The Problem with Getting Away with It

And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your robes.” And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle. 1 Kings 22:30

Last Sunday, our pastor spoke about the sin that we think we get away with and how we never get truly away with it. Even if no one ever knows, and even if we seem to get way with no direct consequences, sin still damages us. We can’t walk away unstained because sin always stains our souls, even when no one else sees. Yes, we may be forgiven by God, but getting away with it is its own punishment as we learn that we can do a thing and so, we engage in the behavior repeatedly, perhaps becoming addicted in the process. Then, the very thing that we think we’ve gotten away with begins to control or lives. Only then do we finally realize that we’ve gotten away with nothing and that we’ve actually destroyed ourselves.

I’ve got to wonder if King Ahab had these thoughts as his life drained out of him in today’s passage. In the story, the prophet Micaiah had predicted that in attacking the Syrians, Ahab marched to his own death. Still, Ahab’s own prophets had predicted victory. 400 prophets can’t be wrong, right? Ahab had been here before. Ahab had seen his life threatened by God, after which Ahab repented and God relented. He’d walked away unscathed previously. So why not now? Despite Micaiah’s prophecy, Ahab strolled into battle – with a plan. Knowing that the Syrians would attack any apparent king, Ahab disguised himself to look like a common soldier. And his plan worked, until God sent a random arrow. As his life slipped away, I’ve got to wonder if Ahab reflected upon his previous sin, realizing that he’d gotten away with nothing after all. Even though he’d once walked away with no obvious consequences, sin stained his soul as surely as his blood now stained his chariot. Eventually Ahab’s sin caught up with him.

We do often enjoy this grace period when God doesn’t immediately smite us for our sin. It is always an error though, to think we’ve gotten away with something. Perhaps the greatest consequence is that we’re allowed to think we’ve gotten away with it, because then, we’re encouraged to do the thing repeatedly, becoming addicted. Only then do we realize that there is no victimless sin. Sin always stains us and there is no such thing as getting away with it. So, if we find ourselves thinking we’ve gotten away with something, that is the time for repentance because if we continue, our sin always catches up with us.