Sunday, December 17, 2017

Matthew 12:35-37 -- On Hearts and Words and Condemnation

"A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.
But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned."
Matthew 12:35-37


This is interesting as contrasted with the Lord talking to the woman taken in adultery and saying to her "neither do I condemn thee."  He paid for our sins, and he is our judge, and yet he refrained from condemnation.  Indeed, as it says in John 3:17, "For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved."  God's work is a work of salvation and mercy, and although judgement will still come, any suffering at that day will not be because God does not love us, or because he lacked anything in working to help us and provide us with opportunities to repent and change.  It will only be because we didn't take him up on his offer of mercy and salvation and tutoring to know how to change our hearts.

Today, let's remember that our own hearts and words are our eventual condemnation, unless we learn to purify them.  And let's work for justification rather than condemnation by taking advantage of Christ's gift to us of that space between sin and condemnation--the space that gives us hope and a chance to change. :)

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