” and remove the man-made chaff from the grains of His truth.
Adam and Eve were not kicked out of the garden because they were being judged for their sin. They were not being separated from their Father because He could not look at them in their sinful condition. They were banned from the garden to protect them from eating of the tree of life and sealing their bad choice for eternity. Any loving Father will take the necessary steps to protect His children from harm, and that is exactly what happened. The Genesis account is the account of a loving Father who warned His children about the consequences of sin, and then took action to protect them from hurting themselves even more after they sinned. Now for the best part of the story.
My Daddy is so good, He is so loving, that He takes action to provide and protect even when I don’t deserve it. That is exactly what He did for Adam and Eve. Immediately following their terrible decision, He shed the blood that was necessary for the remission of their sin and used the skins to clothe their nackedness. He removed their shame, and covered their sin. This was a down payment on the full redemption that Jesus accomplished in His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. I may separate myself from my Daddy through my darkened mind as I listen to the religion of men, and the lies of the devil; but my Daddy never separates Himself from me.
Bottom Line, Daddy has never dealt with me according to my sins. He has never punished me as I deserve. He is not mad at me! He may discipline me, but never as much as I deserve.
There is so much more to think about as I ponder…
…Eric’s Life Lesson # 237: Kingdom Living (Psalm 103) Part 11 – Verse 10