On Maundy Thursday, it’s good to reflect on what life would be like without Jesus. What would I be like if I’d never repented of my sin and lived the way I wanted to live?

What can anyone expect who doesn’t see his sin, repent, and ask God for pardon? I can’t help but think of that as I see Jacob reap what he sowed. Jacob took advantage of his father’s blindness to deceive him. But some time later, Laban took advantage of the cover of night to deceive Jacob. God instituted a sowing and reaping world and however I break God’s law against others, I will bear the consequences of another breaking God’s law against me.

Then Jacob told Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go into her, for my time is completed.” So Laban gathered together all the people of the place and made a feast. But in the evening, he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and he went into her. Genesis 29:21-13

What’s absent from the story of Jacob is repentance. He didn’t own his sin of deceit against his father and brother. He didn’t confess it to his mother. Instead, he fled home to spare his life from the wrath of his brother. History was repeated.

It’s easy to say, “I’m sorry.” It’s harder still to really mean it. It’s difficult to comprehend what it took for Jesus to forgive my sin and take it away from me so it no longer defines my life. While there are some consequences of sin I endure by the grace God makes available to me, God has removed a vast amount of others. His mercy, once applied to my life, saved me from the ravages of past sins.

What sin are you running from? Fleeing without repenting guarantees nothing but the assurance that you will reap consequences wherever you land next. David exclaimed, “Where can I go from your presence?” That is a comfort for the repentant and a curse for the arrogant who believes he can outrun God’s spiritual laws.

No matter how many Good Fridays I celebrate, I will never understand the depths of your mercy. Amen

Journal Question: Think of the ways you describe your worst mistakes. “I can’t believe I did that! I’m so stupid.” Many think this is repentance. Is it possible that you have not asked God to help your heart feel what He feels about the offense you committed? Mercy follows true repentance.