42_Judgement of our sin is a blessing

Gen 49:1-7 Then Jacob called for his sons and said: “Gather around so I can tell you what will happen to you in days to come.

2 “Assemble and listen, sons of Jacob;
listen to your father Israel.

3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn,
my might, the first sign of my strength,
excelling in honor, excelling in power.
4 Turbulent as the waters, you will no longer excel,
for you went up onto your father’s bed,
onto my couch and defiled it.

5 “Simeon and Levi are brothers—
their swords[a] are weapons of violence.
6 Let me not enter their council,
let me not join their assembly,
for they have killed men in their anger
and hamstrung oxen as they pleased.
7 Cursed be their anger, so fierce,
and their fury, so cruel!
I will scatter them in Jacob
and disperse them in Israel.

28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said to them when he blessed them, giving each the blessing appropriate to him.

On October 6, 1980, a crime shook the conscience of Kerala, India. It was the infamous Karikkanvilla massacre in Thiruvalla, where Reni George, a young man born into a Christian family, committed an unthinkable act. Desperate for money to fund his addiction and drug trade, he brutally murdered his uncle and aunt, a retired couple who had lovingly cared for him. Arrested and sentenced to death, Reni’s life seemed destined for a tragic and irreversible end.

However, something extraordinary happened. When his death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment due to his young age, the public responded with outrage, calling it an injustice. Yet, in the darkness of his prison cell, Reni encountered the light of God’s truth. He repented, confessed his sins, and surrendered to Jesus as his Savior. Today, Reni runs a rehabilitation center near Bangalore for children and families of prisoners, dedicating his life to giving others the second chance he received. His transformation reminds us that when we humbly accept God’s judgment and turn to Him in repentance, He can redeem our lives for His glory.

This powerful story echoes the theme of today’s devotion. Jacob, nearing the end of his life, gathers his sons to speak words of blessing—or, as they might seem to us, word of judgment.

Jacob, at 148 years old, was a man shaped by trials and divine encounters. Once a deceiver, he had become Israel, a prince of God. As he addressed his sons, his words were not merely a father’s farewell but the inspired truths of God Himself. “Listen to your father Israel,” he urged. His blessings were rooted in truth, devoid of flattery or sentimentality. Even his beloved son Benjamin was described as a “ravenous wolf.” Jacob’s words reveal that God’s blessings are not always comfortable; they are grounded in truth, designed to bring life, growth, and transformation.

Take, for example, his words to Reuben, Simeon, and Levi. To Reuben, the firstborn, Jacob declared, “You are unstable as water; you shall not excel.” Simeon and Levi were condemned for their violence and cruelty, and their judgment was scattering within Israel. At first glance, these words seem more like curses than blessings. Yet, in God’s economy, truth is the foundation of blessing. By confronting their sins, Jacob gave his sons an opportunity for reflection, repentance, and redemption.

Judgment, in this context, is a means of grace. God’s judgments are not arbitrary punishments but purposeful acts of love. When God reveals the truth about our sin, He invites us to turn away from it and toward Him. Levi’s story beautifully illustrates this. Though his tribe was initially condemned to dispersion for their violence at Shechem, they later stood with Moses during the golden calf incident, aligning themselves with God. Their repentance turned a curse into a blessing: the Levites became Israel’s priestly tribe, scattered not in shame but as teachers and ministers of God’s law.

Judah, too, offers a striking example. Though his lineage was marred by scandal—his sons died for their wickedness, and he fathered children through his daughter-in-law Tamar—God’s judgment did not mean Judah was beyond redemption. When he offered himself in place of Benjamin to spare his father Jacob from grief, Judah demonstrated repentance through action. His selflessness foreshadowed the ultimate Redeemer, Jesus Christ, who would come from his line.

These stories remind us that God’s judgment is not the end of the story. It is a call to repentance and a doorway to restoration. Scripture emphasizes this repeatedly: “Depart from evil and do good” (Psalm 34:14). “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; cease to do evil, learn to do good” (Isaiah 1:16-17). True repentance involves not just turning away from sin but actively pursuing righteousness. Faith without the fruit of repentance is dead (James 2:17). Our works do not earn salvation, but they demonstrate the transformative power of God’s grace in our lives.

The judgment of our sin also serves as a warning and a safeguard. When God disciplines us, He reveals the devastating consequences of sin, not to condemn us but to protect us. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10: “These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us.” God’s judgments deter us from repeating the mistakes of those who came before us. They guide us toward the abundant life He desires for us.

Moreover, God’s judgment often spares us from eternal separation from Him. When Adam and Eve were expelled from Eden, it was not out of spite but mercy—so they would not eat from the Tree of Life and be doomed to live forever in their fallen state. Similarly, Paul speaks of delivering a wayward believer to Satan “so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 5:5). God’s discipline may be painful, but it is always redemptive, aimed at saving us from the far greater pain of eternal separation.

Yet, accepting God’s judgment requires humility. It involves acknowledging the truth about ourselves, even when it is uncomfortable. Reuben’s tribe, for instance, produced no great leaders, prophets, or judges—a tragic fulfillment of Jacob’s words. An unstable character is a recipe for failure. Without repentance and a firm commitment to righteousness, we, too, risk missing out on the fullness of God’s blessing.

However, as the story of Levi shows, our past sins or family histories do not define our future. When we repent and align ourselves with God, He rewrites our story. Moses, a descendant of Levi, began as a man of uncontrollable anger but became the meekest man on earth, a friend of God. This transformation was possible because Moses submitted to God’s discipline and allowed it to shape his character.

In the same way, we must be willing to accept the truth about ourselves—whether it comes through Scripture, the conviction of the Holy Spirit, or the counsel of others. Like the Syro-Phoenician woman who persisted in faith despite Jesus’ challenging words, we must trust in God’s goodness, even when His truth is hard to hear. Her faith was rewarded, and so will ours be when we humbly accept God’s judgment and act on it.

Ultimately, God’s judgment of our sin is a blessing because it leads us to life. It calls us out of darkness into His marvelous light. It transforms us from deceivers into princes, from sinners into saints. When we embrace God’s truth, we experience His love in its fullness—a love that does not shy away from hard truths but speaks them for our good.

Let us, then, be people of truth. Let our words, like Jacob’s, reflect God’s truth in love. For only the truth can set us free. Only the truth can build us up and bind us together. And only the truth, spoken and received in love, can lead us into the fullness of God’s blessing. Amen.