“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23
I understand people today don’t believe in spanking kids, but I was raised in a different time. Spanking was a daily occurrence for me.
Corporal punishment was still in the public school system when I was growing up. I used to get spankings at school. At my school, they used the Board of Education, which was a wooden paddle.
In the eighth grade, we studied the periodic table of elements in science. I struggled to memorize it and was as lost as a goose in a snowstorm.
Who came up with those abbreviations anyway? Some of them made sense. For example, hydrogen is H. Oxygen is O. But some don’t make sense. Take potassium, for example. Potassium is K. There isn’t even a K in the word potassium. Sodium is NA. I thought NA meant “not applicable.” Silver is AG. Isn’t AG the abbreviation for agriculture?
In the eighth grade, I could not remember the periodic table for the life of me. A big test on the periodic table was coming up, so I decided to cheat.
I took a clear plastic ink pen and copied the periodic table on a small piece of paper. Then, I rolled up the paper and put it inside the pen. All I had to do was look at the pen for the test answers.
My plan would have worked if not for my cousin, Bubba. Bubba’s real name was Jimmy Joe Jeff Johnny Paul Ray Elmer Junior. But that was a mouthful. We called him Bubba.
Bubba was in Mr. Alford’s Science Class with me. On the test day, he sat at the desk behind me.
When the test started, things were going great. Thanks to the periodic pen, I was filling in all the blanks on the test.
Suddenly, Bubba whispered, “What’s the abbreviation for Mercury?” I tried to ignore him because I didn’t want to get caught.
He was persistent. He asked again louder, “What’s the abbreviation for Mercury?” I still didn’t answer.
Finally, Bubba stood up and said, “Mr. Alford, my pen quit writing. Can I borrow James’ pen?”
Mr. Alford walked over, took the pen, and marched me into the hall. Mr. Alford had my pen and the paddle in one hand. It was a bad day after that.
I cheated, got caught, and had to pay the price.
The point is not just about the consequences of cheating but the broader concept of sin. Just as I faced consequences for my actions, there are consequences when we sin and disobey God. God is just; because He is, He must punish sin. This is a lesson I learned the hard way and one I hope you can take to heart.
The Bible says the wages of sin is death. For the lost, it means death in hell. For the Christian, it can mean physical death pre-maturely. Sometimes, God will kill a Christian if that person loses his testimony and lives like a non-Christian. Sin brings physical death.
Sin can also bring death to your marriage, to joy in your life, and to your relationships. Sin destroys. Sin kills.
However, God has given us a gift: His Son, Jesus Christ. Eternal life waits for those who call on Him in repentance for salvation. Get off the path that leads to death. Get on the highway to Heaven. Turn to Christ today.
