No Exceptions

"So often, exceptions damage God's character."

WE CAN’T PREACH exceptions, those one-in-a-million bad moments that probably won’t happen. Healing failures, what-ifs of personal belief. Here’s where you ask me why and “Shouldn’t we know about them?” We can’t preach doubt, and it goes to that. We are what we eat, as the saying goes. From a young age, I’ve avoided scary stuff. If I watched it once and it frightened me, then I never watched it again. This has expanded over the years. I don’t watch what angers me either. And seldom, what makes me sad. Certain moments in history being an exception. I am better off not knowing and won’t have to struggle to un-see it.

To teach exceptions to success, to victory, which is what they are, is to create doubt. It doesn’t save anyone from struggling but gives them a reason they might.

Expanding this thought goes to teaching marriage principles. Healthy individuals make for a healthy marriage. We should teach trusting God, walking upright, loving each other. But when we give glowing details of our relationship to an excess, especially private ones, there are many who can’t handle them. For that one who has suffered in some manner, it is frustrating and depressing to them. They’re left rehashing what went wrong. For someone not married who’s been tempted in sexual things, it furthers their turmoil. Marriage teaching is a no-no. This comes from the Spirit, who spoke it to me loudly. He longs to speak it to you.

We must learn to listen. We tend to go into our study time, our prayer time, with our own agenda, our preferences. We cling to what we’ve heard from others or what we’ve read somewhere that clicked. As I told a friend once, when reading the Bible, set aside all you know, even what you’re sure of, and seek God’s eyes. What does He see? This should be our heart. And what He sees in exceptions is that one person who doesn’t need to listen. He sees those who can’t grasp what is said and don’t know what to do with it.

But are we responsible for people’s understanding? YES. The Spirit is not going to offend anyone. He is patient and kind (1 Corinthians 13:4). He knows all the longings of our heart (Romans 8:27 TPT), how we are made, and our thoughts and intents (Hebrews 4:12). Romans 8:26-28 in the King James says He helps us with our weaknesses and turns them to our good. He’d rather be silent than offend us. He’d rather anoint our words, and any information we share that He didn’t give us, and us be teachable than anger us and make a point. He never seeks to anger us. And will never give doubt. Never.

My mom said this once when teaching: Fear does not heal you. Fear does not help you.

He is not the spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7). He is not like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind and tossed (James 1:6). So often, exceptions damage God’s character. They paint a wrong image of Him. He is perfect wisdom. SO LOVE. He hears all prayer, good, bad, and ugly. Scriptural, unscriptural, in His will or out. He answers even when someone is way off base, and He is often not heard. Where there is any opportunity to show them Jesus, He will use it, regardless of their sins.

He always heals. ALWAYS. JESUS NEVER LEAVES ANYONE TO DIE

Then why do they die? That is the wrong question. The right one is: Why don’t we see what He sees? Because there is no exception to His heart for healing, for peace. God isn’t violent. There is no violence in His plans for this planet. No one goes to damnation when He can show them any depth of mercy. His hand is extended, with all of His goodness in it and the completed victory of the cross and the Resurrection. Will a Jew who believes in the salvation of covenant meet Jesus and learn His name in heaven? Will a Gentile who knew His name but not His character to heal, see Him as He is? Yes, to both.

No to any exceptions to this. We are to shine the LIGHT of the Word and share that which encourages, heals, and displays God’s love. Never using the idea of “correction” as permission to be offensive. Romans 14 says to love those who are not like us in how they eat and how often they worship. Ephesians 4 says to be kind and tenderhearted and not bitter (Ephesians 4:31-32). Matthew 5:48 says, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.”

And this should be us, without exception.

Illustration by Chloe on Unsplash


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Suzanne D. Williams, Author
www.suzannedwilliams.com
www.feelgoodromance.com