IS GOD PUNITIVE?
In love there can be no fear, but fear is driven out by perfect love: because to fear is to expect punishment, and anyone who is afraid is still imperfect in love. 1 John 4:18, Jerusalem.
More than sixty times in the Bible we read about God punishing people for their iniquities, and then in one verse John says that people who are afraid of punishment are imperfect! Whom are we supposed to believe? What's the real truth about punishment? Is God punitive?
We're dealing here with two different understandings of "punishment." In one sense of the word, punishment means the inflicting of pain on someone because of wrong behavior. We envision someone in a position of power or authority (such as a parent, policeman, or teacher), whose job is to monitor the behavior of others. And so he spanks, levies fines, or makes the offender stand in the corner.
This usage sometimes also curries flavoring of retaliation, emotional vengeance, or getting even. It reveals the assumption that the wrong act will not have inherent consequences that are so very bad and so some sort of pain must be invented and artificially supplied. This is to make sure that the person being punished will fear the lawgiver and thus be more obedient. Some folks simply can't think of a better way to get people to obey than to scare them into submission.
But not so with our God! He has better reasons for us to obey than to fear His wrath. His law presents such vital realities of living that He does not need to "throw His wounded ego on the line" in defense of it. And He is so confident of His ability to instruct us that He wants us referencing to the truthfulness of His ways rather than to the fear of His negative emotions.
Punishment, however, does have a proper function. We are not always quick to grasp how hurtful it is to depart from His ways; and--lest we begin to live in a fantasy--He mercifully brings us face-to-face with the tragedy of our foolishness. Also the destructive effects of a sinful pattern often are not immediately evident. Rather than let us become locked into crushing patterns, He warns us with a sampling of the pain to come. Surely this is what those Old Testament authors meant when they spoke of God's punishment
In love there can be no fear, but fear is driven out by perfect love: because to fear is to expect punishment, and anyone who is afraid is still imperfect in love. 1 John 4:18, Jerusalem.
More than sixty times in the Bible we read about God punishing people for their iniquities, and then in one verse John says that people who are afraid of punishment are imperfect! Whom are we supposed to believe? What's the real truth about punishment? Is God punitive?
We're dealing here with two different understandings of "punishment." In one sense of the word, punishment means the inflicting of pain on someone because of wrong behavior. We envision someone in a position of power or authority (such as a parent, policeman, or teacher), whose job is to monitor the behavior of others. And so he spanks, levies fines, or makes the offender stand in the corner.
This usage sometimes also curries flavoring of retaliation, emotional vengeance, or getting even. It reveals the assumption that the wrong act will not have inherent consequences that are so very bad and so some sort of pain must be invented and artificially supplied. This is to make sure that the person being punished will fear the lawgiver and thus be more obedient. Some folks simply can't think of a better way to get people to obey than to scare them into submission.
But not so with our God! He has better reasons for us to obey than to fear His wrath. His law presents such vital realities of living that He does not need to "throw His wounded ego on the line" in defense of it. And He is so confident of His ability to instruct us that He wants us referencing to the truthfulness of His ways rather than to the fear of His negative emotions.
Punishment, however, does have a proper function. We are not always quick to grasp how hurtful it is to depart from His ways; and--lest we begin to live in a fantasy--He mercifully brings us face-to-face with the tragedy of our foolishness. Also the destructive effects of a sinful pattern often are not immediately evident. Rather than let us become locked into crushing patterns, He warns us with a sampling of the pain to come. Surely this is what those Old Testament authors meant when they spoke of God's punishment
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