SCARY Bible Verse: Your Sin WILL Find You Out
Your sin will find you out. “But if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the LORD; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out” (Num 32:23). Isn’t this a scary Bible verse? Who can say, “I didn’t sin”? We all know we sin. The Bible warns us crystal clearly, “you may be SURE that your sin will find you out.” My God! That’s scary, isn’t it?
The consequences of sin remain, even after God forgives our sin. David did not want his adultery with Bathsheba known. He committed the “greater” sin of murder in order to cover up his “lesser” sin of adultery. His sin found him out. God forgave David’s sin (2 Sam 12:13). We Christians will meet him in heaven. But the consequences of David’s sin were devastating. David’s oldest son Amnon raped his half-sister Tamar (2 Sam 13:14). To ask a few “silly” questions to make a point:
- How would a father feel about his daughter being raped?
- About his oldest son raping someone?
- About his own son raping his own daughter?
That’s not all. David’s most handsome son Absalom killed Amnon for raping his sister Tamar (2 Sam 13:28-29).
- How does a father feel about his oldest son being murdered?
- About another son being a murderer?
- About one son killing another son?
Next, Abasalom slept in public with all of his father’s concubines (2 Sam 16:22), and attempted to kill his own father (2 Sam 17:2-4), and take over his kingdom. The end result was that Absalom was killed, breaking David’s heart to pieces (2 Sam 18:33). God does not mince words when the Bible says, “you can be SURE that your sin will find you out.”
Supposing no one finds out my sin… Yet, many are able to “hide their sins” so that no one really knows what they did. Do they escape their sin being found out? Suppose I am addicted to watching pornography. But I know how to make sure that I am “never discovered,” not even by my wife or by anyone else. Say I go to my grave being addicted to pornography, but no one on earth knows that. Do I then escape my sin being found out, since no one knows what I did?
Sin WILL still find you out. It is obvious that pornography will distort my view of my wife, women in general, and even my own daughter. We hear of incest committed by a father toward his own daughter. We are repulsed. These daughters are scarred and wounded for life. But there is another “strange” consequence. When a father’s daughter grows up from a cute little girl and becomes an attractive woman, the daughter begins to look like the pornographic images that the father watches. As a result, he “withdraws” from his own daughter, because he cannot control his sexual urges and feelings toward his own daughter. Because the daughter needs her father’s love, she is also scarred and wounded by her father’s withdrawal from her. She then begins to seek “a father’s love” from boys and very often becomes promiscuous. Even if no one else knows, my sin WILL find me out.
Is there no hope since we all sin? Yes, sin WILL find us out. But the marvelous majestic mystery of the gospel is that my sin found itself on my Lord Jesus Christ. All my vile sins that have to expose me for the dirt bag that I truly am, found itself on the person of the purest man, my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. If my sin did not find itself on Christ, it would land entirely and squarely on me. This is the mystery of the gospel. Only the gospel can transform me from the jerk and creep that I am to be a pure, holy and blameless precious child of God.
Yes, your sin WILL find you out. Did your sin find itself on Christ?
What a beautiful and timely post. Thanks for sharing this, Ben.
You are welcome, Darren.
My sin did find itself on Christ, but that doesn’t mean that the consequences of my sin can’t come back to bite me in this life.
Well I don’t think he is quite saying that.
I admit I’m not exactly sure what he is saying. So forgive me Ben Toh if I completely miss the what you were really getting at.
I think he is getting the misconception that once a sin has been committed and forgiven, the consequences will never come back to haunt again.
Say I were to lie to a friend. I pray to God and he forgives me. The fact that I lied to my friend however is still a problem.
When he says “The consequences of sin remain, even after God forgives our sin.” I think he is referring to our experience in this world, and not necessarily to that of the world to come.
While it is obvious that you have made a statement of objection, it would be nice if you could also provide some additional commentary of your take on the matter.
It is scary. So even after Jesus forgives us and we are able to enter heaven there is some kind of punishment due to sin?
Uh oh, look out… here it comes :)
Please ignore the comment above. I had hit the wrong reply button.
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Well I don’t think he is quite saying that.
I admit I’m not exactly sure what he is saying. So forgive me Ben Toh if I completely miss the what you were really getting at.
I think he is getting the misconception that once a sin has been committed and forgiven, the consequences will never come back to haunt again.
Say I were to lie to a friend. I pray to God and he forgives me. The fact that I lied to my friend however is still a problem.
When he says “The consequences of sin remain, even after God forgives our sin.” I think he is referring to our experience in this world, and not necessarily to that of the world to come.
While it is obvious that you have made a statement of objection, it would be nice if you could also provide some additional commentary of your take on the matter.
hahahaha… Brian. Am I that bad? Your comment cracked me up.
Yes Gerardo, you are :) Seriously though, I really appreciate your skill at articulating the Catholic faith. I’m just not up for a “p” word discussion, at least this week, if that is indeed your thought!
Brian, although you are my brother in the faith, I sometimes wish you were my biological brother. You are great at expressing your feelings in a very charitable manner. I will not turn this in to a discussion about “p”. I am actually interested in knowing how this may or may not play out *while on earth*. I am sure you and many of the members here are sick of hearing me discuss my faith in Jesus through the Catholic Church. I have to say, I try not to sometimes. I really do. But it shapes my way of thinking and informs all my theological positions. So when you have a forum about faith like UBFriends, I find it hard to turn off the Catholicism side of me since it is my worldview. But for you, I will try extra hard this week.
I really do appreciate you. Sincerely.
Thanks Gerardo. I’m glad for having met you and others here, even if it is only virtually so far! My attitude is that I’m willing to discuss anything. I see no reason to fear losing something, which seems to be a big part of the divisions we have in Christendom.
Hi Gerardo, When Jesus said, “It is finished” (John 19:30), all punishment for sin has fully been paid for those who by faith accept his atoning death on our behalf. Thus, I confidently affirm that I will NEVER EVER (not now, not in heaven) be punished for my sin, ONLY because of God’s undeserved mercy and grace to me through his Son.
Of course, “bad things still happen to good people,” including Christians. But for those who are in Christ, the bad things (brought on by yourself or others, just or unjustly) is NOT punishment, but God’s unique special love, which is often disciplinary love (Heb 12:5-6; Prov 3:11-12).
Dr. Toh,
Isnt punishment a unique kind of special love which is often disciplinary? I know some people punish to see others suffer, or they delight in their suffering. That is obviously not the case with God. I think you would agree with that.
But your telling me that in this life, if we do something bad, and Jesus forgives us, we will may still receive his “unique special love which is often disciplinary Love”?
This was one of the points of the movie The Apostle. The main charecter who was a pastor although a man of faith, severely injures an innocent man. *spoiler alert* The rest of the movie he travels all around the south seeking a new life and a new faith in Jesus and he finds it. He transforms his life and the lives of those around him but he is ultimately caught by the police. The message of the movie is that no matter our spiritual redemption, we must all respond for the crimes we committed. Not sure how theologically sound the movie is but I HIGHLY reccomend it.
I will say this up front… I am not going to try to make a connection between what you are saying here and the doctrine of purgatory. I could… I really want to… I think you provide a VERY compelling case for it…. that naturally follows….but I wont. Instead, what I am interested in knowing is whether we receive his discipline*ONE EARTH* even after we are forgiven for our sins. I think this is an open question that does not have a clear answer so I am very interested in hearing your opinion. Interested.. but also a bit frightened.
Hi Gerardo, Frightened? (^_^) I never thought I was scary, even if the verse Num 32:23 can be VERY scary!
I did not think of purgatory while writing this. I don’t think I’ve have ever framed any of my reflections with purgatory in mind ever since I became a Christian in 1980.
When Jesus said, “It is finished,” a clear meaning is that ALL punishment for the sin of believers has been fully paid. Thus, no sin, such as my ongoing besetting sins, will be punished, EVER, since no sin is punished twice. But yes, in his love for me, God disciplines me. Also, my absolute need for sanctification is ongoing, till Jesus comes again.
haha .. I meant the passage and it’s implications are frieghtening. I have done some pretty bad things in my past. Although I trust in Jesus saving me from the fires of hell, your initial question brings up whehter I will have to serve the earthly consequences for my sin.
So when you say disciplines me, are you saying that:
1)God disciplines you in response to a specific sin as well as more general predisposition to sin so as to sanctify you more perfectly?
2) Or are you saying, sin will find you but if you accept Jesus Christ it wont find you. That doesnt mean he wont continually dicipline you throughout your life to mold you in a better Son in general. So his dicipline is more general in response to a predisposition to sin not specifically in response to a specific sin?
Your use of David’s example with Bathsheba suggests to me that you are referring to #1. Is this the case?
So relieved, Gerardo, that I am not the source of you being frighened!~
Also, you ask really, tough questions, which is good. I think that you can’t put God in a box, for God does not fit into our nice and neat categories. God does whatever He pleases (Ps 115:3; Ps 135:6). His Spirit blows wherever He pleases (Jn 3:8).
God has only ONE desire for us, that we are conformed to the image of his Son (Rom 8:29). God wishes that we become more and more like Jesus, His Son, for this glorifies God, and it also is for our utmost good and joy.
So, I often ask, “Do you want God to do it the easy way, or the hard way?” I am sorry to confess that I often choose the hard way!!
After reading this post, a good friend emailed me: What does it mean that “our sin will find us out?” Can you explain deeper?
Great question. Hard to answer. Sin is man’s fundamental and primary problem, not our depression, lust, loneliness, selfishness, fear, worry, being insulted, treated unjustly, self-righteousness, blaming others, condemning others, manipulating others, racism, pride, superiority, inferiority, and as David did, cover up his sins, so that others won’t know about it, etc, These are ALL just manifestations of our sin.
I think that our sin always makes us feel that our sin is not that bad or serious. It blinds us. It cuts/breaks our relationship with God and others. We minimize our sin. If we tell a white lie, most people don’t think too much about it. Most Christians think that lust, pornography and masturbation is “not as bad” as actually having sex with a real person. “Christians” even justify their immoral life which they do not expose or confess in church with brokenness and repentance.
But sin will always work itself out in our life, one way or another, as it did in David’s life. No one can cheat God. Gal 6:5 says, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” If you don’t practice, you won’t perform well. If you don’t study, you won’t get a good score. If you sin, it will show up in your life one way or another, as it did in David’s life, even though he was still loved and forgiven by God.
Don’t know if this makes it any clearer…
Thanks, Dr. Ben, It is clear to me now. Sin works on its own. Sin is sin. :-)
Yeah, sin is sin, yet our Savior brings salvation from sin, at a great and priceless cost to Himself that we can never ever repay, not even through out eternity.
So if u hide your sin only you get consequence? What about if you ask God for forgiveness wont you still get the consequence? Or you mean you have to confess to God and people?
Hi Joselyn, Welcome. When one realizes God’s love and grace for us through Jesus, we turn to him (repentance) because we realize that God’s love and grace is far greater than our sin(s).
Though king David suffered much from the consequences of his sin for many years, he continually honored God and trusted God. Thus, he is a man after God’s own heart.
I love this article as I was googling for this verse (Num 32:23), this site came up.I am really blessed by this article and site.God wants me to read the articles of this site.God bless all the Admin. and members of this site.Finally I will say sin always come backs but by the grace of God we are saved.