No Pain, No Gain

No pain, no gain

“Behold, the whirlwind of the Lord goeth forth with fury, a continuing whirlwind: it shall fall with pain upon the head of the wicked.”

‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭30:23‬

How many of us have experienced pain from a circumstance or experience? 

I have for sure, and many others have as well. How many of us have experienced this as a result of punishment from sin?

Yesterday we talked about sin. But what comes as a result of sin? Usually pain. Our sin can hurt others. And it can also hurt ourselves as well. This pain is usually the result of punishment. And this punishment is usually from God. 

Most unbelievers won’t go this far into thought about the whole matter because they don’t believe that their pain is associated with sin in their life. 

Here it is in laymen’s terms;

Sin, cause pain to yourself and others, punishment from God, pain to yourself and others. 

The result of your sin is that it will cause pain to you and maybe someone else. Maybe a lot of someone else’s in your life. 

So here’s the good side to this devotion. After sin, after punishment, after pain, there is restoration. 

Restoration allows you to recover from sin and the pain that comes with it. You can restore yourself through the Will of God. You can explore and strengthen your relationship with Him and allow restoration to heal the wounds. Restoration will encourage your walk in the Will of God. 

Think of restoration like restoring and old car. You go out and buy this classic car from 1970. It was once a new, beautiful, powerful car. Sleek and modern for its time. It had that new car smell. And now 50-some years later, it’s rusted, interior is falling apart and torn, the tires are flat. Birds and bugs have made it their home. Now think about how you would make that car new again. Sure you could just junk it and get rid of it. But if you had a chance to make it brand new again and someone already paid the price, would you do it? It’s a no brainer. Restoration is taking all the broken pieces and replacing them or repairing them. In the end, you become a new person in Jesus Christ.

God will use you in ways you can’t foresee. You may be used in someone else’s life. Your pain may help them. Your sin may turn someone else to God through your punishment. I believe this was the case with me. If you allow the fire to melt the metal, it can be made into something amazing. If you stop part way through - you’ll have a mess. 

We also look so closely at the sin and the punishment. We focus on the bad when we should look to what happens next. 

We rarely hold someone close during the restoration process. Once someone comes to Christ through sin, punishment or salvation, we generally ease up or let go completely on their walk with Christ. 

The restoration process is extremely important. This is where a person turns from the sin that is causing the pain in their life. They may still be living with the punishment but they are restoring a relationship with God. It’s important we keep the focus on this part of the process. 

If you know someone who is or who has gone through a life-changing event, reach out to them today and ask how you can be part of the process of restoration. You’ll be amazed at how important this is to them. 

Just before Jeremiah prophesies about the restoration of the coming of Jesus Christ, he writes this;

“And ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.”

‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭30:22‬

There is comfort through your pain and punishment for sin in knowing that our God is always here.