God will have you beaten by scrawny men.

Have you ever gotten away with something?

I have found that the easier I feel it is to get away with something the more likely I am to repeat that behavior. There are times when the one thing (I am sad to say) that keeps me from doing something sinful is the fear of getting caught, so as that fears lessens I become more emboldened and more sinful.

Let me give you an example of what I am saying. Do you remember learning to swim? For most of us, that day involved standing at the edge of a pool looking at an adult standing in the water with their arms open assuring us repeatedly that it would be fun and they would take care of us. The initial jump involved a lot of fear but the level of fear we had about getting in the pool diminished a little every time we jumped in and didn't drown. We assumed it was safe because we were able to jump in and splash around without getting hurt.

And that is how I am sometimes with my sin. I do something sinful and I "look around" to see if anyone noticed or I wait around to see if God is going to punish me.

But the Lord has promised to deal with my sin because he is just and because he loves me and knows that his punishment will lead to my sanctification.

Even if I think that I can get away with something or have gotten away with something, God is still working to punish my sin and lead me to holiness.

Listen to what God says to Israel and Judah who were hoping that the Egyptians would come and save them from Babylon by defeating Nebuchadnezzar's army.

Thus says the Lord, Do not deceive yourselves, saying, "The Chaldeans will surely go away from us," for they will not go away. For even if you should defeat the whole army of Chaldeans who are fighting against you, and there remained of them only wounded men, every man in his tent, they would rise up and burn this city with fire. (Jeremiah 37:9-10)

God's point is that Israel and Judah would pay for their sin and be punished even if Egypt put a dent in the Babylonian war machine. Why? Because it wasn't Babylon who was plotting their destruction it was God.

Sometimes God is extra patient with us giving us space to repent for our sinful actions but the lack of punishment doesn't mean it isn't coming.

Resist the urge to sin and overcome the tempting voice that says, "You will get away with it!" Instead, realize that God sees everything and will surely punish sin.