Punishment And Mercy

Whenever we disobey God knowingly or unknowingly there’s a punishment attached to it, especially when that disobedience has to do with not carrying out a divine assignment.

And God said to King Saul through Samuel, “Obedience is better than sacrifice” Obedience is better than doing things your own way, for that singular disobedience, God rejected Saul, that rejection led to madness, and the madness led to his death on the battlefield.

In the Old Testament, the people who offended God were forgiven when they asked for mercy, but the consequences of the offence remained in the lineage up to the third generation; children-children-children still suffered the sins of their forefathers.

This old system of disobedience, offence, sin and punishment continued till Jesus died on the Cross, up there He said, “IT IS FINISHED!”

Punishment can no longer be the reward for sins and offences, but rather forgiveness. There, He prayed His Father to forgive them, and also to forgive those who don’t know what they do.

David described the work Jesus did on the Cross as blotting out transgressions in Psalm 51, which expresses a deep desire for God to erase, or completely remove one’s sins and faults. This phrase comes from the ancient practice of wiping ink from a parchment to eliminate a record of debt or offence. In a biblical context, it symbolises a request for complete forgiveness and cleansing from sin through God’s mercy and the complete atonement by Jesus Christ’s Blood.

Blotting out sins is a total erasure of offence like it was never committed, this deep spiritual deletion of sin wasn’t possible with the blood of ram and pigeon, David was making reference to the Blood of Jesus which was to come, being a prophet David didn’t know what he was asking God to do was yet to come.
Psalm 51 was fulfilled when Jesus shed His Blood on the Cross, it’s the blood that blots away sins and nothing else.

I don’t teach offences and punishments, I teach offences and mercy, because the debt of every offence has been paid completely. He said it’s finished, no matter how heavy the sin or offence is, the Blood is powerful enough to blot it all out like it was never there.

We all offend God almost every day, in ways we may not even know it. Where there’s no sin, there won’t be forgiveness; where there is no disobedience, there won’t be forgiveness.

The Gospel of Jesus is the Gospel of blotting away sins and not the Gospel of condemnation and punishment, for the blotting away of sins He died, by His blood all sins and offences are not just forgiven when we ask but are blotted away like they never happened, this is how much we are blessed, even the angels of God in Heaven don’t have the privilege we have.

If you’re battling with the remorse of any sin, you’re doubting if God can ever forgive you, just say this short prayer and believe it:

Lord Jesus, I acknowledge in my deepest heart in all sincerity that you died for me, you shed your precious Blood to save me from the condemnation of sin and death. I have sinned against you alone. Forgive me, show me mercy and blot away my sins.

– Kanayo Ebuka