1 Timothy 5:24-25 - The sins of some men are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them; the sins of others trail behind them. In the same way, good deeds are obvious, and even those that are not cannot be hidden.
Then...
We’ve all experienced it. You know you smell something weird but you can’t find it. After church yesterday, a few of us were sharing similar stories of a rodent that happened to expire somewhere in the house, but not able to find it. Kristian and I lived in an apartment over twenty years ago and knew that something died, but we couldn’t find it. We thought it may have been inside the wall. It smelled awful, but a few days later, the smell was gone.
Then... Kristian grabbed a pair of shoes in the closet and couldn’t fit her foot in one shoe, because... yep, the dead rat was inside.
Paul wasn’t writing to Timothy about dead rats, but it’s applicable. Good, bad, and ugly - we can’t hide our actions. We should be living transparent lives before one another, but that’s not the way our pride or this world teaches. But thank God for His grace and forgiveness in every part of our lives.
May it be that we live in such a way that the “then...” only reveals acts of service, kindness, and humility. Many other verses agree that what is done and said in secret is meant or will come out in the open.
Some sins are obvious and some sins trail behind. The same with good. Some good deeds are obvious and some trail behind.
Then... may it be revealed the heart and actions of a life lived openly before Christ and others, and the deeds which exemplify our faith in Christ.
Peace,
Paul