Pay Back Time

As a rule, we are a "pay-back" people. When we are given a birthday or anniversary gift, we feel obligated to give a gift in return when their birthdays come around. When we are invited over for dinner at someone else's home, we feel we must invite them over to ours someday to repay them for their kindness.

In the opposite direction, if we are hurt or harmed by someone else, we often feel revengeful and say "I'll get them back someday." "I'll do to them what they did to me!" Do we do the same to God? Do we feel an overwhelming urge to get mad at God when something bad happens to us? In the same way, when God blesses us, do we feel we must "pay back" God for the blessings He gives us?

First of all, God's word tells us, "Do not repay anyone evil for evil."(Romans 12:17). It is not our place to get revenge when we are wronged. God says He is the only rightful Judge and He will repay, says the Lord. God alone is a just God and will bring justice to any and all situations. He alone knows the motives of the heart. I Thess. 5:15 says, "Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else."

Also, we cannot ever give enough back to God to repay Him for all that He has done for us, or expect God to repay us for the good we have done. In Romans 11:35, the Word says, "Who has ever given to God that God should repay Him?"

God says He wants our obedience much more than our offerings or sacrifices. He wants us to acknowledge Him as the giver of every perfect gift and be thankful, but we cannot work to earn His greater blessing. He wants our hearts to be pure before him much more than he wants a pay-back.

Be kind to each other!
Sandy