Swift Consequences….

The reason there are consequences for crimes is to deter evil behavior, and immediately eliminate it from the culture. When someone commits a crime and is found guilty, swiftly sentenced, and punished for it, others see the consequences and are made to evaluate if that crime is worth the consequences. This has always been an effective discipline process. The problem comes in when society fails to carry out this type of system. Having few or no consequences for bad behavior only spurs on bad behavior. Our sinful nature has acute short term memory only. If nothing happens after we behave badly, then we tend to repeat the behavior. Look around, there’s evidence of this truth everywhere. One effective method to deter crime is the death penalty. It doesn’t completely eliminate all crime, but it does have a great impact on reducing the violent actions of others. Wouldn’t it be great to make a law that imposed the consequences false accusers want on others they falsely accuse? We wouldn’t have these frivolous lawsuits, would we? The problem with our sin nature is without swift consequences, we get the impression that responsibility is no longer required. And that means we think bad behavior is not punishable, or we are the exception to the rule. The problem with that type of thinking is God is just. You won’t get away with it. We are all responsible to God. No one is exempt. Knowing this helps us stay away from self-inflicted wounds, and keeps our relationships with others intact.

14 “When you arrive in the land the Lord your God is giving you as your special possession, you must never steal anyone’s land by moving the boundary markers your ancestors set up to mark their property.15 “You must not convict anyone of a crime on the testimony of only one witness. The facts of the case must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.16 “If a malicious witness comes forward and accuses someone of a crime, 17 then both the accuser and accused must appear before the Lord by coming to the priests and judges in office at that time. 18 The judges must investigate the case thoroughly. If the accuser has brought false charges against his fellow Israelite, 19 you must impose on the accuser the sentence he intended for the other person. In this way, you will purge such evil from among you. 20 Then the rest of the people will hear about it and be afraid to do such an evil thing. 21 You must show no pity for the guilty! Your rule should be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. Deuteronomy 19:14-21