God Never Condemns

I was driving home listening to the Christian radio station in my hometown.

The two compères were asking the listening audience to ring in about times when they were embarrassed or put in a difficult, awkward situation and what they did about it. How did they respond?

Someone rang in and described the time they went on a work picnic and were trying to make an impression with their new boss. Unknowingly they sat on an ants nest and ended up doing the “ants in my pants” dance, trying to dislodge all the ants that were crawling all over her. She got stung twice and it stung so badly, she called it quits and ran to her car to try and take off the offending clothing that was harbouring the ants. The lady in question was left with huge welts where the offending ants had had a feast.

Other listeners rang in and shared moments when other people had tried to embarrass them at their own party. To deliberately cause them grief in jokes pulled on them. There were some jokes that were quite cruel.

It made me think of times, in Jesus’ day, where people wanted to cause situations to occur to deliberately embarrass others. To even shame others by the way they were living or the choices they had made, even if they had changed their ways.

Some of the Pharisees were like that. Simon the Pharisee made fun of the woman who was crying at Jesus’ feet. His attitude condemning the woman and ridiculing Jesus, “if he was who he said he was he would know what this woman was that was touching him” was his thoughts.

Jesus responded and told everyone there what he truly thought about this woman:

Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him—that she is a sinner.’ Jesus spoke up and said to him, ‘Simon, I have something to say to you.’ ‘Teacher,’ he replied, ‘speak.’ ‘A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he cancelled the debts for both of them. Now which of them will love him more?’ Simon answered, ‘I suppose the one for whom he cancelled the greater debt.’ And Jesussaid to him, ‘You have judged rightly.’ 

Luke 7:39-43 NRSV

God never condemns us. He may convict us in our behaviour and life’s choices by calling us to change. He draws us to himself with love.

God always works good for us if we choose to follow Him and His ways.

He never shames us.

The scripture says”

‘No one who believes in him will be put to shame.’ 

Romans 10:11 NRSV

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Romans 8:1 NRSV

Psalm 34 describes how radiant we are when we look to him:

Look to him, and be radiant; so yourfaces shall never be ashamed.

Psalm 34:5 NRSV

In psalm 25 it says any who waits for the Lord will be not be put to shame:

Do not let those who wait for you be put to shame; let them be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.

Psalm 25:3 NRSV

Our good God will only bring us love, joy, kindness, goodness…. What do we bring Him?

Think about it. What do you bring to the Lord?

May these jottings from my journal inspire you to believe in and fall in love with Christ- the hope of the world, as stated in Jeremiah 17:7, ‘Blessed is the man who believes and trusts in and relies on the Lord and whose hope and confident expectation is the Lord!’

Love

Rosemary

Every week groups of ladies meet together to chat about the things I raise in my weekly blog post and to chat about life in general. We call these ‘Heart Connect’ groups.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Can you think of times in your life where you have felt embarrassed? How did you respond to the situation?

How would you feel if someone did not put you to shame? Have you experienced this with Jesus?

God always gives us love and goodness. Does that make you think of what you bring to God?