THE OBVIOUS AND WHAT'S BEHIND THE SCENES

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Remember, the sins of some people are obvious, leading them to certain judgment. But there are others whose sins will not be revealed until later. In the same way, the good deeds of some people are obvious. And the good deeds done in secret will someday come to light.

1 Timothy 5:24-25 NLT

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As the fifth chapter of 1 Timothy closes, we find the Apostle Paul touching on the matter of sin and goodness, two actions that are polar opposites of one another.

One, sin, is a product of one not behaving as God desires, in disregard and disrespect to Him. Anyone who chooses the life of iniquity chooses to be an enemy of God and His enemies will always be judged and punished by His almighty wrath.

The other, goodness, is of course a fruit of the Spirit (Galatian5:22-23), a natural by product that comes when someone commits themselves to live fully for the Lord guided by His word and will. Right and righteous living, living in the way of Jesus as Christians are to live, will always produce good works that are pleasing to the Lord.

With this as a backdrop, let’s now look at Paul’s words which add a little more depth into both sin and goodness. Here’s what he writes in verses 24 and 25:

Remember, the sins of some people are obvious, leading them to certain judgment. But there are others whose sins will not be revealed until later. In the same way, the good deeds of some people are obvious. And the good deeds done in secret will someday come to light.

Here we are reminded that when it comes to sin and goodness, some acts are obvious while others are concealed and not out in the open.

In regard to sin, let’s say a person kills another or steals something and they get caught. Usually, this becomes newsworthy and the crimes are known by the public who are also informed of the justice outcomes, outcomes which usually result in a period of incarceration. They violated the laws of their locality and received certain judgment but even further, they violated God’s commands to not murder and steal, placing themselves also in line for His spiritual penalties. In both instances, their obvious sin led to current consequences.

But let’s say that someone watches things online or on their television at home with the intent of satisfying lustful desires. Pornography would fall into this category, for sure.

No one sees this sin except God Himself. It’s not obvious to anyone else but that doesn’t mean the sin won’t one day be exposed. As Paul writes, the revelation of some sins won’t be until later and no one should mislead themselves into thinking that their hidden sins won’t be held against them. All sin, obvious or otherwise, will lead to the just judgment of a perfectly just God.

Now, let’s turn to the matter of goodness which also has obvious and hidden elements.

I have always been convinced there is infinitely more good in the world than evil. Having traveled around the world a lot, visiting more than 50 countries, I have witnessed first-hand just how wonderful a majority of people are and they are usually willing to go out of their way to be polite and help someone. We just don’t hear about the good things people are doing because it seems headlining sinful behavior is what sells these days. Sad to say but it’s true.

Some acts of goodness are obvious like when a person freely gives their time to do something for a neighbor or someone oversees a drive to collect food, clothing or toiletries to help those who are homeless. Even things like politely holding a door for someone while offering a kind word of greeting can be a rich blessing for the person receiving the gesture. Obvious good deeds need not be significant in nature to be effective and honor the Lord who calls and expects us to goodness.

As we go back to our passage for today, we learn that there are also acts of goodness that aren’t as obvious. For some are done out of the view of others but clearly in the view of God who, just as with sin, sees all acts of goodness.

A person might choose to financially assist a child in need through any number of online sponsorship programs. Ditto for missionaries who rely on the support of others while carrying out the Gospel work in other countries. In both instances, a person might write a check or make online contributions that are known to only them or God but God’s word assures that those less obvious good deeds done in private will someday come to light. They will be part of the reward reaped from the Lord from the treasures a charitable and good person has stored up in Heaven.

Whether looking at sin or good, there are acts that are obvious and others that happen behind the scenes. In either instance, we find God ready to act accordingly, either with correction or blessing.

My encouragement is to always choose good, whether in the open or in provide, so you can experience the latter.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.