Sin's Wages Aren't Always Paid Immediately

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There's a quote that says that sin wouldn't be so attractive if the wages were paid immediately. While some sins do result in direct punishment but others don't. The consequences of playing with a knife are obvious but the consequences of other sins like extramarital affairs and drunken behavior don't necessarily show up immediately. In a world where political correctness is becoming more and more acceptable over biblical correctness, sin has become more and more encouraged. After homosexual marriages were made legal in some parts of the world, the fight to defend any immoral relationship in the name of "love" has become more and more mainstream.

The whole wrong idea about right and wrong in the world has a very limited view due to man's fallen nature. They think that as long as you don't suffer or everyone agrees with you then you haven't done anything wrong. There's the tendency to think that as long as you do what's right then you don't get into trouble but do they know what's right from what's wrong? If they ever consider the idea that as long as you're not in trouble then you must be doing right is just stupid. Let's say if a person has committed a lot of sins and the world still loves that person, does that make his or her sins right? The truth is if you do what's right you may get into trouble because the world has a very altruistic view of God's Law. They may think stealing is not okay but they may be condoning to other sins. The problem there is that God is holy and man isn't born holy. Holiness is characteristic of a person saved by grace but not a man without God's grace.

The problem today is that people just don't realize that God doesn't always punish sin immediately because He has His timing. God said in Deuteronomy 32:35:
To Me belongeth vengeance and recompence; their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste.

God has His mercy but it has its limits. God has ordained a time for the wicked for their foot to slide but He has given them space to repent. There's always time to repent of one's wickedness. That's why the wages of sin aren't always paid immediately. That's why wicked people are still give their chance in life. Ecclesiastes 7:15 says:
All things have I seen in the days of my vanity: there is a just man that perisheth in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness.

It's very easy to say why are the wicked allowed to prosper and to grumble about it. But the Christian needs to realize this that nobody deserves salvation, forgiveness and the mercy of God. Grace is something that's undeserved. Although God has His limits but He gives a reasonable limit. Humanly speaking, it does sound unfair that God will let those in Christ live very short lives on Earth while He allows some of the wicked to live longer with their worldly prosperity. But as said, salvation has never been about justice but mercy. Christians have lived regenerate lives by God's grace (Titus 2:11-14) so why let some of them die early while let the wicked prosper? I can only think that a Christian's death is nothing to be sad about because they're going home with the LORD.

On the other hand, while Christians are called to judge sin and wickedness but they're not the final judge towards people. Nobody has the right to say that it's unfair that the wicked are still allowed to prosper while so many righteous people suffer. God is holy and won't tolerate sin but He also has His mercy towards the wicked. The wicked are given every chance to repent. After all, doesn't 2 Peter 3:9 say:
The LORD is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

While there's no license or allowance to sin because the wages of sin weren't paid immediately but this is giving people space to repent. Revelation 2:21 has the Lord Jesus say He's given Jezebel the chance to repent but she refused. Many of the wicked are given space to repent but they refuse. If the wages of sin were to be paid immediately then there's no room to repent. This space is for repentance not to indulge ins in. While sin must be confronted but it must be confronted in love and concern instead of doing so to spite others. You can always rebuke without loving but you can't love without rebuking. Even if it sounds awful that the wages of sin aren't always paid immediately but God is in control to why He doesn't always punish sin immediately.


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