Punishment

I was thinking about how some things have changed over my lifetime, specifically I was thinking about corporal punishment: spanking. There’s probably no one reading this that hasn’t a time or two (or 100) experienced an old fashioned spanking. Now, let’s be clear here: I’m in no way referring to real child abuse and there is no excuse for it. That being established, I doubt any one understood or thought of the punishment as good while it was being administered. But in hindsight we know that we likely deserved it and it was for our own good.

Today society views spanking in a totally different light. Most often striking a child for punishment is scorned now and often called child abuse. Parents are vilified for correcting their children, even though it is for their own good.

Society, or the world, today do the same thing with God, saying He is a monster, vengeful, even denying His existence saying things akin to if God were real He wouldn’t punish mankind, not if He loves them.

The world vilifies God for punishing sin, not unlike it does parents for correcting children, today. But unlike societal views on issues, such as corporal punishment, God nor His Word changes. Scripture is clear that sin requires punishment: either we take it ourselves or we accept by faith that Christ Jesus did for us.