THERE IS A SIN THAT DESERVES DEATH SENTENCE : DO NOT PRAY FOR IT .

 Your labour shall not be in vain because of the anointing of God's favour upon you. 

Good- Life Devotional: 

 THERE IS A SIN THAT DESERVES DEATH SENTENCE : DO NOT PRAY FOR IT .

By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi 

Luke 23:40-43

[40]But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?

[41]And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.

[42]And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

[43]And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise. "

  The prayers of the guilty criminal was answered but he was not delivered from the punishment due him for his heinous crime. He entered paradise by God's grace but had to be used as a moral lesson and deterrent to persons who may want to commit a similar crime . 

  God's grace is not a license to sin . Sin comes with a corresponding punishment ( including capital punishment) because of God's holiness . This is for the betterment of the society .

1 John 5:16, it says in the Amplified Bible:

"If anyone sees his brother committing a sin that does not lead to death, he will pray and ask [on the believer’s behalf], and God will, for him, give life to those whose sin is not leading to death. There is a sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for this."

This verse raises several theological and apologetic questions. Here's an apologetic breakdown:

1. What is the "sin that leads to death"?

Interpretation 1: Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

Some theologians connect this to Jesus’ warning about the unforgivable sin, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Matthew 12:31-32). This refers to persistent rejection of the Spirit’s work, such as attributing the works of God to Satan.

 Persistent rebellion against God’s grace is a willful rejection of the only means of salvation. Without repentance, there is no forgiveness.

Interpretation 2: Physical death due to grave sin such as manslaughter, corruption by a public officer that resulted in the poverty and death of citizens as in Acts 5 ) 

In this view, the "sin leading to death" refers to sins that result in God's disciplinary judgment, such as Ananias and Sapphira lying to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:1-11). This does not necessarily mean eternal damnation but could signify physical death as divine correction.

   God is just and disciplines believers for the sake of His holiness and their correction (Hebrews 12:6-11).

   A corrupt country is like a car without wheels and capital punishment is one of the ways a country makes progress;  an example of this is China and Vietnam that were in abject poverty about thirty five years ago and have become major economic power houses because of their zero tolerance for corruption.

  In our daily prayers we should seek for godly leaders with zero tolerance for corruption to lead us through a righteous judiciary.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation I receive him as lord and saviour and receive the Holy Spirit and power to live in holiness .

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