The fact that God is slow to anger (Neh. 9:17) may lead us to believe that He will occasionally condone sin. God can never condone sin. He can place our sin upon the Lord Jesus and deal with it in death; He can in faithfulness and righteousness reach into a life and cleanse it from all unrighteousness on the basis of His Word (1 John 1:9), but His nature will not permit Him to overlook sin.
To presume upon the grace of God and continue in sin that grace may abound (Rom. 6:1) draws an exclamation of horror from the apostle, and puts that sinner in grave danger of judgment.
The Lord gives His people time to judge themselves and promises to withhold judgment if they turn from sin and repent. If they do not repent, however, they are in danger of "withering" and of being cast into the fire (John 15:6). The casting forth as a branch and the withering have no reference whatsoever to the loss of salvation; the passage is one on fruit-bearing. The entire passage is applicable to the realm of our Christian testimony.
'Withering is a slow process, barely perceptible at first to either the one who is being withered or those who look on. The holly with which we decorate our homes at Christmas is a good example. At first it is green and bright, even though separated from its source of life; then it begins to wither, dries out and crumbles, and is finally thrown into the fire.
The believer is no longer among the fools who make a mock of sin (Prov. 14:9), but he is always in danger of dealing too lightly with himself. Let us never forget that slowness does not imply a lack of movement. Our God is a consuming fire, and if we will not allow Him to place our sins on Christ for judgment, He must proceed to wither us and finally save us by casting our works into the fire (1 Cor. 3:15).
1. Does God’s patient ever infringe upon his justice? 2. How are Christians suppose to mimic this attribute of God? 3. How does this effect the way that we interact with unbelievers sin?