Paul made it clear to all that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, Romans 3:9-10,23. Most believers admit this is true, but what most Christians won’t admit is that this sin has consequences which cannot be undone.

When Adam and Eve sinned, they could be forgiven, but the lasting consequence was being pushed out of the garden, away from the tree of life. The harm couldn’t be undone.

You can be forgiven, but your children may never trust you as they would have. You can be forgiven, but your wife may never trust you as she did. Maybe you were a doctor and lost our license to practice. You should have no expectations. Maybe you were influential before going to prison. You have no expectation of being restored to your former state. And to the
sinner, who is repentant and regretting what was committed in the past, this inability of others to have everything just as it was in the past, this is unfair. But it’s not unfair. It’s the lasting consequence of sin. The harm your abuse, breaks of trust, and years of selfishness cannot be undone.

You can reset the broken bone, but you can’t always make the body as good as it was. You can put away the bottle or the needle, but you can’t remove the scars or restore the emptiness you left for so many years in your home. A true believer, who is truly repentant, accepts the new life as it is. If the repentant sinner takes the next step of demanding that everyone conform to his view of what the restored life should be like, that’s not Christian. That’s just more manipulation and more selfishness.

Embrace your new reality. To be a humble Christian, converted and forgiven for the past, often means humbly accepting the new reality of life and that the old way cannot be had. Don’t go around telling everyone how unfair. Don’t make the sons and daughters feel guilty. Don’t say it’s not your fault. Just move on and walk with God according to the new and different life.

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