For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23

All in all, a chicken burrito doesn't seem like a dangerous item.

Of course, the seeming innocence of a chicken burrito is only for those of us who are uninitiated and uneducated. Far better informed are the officials of Weaverville Elementary School in California. Knowing the dangers of the chicken burrito, they decided to give a detention slip to 13-year-old Kyle Bradford for having generously shared his burrito with a classmate.

In the days which followed the incident, the school dealt with a whole host of critics who thought it had been too harsh on the boy who had shared. That is not the case here.

You see, these school leaders know that when a child innocently shares his lunch, he may also be sharing some food that could be deadly in setting off another child's allergies. Nobody wants to see a child end up in the hospital for having consumed some food which is on his "forbidden list." Similarly, no school administration wants to have a successful lawsuit brought against its institution because it didn't take a stand against chicken burritos -- or any other negative-reaction-producing-food.

I'm sure God understands how these school leaders have felt.

You see, over the centuries the Lord has been criticized for some of the punishments He has handed out. I've spoken with people who thought God was unfair in His punishment of sinful humanity. They say, "Sure, the Lord can punish Adam and Eve, but why pick on me? I didn't eat from the forbidden fruit." Then there are those who are displeased that Ananias and Sapphira lost their lives for telling "a little white lie" to the Lord. Of course, there is the story of Uzzah who touched the ark when it was ready to fall. He paid for that gesture with his life.

And if you've never questioned God about the punishments given to those souls, I'm pretty sure you have experienced a moment or two when you felt He was unjustly picking on you. Most of us have asked, "Lord, why are You doing this to me? What have I done which deserved this?"

You should know God has an answer to those questions. The perfect Lord says, "These things come to you because you are a sinner living in a sinful world." No matter how you read those words, you have to admit they are pretty depressing.

Indeed, we would be depressed and damned, if that was all the Lord had to say to us.

Thankfully, the Lord says more. He says, "I have sent My only Son into this world to take your place. He sacrificed Himself so your sins would be forgiven; so your future might be changed; so your eternity might be spent in happiness."

All of this is God's way of saying, "You deserve punishment, but I'm giving you grace and salvation."

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, I give thanks that in Jesus, this poor, undeserving sinner has been forgiven. In His Name I give thanks. Amen.

Check out Lutheran Hour Ministries' video sermon series, "Footsteps of Paul." Click here!

In Christ I remain His servant and yours,

Today's Bible Readings: Hosea 5-8    Romans 15:1-13

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