“You have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.” (Numbers 32:23). It was to the children of Israel, God’s chosen people, Moses spoke those words. The people of this world sin continuously in a thousand different ways often no one the wiser as to what evil they have done, although they will reap what they sow. That is a universal law as valid as any law of physics, but the people of God have ever been held to a higher standard. To them, God sounds forth the warning, “Be sure YOUR sin will find you out!” But God doesn’t stop there. He adds, “If you are left without discipline, then you are illegitimate children and not sons” (Hebrews 12:8 – English Standard Version).
God has an obligation to His children of all ages, “For if the word spoken by angels (God’s human messengers, i.e., Moses Joshua, the prophets) was steadfast (reliable), and EVERY transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward, how shall we (New Covenant believers) escape (God’s punishment) if we neglect so great salvation (sufficient to keep and deliver us from all sin” (see Hebrews 2:2-3).
The word “angels” in the above text is aggelos (pronounced ANG’-el-os), meaning simply “messenger” and is speaking of God’s human messengers, not spirit beings.
God’s obligation to His redeemed sons and daughters includes disciplining us when we stray or begin practicing some manner of sin. When we sin God gives us a window of time to confess and forsake such sin. If we fail to do so, He will then discipline or punish us to wake us up to our peril and bring us back to the walk of righteousness. And the Lord has ten thousand ways to get our attention and bring us to our knees in sincere repentance. The Father’s appreciation for His Son’s sacrifice is so great He moves swiftly against those who demean that sacrifice by knowingly continuing to sin. That is WHY the Lord told His followers from the first, “Go, and sin no more!” (John 8:11). Why? Because “Whosoever commits (continues to) sin is the slave of sin!” (See John 8:34). God help us to understand.
Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),
Donald Wiley