One of the things that we focus on in our faith in Christ is forgiveness. Forgiveness is central to our understanding of how we relate to God. Without the forgiveness that Christ earned for us on the cross, none of us could stand before God. Our sin is abhorrent to God but through the blood of Christ, we are forgiven. With that idea though, we sometimes then downplay the toxic and destructive nature of sin.
Last week in adult Sunday school class we looked at the fact that God judged Israel in part because of the sin of Manasseh. Manasseh was a particularly bad king who introduced terrible idolatry and pagan practices into mainstream acceptance in Israel. He was regarded as one of the most evil kings in Judah's history and by tradition is credited with killing the prophet Isaiah. Yet, 1 Chronicles 33:12-20 tells us that near the end of his years, after being placed in captivity for a time, that Manasseh repented and turned to God and tried to clean up his act.
The other events of Manasseh's reign, including his prayer to his God and the words the seers spoke to him in the name of the LORD, the God of Israel, are written in the annals of the kings of Israel. His prayer and how God was moved by his entreaty, as well as all his sins and unfaithfulness, and the sites where he built high places and set up Asherah poles and idols before he humbled himself--all are written in the records of the seers. (2 Chronicles 33:18-19 NIV)
So that is good right? Well, it was good for Manasseh and this probably means that we will meet him in heaven one day, but as far as things on earth go, the damage was done. Judah was corrupted and stayed committed to the idolatry they learned, leaving it only after they were driven from the land. As for the immediate aftermath of Manasseh's life
Manasseh rested with his fathers and was buried in his palace. And Amon his son succeeded him as king. Amon was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem two years. He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, as his father Manasseh had done. Amon worshiped and offered sacrifices to all the idols Manasseh had made. But unlike his father Manasseh, he did not humble himself before the LORD; Amon increased his guilt. (2 Chronicles 33:20-23 NIV)
It was too late, the legacy was set.
Too often I fear that we think because God forgives sin that we can avoid the consequences of sin. We may do our own thing and indulge in things that are wrong, but then God will wipe the slate clean and we can start all over good as new. The problem with that thinking is that it is not Biblical. Our slate is clean before God in that we are forgiven from the judgement on sin for eternity, but we are not freed from the destruction that sin can wreak in our lives if we give in to it. You murder someone, forgiveness does not change the fact that someone is dead. God will forgive sex outside of marriage, but the consequences may forever change lives.
We need to be careful with sin. It is destructive and can ruin things. God will forgive us, but things can be ruined and consequences can still hit us. Let's not take sin lightly or forget its terrible danger.
