God Has Not Dealt With Us After Our Sins

“The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide: neither will He keep His anger for ever. He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.” (Psalms 103:8-10)

Notice that verse 10 does not say that the Lord in mercy has not dealt with our sins and that He has not rewarded our iniquities. It says that He has not dealt “WITH US after our sins,” and that He has not “rewarded US according to our iniquities.” Why is this significant? It is because if the Lord God ever shows mercy to any sinner, or if He ever rewards any sinner, He MUST deal with our sins and reward our iniquities. This is because He is a holy and just God Who must punish all sinners to whom sin is imputed (charged, accounted). And the punishment and reward for sin and iniquities is eternal death and damnation. So, how does God deal with our sins and reward our iniquities without punishing us with eternal death and damnation? He does this for all of His elect people through the Lord Jesus Christ Whom He has made their Representative, Surety, Substitute, and Redeemer. He imputed the debt of our sins and iniquities to the account of Christ – “For He made Him to be sin for us, Who knew no sin” (2 Corinthians 5:21a). God has not charged our sins and iniquities to us personally – “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth” (Romans 8:33). He charged them to Christ. He dealt with them in the death of Christ, and the result is “that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21b). God’s mercy, then, does not ignore, deny, or exclude His justice. God’s mercy is found in Christ, the Mercy-Seat, Who satisfied God’s justice for His people.

- Bill Parker, pastor of Eager Avenue Grace Church in Albany, Georgia, via the church bulletin for November 20, 2022