Getting Caught With the Cookies

I can remember several times in my childhood getting “caught” for doing something my mother had told me not to do.  Most of these incidents involved climbing on a chair onto the cabinets to reach the snacks, and especially the cookies, she had placed out of my reach.  I believed she either had x-ray vision or radar, because as soon as I would open the cabinet, I would hear her calling from another room, “Jeff, get out of the cabinet.”  Whether it was sneaking a cookie or something from the refrigerator, her “Jeff early warning system” always alerted her.  I would wonder, “How does she do that?”

I began to understand how she did it when I had my own children.  It seems parents know the nature of their children even when their children don’t know themselves.  Parents learn quickly the child who is prone to explore, lie, is sensitive, or strong willed.  When children act contrary to their normal nature, parents get suspicious.  My mother knew that if I was quiet and in the kitchen, or quiet anywhere for that matter, I was up to something.

As we are studying the role of the Holy Spirit as God’s guide, my childhood remembrance makes me think of two illustrations; the first being that the Holy Spirit knows us better than we know ourselves.  He isn’t fooled by any actions that clearly show our disobedience to His will.  In fact, He warns us way ahead of time about impending danger.  My mother wasn’t trying to starve me.   The snack wasn’t the issue. She was concerned that a climbing boy could fall off a chair and hurt himself.  In the same way, the Holy Spirit looks out for our safety and provides a warning and a way of escape if we will listen and obey.

Secondly, if my obedience to my mother had been sincere, I wouldn’t have had repeated offenses.  I was like most people when caught in sin. I was sorry for getting caught, but not for what I did.  Though my mother disciplined me and was quick with forgiveness, I was not truly repentant.  My cookie temptation was not eliminated. I would try again. How often have we presumed on the mercy and grace of God out of our guilt for being caught but not guilty due to our sin?  In other words, “God forgive me for this time,” but given the chance, I will do it again.

In Psalms 51, David understands that true repentance involves our personal moral responsibility before God.  He says, “For I know my transgressions and my sin is always before me.  Against you, you only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight…”  Here lies the key.  Our motive—not the action--is the sin.  It is a heart issue to God.  David writes in Psalm 51:17, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God you will not despise.”  When our heart motive is right, our actions will follow.

If I had understood this as a child, my desire to please my mother would have been greater than my desire to eat a cookie.  The cookie only supplied a temporary desire.  My mother supplied me with eternal love, something a cookie could never equal.  May the Holy Spirit help us to quit "sneaking cookies" and truly see the love God has for us.

See you Sunday,
Pastor Jeff