God's Gonna' Get You!!!!!

Heb 12:6 For whom the LORD loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives."

Comedy and tragedy sometimes combine when a Christian starts threatening the wrath of God on another Christian. As a Christian high school teacher, I had given a student a four-page writing assignment as punishment for talking in class. She lied to her parents about it, and her mother started hurling Scripture at me about the judgment of the wicked. She actually started shaking with joy at the thought of all the terrible things that were going to happen to me. Fortunately for me, I had been telling the truth, so none of those things happened to me.

Some people who had seized control of a good church actually called my wife on the telephone to warn her about the judgment of God on me for telling the truth. Several months later, they could be seen walking around town with enraged looks on their faces, after their fellow conspirators kicked them out of leadership.

But it is a common Christian error to believe that if something bad happens to a Christian, it proves that the Christian had sinned. Christians who are involved in a conflict, disobeying God's many commands for us to love one another, will often point to the misfortune of their opponent as proof that God is on their side.

DOES God choose sides by smiting one Christian, but not another? If something bad happens to you, is it God's way of punishing you for something? We'll be talking about this for the next few lessons.