Sip Saturday

Week #42 Hebrews 3:10

**Sip Saturday is written by our Saturday morning contributor, M.H. Elrich. A beautifully gifted Christian author who seeks to honor the Trinity in her writing. She hopes that her words will encourage women to draw closer to God, whether that is through her fantasy series or her weekly devotionals.

Cornerstone Scripture:

“Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, ‘They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways.’”

-Hebrews 3:10 KJV

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, gaslight means: “to psychologically manipulate (a person) usually over an extended period of time so that the victim questions the validity of their own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and experiences confusion, loss of confidence and self-esteem, and doubts concerning their own emotional or mental stability.”

The term comes from a 1938 play and movie in which a husband deceives his wife by stating that it is only her perception that the gas lamps go dim, not that he is the true cause. Although the wife eventually realizes the truth, she questions her own sanity for the majority of the film/play.

If you’re a parent, you may understand all too keenly what gaslighting means. You catch your child with crumbs on his or her face, knowing he or she has eaten the cookies you said were for after dinner. He or she denies the truth, but the evidence is all over his or her face. Or, maybe you’re not a parent, but you’ve been deceived by someone close to you. You witnessed their evil actions yourself, but they deny them, continuing to be rebellious.

I think this is how God must have felt with the Israelites. Although he saw their sinful actions and condemned them, they continued to defy him. They pleaded for mercy one moment, only to turn around and sin when he wasn’t looking. This is why God says that they always go astray in their heart. He knew, just as Jeremiah would write years later, that their hearts were deceitful and wicked (Jeremiah 17:9).

No wonder God was provoked. Just as the wife in the play and movie would seek retribution against her husband, so too would God seek justice against the Israelites. As a mother who catches her child with a hand in the cookie jar, so too does God see and witness the crimes of the Israelites with righteous anger.

God sends the Israelites wandering in the wilderness as punishment for their stubborn and unrepentant hearts (Hebrews 3:11; more on that later). This is why it should be no surprise that God punishes sinners and sends them to hell (Matthew 25:41). The Israelites’ stubbornness and God’s just punishment should be calls to action for every one of us.

Don’t gaslight God. Face your sins and mistakes. Examine your heart and see ways in which you have deceived yourself and sought to deceive God to make yourself look better (Psalm 139:23-24). God knows your heart and has seen your actions. Repent of your sins and confess them to God. He will forgive you (1 John 1:9) and bring you into a right relationship with him.

Let’s pray.

Dear Lord, please attune my heart to you. Help me to see ways in which I’ve stubbornly held onto sins like trophies instead of despicable rags. Forgive me for my misdeeds and bring me into a right relationship with you. You are a forgiving and merciful God, and I’m so grateful for you. In Your Son’s Name, Amen