Sinners are obsessed with what they think is fair. And fairness certainly has its place. The legal axiom that the punishment should fit the crime is rooted in the idea of fairness. The law itself is built on the idea of what is fair. Do well and you will be rewarded. Break the law and you will be punished. But the last thing we should actually want from God is what is fair. “If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?” (Psalm 130:3) It is a terrible thought, the idea that God should give us what we deserve according to our works. That would mean temporal and eternal death. That would be for God to remove His hand of mercy so that we never know another good thing in our lives. Thanks be to God that He is not obsessed with what is fair. He is merciful and compassionate, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love. It wasn’t fair that your sins were laid on Jesus and that He died for evil that He never did. But thanks be to God that He did! And now He gives to you the wages for His work – the forgiveness of sins in His Body and Blood. God grant to each of us a truly thankful heart for His great mercy and an eager desire to receive the salvation He freely lavishes upon us. I look forward to seeing you all this coming Lord’s Day.
Pastor Ulmer