What Goes Around Comes Around - Paul Drader

Everyone experiences moments where we feel like we’ve blown it... like our mistakes disqualify us. But what if that’s not the end of the story?

This week, Pastor Paul Drader shares a message called What Goes Around Comes Around, reminding us that God’s grace shows up even when we don’t deserve it. Looking at the story of Mephibosheth and King David, we see a powerful picture of God’s love for us, one that doesn’t wait for us to get everything right.

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Transcript

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- Hey, this is Phil Kniesel, lead pastor at Hope City Church. Thanks for tuning into our podcast. My prayer is that this helps and encourages you, gives you some practical ways to live out your faith and ultimately fills you with hope. Enjoy the message.- Anybody hungry for a hotdog after seeing that video? Well, it's good to see you here this morning. I gotta give a shout out quickly to the Twi Guard campus. Missing you guys this morning. We'll catch you guys next week. Well, it's an honor to be here. Great to be here this morning. You know, in 2015 we packed up our car and hit the road for what would become one of our most memorable family road trips. Our kids were six and four at the time, full of energy and wonder, and our destination was every child's dream. Disneyland. Yeah. And the trip also included some stops along the way to visit family. And one of our first stops on our trip was in Vancouver at my cousin's place. Now she's a Disney fanatic, so the plan was to utilize her expertise and what part, uh, which hotel to book and park passes, things like that. Now, however, based on her experience, she recommended that we wait. Maybe prices didn't seem that great and we could maybe get a better last minute deal if we waited. So we did. We continued on her trip and made our way to Sacramento, which is where my wife's family lives. And this was gonna be our last stop before going to Disneyland and feeling the pressure and still not having booked a hotel. Uh, on one evening we were on the computer searching for the best hotel deal and I still don't know why we didn't book anything again that night. Well, the next morning I woke up to a message on my phone from a guy, one of our friends, and he said, I heard you guys are going to Disneyland, my wife and I would love to pay for your park passes and put you up at the Disneyland grand so you can stay right at the park. Send me the dates you're planning to go there and we'll get it all set up. Are you kidding me? Like who does that? We were so surprised by that generous gift and it was totally unexpected and undeserved and we had an incredible time. And needless to say, we can never go back to Disneyland because it will never be as good as that trip was. But as you heard, today, we're kicking off a brand new series called He Never Said That. We've all heard these sayings that sound biblical or attributed to Jesus, but are they actually his sayings? We're gonna look at some common phrases that we've heard or said that sometimes get mistaken for some of Jesus' teachings and we'll find that not only did Jesus not say them, in some cases his message was the exact opposite. So today we're looking at a phrase that I'm sure you've heard or said, and it goes like this. What goes around comes around said another way. You get what you deserve. It's a popular idea rooted in the belief that people will eventually face the consequences of their actions, whether good or bad. And it sounds fair, maybe even moral, if you do good, good will come back to you. And if you do wrong, you'll face the consequences. But is this actually what Jesus taught is this idea of karma or cosmic justice really in line with the message of the gospel today? We're gonna dig into that and discover a surprising grace-filled truth that turns this phrase upside down. And it can be easy to think that this was something that Jesus said because the Bible contains many references to God being a God of justice. All throughout scripture, God warns his people either directly or through his prophets that certain actions will lead to specific consequences. And God absolutely is a God of justice and does not leave our sins overlooked or unpunished. And if you have a sense of justice, I'm sure there's a level of satisfaction when someone receives a punishment that fits their crime, feels just feels fair, it feels deserved. But how do we feel when that doesn't happen? How does it sit with you when someone is clearly guilty but they walk free without consequence? Doesn't seem right, does it? Or how about this? When one person is punished for the crime that someone else committed, that's not only unfair, but it's offensive to our sense of right and wrong. And this desire for justice, it's hardwired into us. And you can see it, uh, in kids from such a young age, right? You hear things like, that's not fair. I didn't get one. They got more than me. He bit me. She hit me when I did that. You took away my video games for a week. You should take away their iPad. Sound familiar? Parents, right? But these are pleas for justice, for what's fair that the offending party would get what they deserve, what goes around needs to come around for that other person. But the kind of justice described in the Bible cannot be separated from grace, justice and mercy are two sides of the same coin. That's because God is just, but he is also full of mercy. And we see this in very, in a very famous verse in the Old Testament, in this verse, God describes himself to Moses. It's actually the most quoted or referenced verse in the Bible by the Bible. And here's what it says in Exodus 34, 6 and seven, Yahweh, the Lord, the God of compassion and mercy. I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion and sin. It sounds like a God of grace and mercy. And there's so much that can be unpacked in this small piece of scripture here. Yahweh, God's name Lord, he is powerful. He's a divine being. A couple of Hebrew words, rah, whom compassionate and hanon, which is gracious. He gives favor that we don't deserve. He's slow to anger. He's patient and not quick to punish. He's loyal and abounding in steadfast covenant love. And he is faithful. He is true, he is reliable and he keeps his word. And the verse continues revealing his sense of justice. But I do not excuse the guilty, I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren. The entire family is affected, even children in the third and fourth generations. Now you might be thinking, wait a minute, this kind of sounds like what goes around comes around. When we understand this portion of scripture together, we see that God is merciful and he also wants to forgive. He is slow to become angry. But if there's an unwillingness to repent and seek forgiveness, there are also consequences of of our sin that can have generational effects. The problem with what goes around, comes around is that there's no opportunity for redemption. You messed up and that is gonna come back to bite you. So you better watch out. And is this what Jesus taught today? We're gonna see that God is gracious, his very nature is to extend grace. And although actions do have consequences, mercy is at the forefront of God's heart. We're gonna discover this by looking at two stories from the Bible, one from the Old Testament, and one from the New Testament. We're gonna compare and contrast these stories and see how the lessons learned can apply them to our lives and also reveal God's heart. So are we ready? Here we go. Story time today with Uncle Paul. Let's go. The first story is found in the Old Testament book of two Samuel. It's a story of a guy named Mephibosheth. And this story begins with heartbreak. He was the son of Jonathan and the grandfather of King Saul born into royalty. But his life took a tragic turn at a, at a young age. When Phi Seth was just five years old, news arrived at both his father, Jonathan, and grandfather Saul had been killed in battle on Mount Gilboa. The dynasty crumbled in one day and in a rush to escape what seemed like certain danger, a likely purge of Saul's house by the incoming regime. His nurse scooped him up to flee, but in her haste she dropped him and he became permanently crippled in both feet. And from that moment on, Mephibosheth lived in obscurity. He was royalty, yet he's inheritance was lost, his future was broken, his body was wounded and his hope was fading. So he was taken to a place called Lo debar, which literally means no pasture or nothing. It was a desolate area, a fitting representation of how far he had fallen once the grandson of a king, now a forgotten man in a forgotten location. And years later, king David had firmly established his throne. He had fought battles, he had conquered Jerusalem and he had secured peace. And David had also been a dear friend of Jonathan Mephibosheth's father. And one day seemingly out of nowhere, king David asked this question, is there anyone still left from the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan's sake? And this was an extraordinary question because in that era, kings typically destroyed all remnants of the previous dynasty to secure their throne. But David's heart was different. He remembered the covenant he had made with Jonathan promise of loyalty, of love and protection for Jonathan's family if he died. And you can read that in one Samuel 20 verses 14 to 17, a servant named Ziba, formerly of Saul's household was brought before the king. And he told the king about a son of Jonathan still living Mephibosheth, who is crippled in both feet. And David immediately said, bring him to me. So Mephibosheth was summoned to the palace, as you can imagine, probably likely terrified. He may have thought this was the end that David had finally found him and was gonna eliminate any rival claims to the throne. So when he arrived, he fell face down before the king trembling Mephibosheth, David said At your service, he replied, then instead of judgment, David extended grace, he said this, do not be afraid for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father, Jonathan, I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table. This would've been unthinkable. A man with no standing strength or power suddenly adopted into the king's household. Mephibosheth couldn't believe it. He was surprised by grace. He said, what is your servant that you should notice a dead dog like me? Now in ancient Israel, dead dog was a term of total worthlessness. Mephibosheth had no illusions of deserving anything. And that's what made this moment so stunning. It wasn't about merit, it was about a preexisting covenant and David's heart of grace toward him. So David not only restored Saul's land to Mephibosheth, he appointed Ziba and 15 sons and 20 servants to farm it for him. But Mephibosheth himself was to live at the palace eating at the king's table just like one of David's own sons. And the story ends with this line. Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem because he always ate at the king's table. He was lame in both feet. It's a striking note that he remained crippled. But now he had a seat of honor his conti. His condition didn't change, but his position did. He was still broken, but now he was beloved. So keep this story in mind now we're gonna fast forward to the New Testament. Jesus tells a par, uh, a parable that mirrors the same pattern of grace only this time it's even more personal. It's about a broken family with a runaway child and a loving father who waits. And maybe you're more familiar with this story, it's found in Luke 15, 11 to 32. Jesus begins, there was a man who had two sons right away, his audience of tax collectors, sinners, pharisees, and scribes. They would've, they would've leaned in. This is a family story, it's personal. And the younger son said to his father, father, gimme my share of your the inheritance. Now this was shocking because in this culture, this request would've been deeply disrespectful. In essence, the son was saying, I wish you were dead. I want your stuff, not you. But instead of rebuking or punishing the fa, the punishing the son, the father divides his property, literally bios in Greek. He divides his life in between his two sons. Now the younger son, he takes his share and he leaves not just the family home but the entire country. He goes to a distant land far from accountability, far from tradition and far from his father's presence. And there he squanderers absolutely everything in reckless living parties, pleasures empty thrills, freedom turns into slavery, inheritance becomes ruin. But then a famine hits the land. His money is gone, his friends are gone. And he finds himself feeding pigs the most unclean animal in Jewish law. And he's so hungry, he longs to eat the pig food. Talk about rock bottom. But then Jesus says, when he came to his senses, so something stirs in his heart, a memory, a hope. He remembers the kindness of his father, even toward his servants. How many of my hired ser, my father's hired servants, have food to spare? And here I am starving to death. So he devises a plan, return home, admit his failure, and ask to be a servant, not a son. So he gets up and starts walking home, broken barefoot, rehearsing his apology. Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants. Then Jesus drops his breathtaking line. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him, which means the Father had been watching, waiting, hoping. And what does he do? He was filled with compassion for him and he ran to his son and he threw his arms around him and hugged him and kissed him. And in Jewish culture, patriarchs didn't run. It was undignified. But this father doesn't care. He lifts his robe and he sprints towards his son and the son tries to deliver his speech. Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. But the father interrupts him. He won't even let him finish asking to be a servant. Instead, the father shouts quick, bring the best robe, put a ring on his finger, put sandals on his feet, and kill the fat and calf. Bring the best robe, the father's own robe, covering his shame, put a ring on his finger, a symbol of family authority and restoration. Put sandals on his feet. Only free men wore shoes and kill the fatten calf because this is a rare feast. This is no ordinary day for the son of mine was dead and as alive again, he was lost and is found and they begin to celebrate. This was not the response I'm sure that the sun was expecting, but what a pleasant surprise of grace. Two remarkable stories that reveal the heart of God. So now let's examine how our lives and stories are not too different from these two Mephibosheth who was disconnected from his family. He was living in a barren land called lo debar and he was crippled and unable to walk. The prodigal's son had a broken relationship with his father. He was living in a distant country. He was destitute, starving, and living among pigs. Likewise, our sin caused a separation between us and God. This sin, it left us spiritually broken and helpless. Romans 3 23 says, for everyone has sinned. We all fall short of God's glorious standard. And Colossians 1 21 says, this includes you who are once far away from God. You were his enemies separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. This sin and separation, it left us in a state deserving of wrath and ultimately death. Ephesians two, three, all of us used to live that way following the passion, passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature by our own very nature. We were subject to God's anger just like everyone else. And Romans 6 23 says, the wages of sin is death. Mephibosheth expected judgment and death. The prodigal son expected rejection. So if what goes around comes around as sinners, this is also what we deserve. Rejection, wrath, punishment and death. But Jesus came to flip the script, to rewrite the story, to rewrite our story, to surprise us by his grace. And the most selfless thing he could do was to lay down his life for you, for us, for me. He took our punishment, he took our sin on him, and he died in our place so that we could be forgiven. And in doing so, he also satisfied the judgment of God and created the opportunity for the grace of God to be poured out freely. And this reality allows us to see our lives. In parallel with these two stories of Mephibosheth and the prodigal son, see Mephibosheth, he received unmerited kindness because of Jonathan's sake. And the prodigal son was forgiven and restored for the father's sake. And likewise, we do not receive God's grace because of what we did. But because of what Jesus did, Titus three, four and five says. But when God, our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sin giving us a new birth and a new life through the Holy Spirit. Our faith in Jesus gives us full access to God's grace. But it doesn't just end there, it's more than just forgiveness. See, he was surprised by being brought to live in the king's house. The prodigal son was surprised by being, getting the best robe, the ring and the sandals on his feet. And I've got a surprise for you too. When we put our faith in Jesus, we too are clothed in righteousness and given a new identity in Christ. Second Corinthians 5 21, for God made Christ who never sinned to be the offering for our sin so that we could be made right with God through Christ. And Isaiah 61 10 says, I am overwhelmed with joy in the Lord, my God, for he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness just as Mephibosheth who is adopted as one of the king's sons and the prodigal son who is restored as a son, not a servant. We also are adopted in to the family of God. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. And God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law so that he could adopt us as his very own children. And because we are his children, God has sent the spirit of his son into our hearts, prompting us to call out Abba Father. And now you are no longer a slave but God's own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir. And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ, we are heirs of God's glory. That is some good news, this inheritance, it changes everything for us. It changes our present and it also changes our future. And Mephibosheth, he experienced something similar. He was given land and continually had a seat at the king's table. The prodigal son's return sparked a feast to celebrate his return from a pigpen to a party in the father's house. And through our faith in Jesus, we are invited into eternal fellowship with God. I read earlier in Roman 6 23 that the wages of sin is death, but it continues. The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, our Lord. And John three 16, for this is how God loved the world, he gave his one and only son that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. There's one final connection I wanna make to these stories. Mephibosheth's brokenness remained but his identity was changed. The choices and effects of the prodigal son's past were very apparent, but they didn't disqualify him in the eyes of the Father. Likewise, even after we've received God's grace and put our hope and our faith and our trust in Jesus, our past remains part of our story. Those scars are very real. And what can happen is the hurt of the past choices or actions of others, they can become our identity. However, through Jesus, we are no longer identified by our past. We are given a new identity in Christ. Check this out, two Corinthians five 17. This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone and a new life has begun. And we celebrate this regularly around here, through baptism. The powerful moment when someone chooses to publicly declare their faith in Jesus and how their life has forever been changed. So every time we witness a baptism or take communion like we did earlier today, we're invited to reflect on our own story of transformation. And in these moments of remembering where we've been and what God has done, may we continually be surprised by God's grace towards us. And as we reflect on God's grace, his gracious heart towards us, there are three ways for us to respond. First one is this, receive it. Maybe you're here today and you don't feel like you deserve this gift of grace. Maybe you feel like you've just messed up way too much, you've gone too far, and you feel like you deserve to stay in lobar or stay with the pigs. But imagine if we had felt too undeserving of the gift on our trip. The hotel and the park passes were paid for and put in our name, but we didn't use them. What a missed opportunity that would've been. Likewise, the gift of salvation has been paid in full by Jesus on the cross and extended to you. And this is based on a covenant that existed long before you ever did. And it's not deserved and it can't be earned. So will you accept it and walk into fullness of life and blessing that it brings for your life today and into eternity? You need to hear me on this. God, the Father loves you and he is watching and waiting for you to take one step towards him so that he can run to you and embrace you and call you his son or daughter. If you've never experienced this forgiveness and grace that God offers, I'm gonna give you an opportunity to do that in just a moment. The second way we can respond to God's grace is by living it. If you've heard and you've experienced God's grace, you've been surprised by his grace and you've received it, don't continue living like a servant. You are a child of God. You are a co-heir with Christ. Live that way. Stop trying to earn what has been freely given to you. You've been invited to the king's table. So live in the fullness of that reality. Allow that to fill your heart with gratitude and worship and live your life in a way that points other people to the king's table. And finally, if you've received God's grace, I wanna encourage you to extend it to others. Who in your life needs to be shown grace and forgiveness. Maybe it's a family member, a friend, a coworker or a neighbor. Maybe you feel like they're fully deserving to have things come around for them because of what they did. And instead of sitting back and waiting for justice for them, surprise them with grace this week. Receive it, live it and extend it. Your past doesn't have the final word. What goes around can be turned around. When we allow God's grace to rewrite our story, I wanna invite you to stand if you're able, I'd love to pray with you. If you would like to receive this grace that I've been talking about today for the very first time, I invite you to pray this along with me. God, today I recognize my need for you. I recognize that my sin has caused a separation between me and you. And I wanna close that gap. I wanna receive your forgiveness. I wanna receive your grace. I'm sorry for my sin. And I receive the forgiveness that you offer. I wanna be adopted into your family. So you can call me son. So you can call me daughter. I want to be at your table. I want to eat at your table. I wanna do my best to follow you all the days of my life. So thank you for loving me. I receive that grace and that forgiveness today. I choose to make you the Lord and leader of my life and make you the center of my life and Jesus for each of us. If we've received your grace, would you help us to live it out? We thank you that we can't earn it, we don't deserve it. So we would, we stop striving as servants. We would just settle in to our identity as sons and daughters of you and God, that this grace would be constantly surprise us as we reflect on where we've been, how you've constantly been gracious towards us. And that reality would just spark worship in us. And God, we would just wanna do our best to live a life that brings glory and honor to you. And as people look at our lives, that it would be a reflection of you and it would point others back to you and to, and be an invitation to them to come and see what it's like to sit at the king's table. And God, for those of us maybe who have been carrying an offense and we've been waiting for quote unquote justice God, would you give us, would you be reminded today of your grace and would you strengthen us to extend it to them? Even this week? God, instead of sitting back and waiting for what went around to come around for them, we would just be gracious. We would offer forgiveness because you have forgiven us much. Would we do the same to towards them? And God, we thank that your grace, it changes our present and it changes our future. And that what goes around can be turned around when we allow you to rewrite our story. Thank you Jesus for who you are. Thank you for your love towards us. Thank you that you're a good father who cares for us deeply. And that's your, your name, we pray, Jesus. Amen. You know if you prayed that prayer along with me for the very first time, inviting Jesus to come and be the center of your life, I'm so proud of you for that. That is the best decision you could ever make. And if you're looking for some resources or next steps, I wanna encourage you to scan the QR code in the seat pocket in front of you or up on the screen. Also, if you're here today and you would like some prayer, our pastoral team's gonna be up here at the front and they would love to chat with you and pray with you. So please take advantage of that if you'd like some prayer this morning. Otherwise, thanks for being in church today. It's great to see you. Have a great Sunday and an amazing week ahead everybody. God bless. Take care.