Psalm 25:8 
The Lord is good and upright; 
therefore he shows sinners the way. 
He leads the humble in what is right 
and teaches them his way. (CSB)

Psalm 25:8-9
God is fair and just; 
He corrects the misdirected, 
Sends them in the right direction. 
He gives the rejects his hand, 
And leads them step-by-step. (MSG)

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It’s easy to think God is as sentimental as we are. We like some people and love others who choose a way of life that leads away from God’s highest and best. Since we like and love them, we excuse their behavior. We rip Bible verses out of context, combine them with contemporary culture, and find a way to excuse anything God says is less than good and more harmful than we understand. 

God is eminently fair, perfectly just, and always and forever does what is right. Attributing his love to something he says is, at its base, ultimately unloving, is both bad theology and bad behavior. Bad theology never leads anywhere good. Bad behavior, once excused and perhaps esteemed, leads hearts and minds farther away from their stated intentions. 

Every generation and every age of humanity has found ways to excuse its preferred sins. God doesn’t wink at our sins. He doesn’t pat our hands and tell us everything is okay when it isn’t. He doesn’t change his mind about what he has always said is true. Truth is not generational. Truth doesn’t change like eras and fashion trends. Truth endures forever. 

God in his goodness 

corrects the misdirected, 
Sends them in the right direction. 
He gives the rejects his hand, 
And leads them step-by-step.

God doesn’t excuse sinners; instead, he lovingly corrects and redirects us. He lovingly gives us fresh starts. He lovingly leads us step by step. 

Read the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) and see how Jesus related to others in love. Some he praised. Some he rebuked. Some people, like Peter, he treated both ways as needed in the moment. He corrected confused disciples. He redirected those who preferred to go their own ways. He still does. 

God’s No is better for us than all of our rationalizations. 

God’s justice and kindness do not allow us to harm ourselves or others without warning and redirection. God never directs us into sinful behavior. God loves us too much to allow us to live unchallenged beneath the goodness he has established and provided. 

God’s plans and pathways are always superior to any sinful compromise we choose or excuse. 

If this somehow sounds unkind, return to Psalm 25 and read it in its entirety. This psalm is about God’s perfect, enduring love, his unfailing compassion, and his extravagant goodness. It’s about forgiveness and fulfillment. It’s about salvation and deliverance. It’s about integrity of heart and mind. 

King David was a man who experienced God’s highest and best and his own lowest and worst. He was amazed at how God could love him despite his spectacular failures. He was overwhelmed by God’s loving nature and rescuing behavior. What God did for King David, he will do for you and me. 

We can live better. We can enjoy full and meaningful lives. We do so by placing our hands in the hand of God and walking with him all along our way. 

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I will live a better life by walking with God along the path he provides.

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Our Father, your love is perfect. Your directions are trustworthy and true. Your compassion is always more than enough. You give us clear direction to the lives of your dreams for us. How in the world could we consider any other way of life? Amen.