When I was employed at the factory, sometimes we had more than 80 people working for us at a time. When you have so many people working for you, you soon start playing the father or doctor role and mediator yourself. 

I liked to hire deaf people because it was a job they could do, while their disability was no hindrance. Most of the time they were pleasant and obviously didn’t stand around talking to others.  

But some of them could get terribly angry. So, one day, I caught a glimpse of someone running while holding a steel pipe above their head. I ran in and saw that one of the deaf people wanted to hit another person with the pole. 

It took blood and sweat to get that pole away from the deaf person. He was clearly angry, and I suspect his frustration with being unable to communicate his feelings led him to resort to using the pipe. 

Of course, that’s completely unacceptable and I had to discipline the man. He nodded his understanding and signed his warning without hesitation. But this was just the first time. 

It happened a few more times. A hearing usually follows after the third warning and then the employee is often fired, but because of the deaf person’s disability, I gave them another chance and another chance and another. 

Until I realised that it couldn’t go on like that. I was creating a precedent, and it wasn’t a good example to the rest of the workforce. At some point, I would have to draw the line, so that everyone would know the limit had been reached. 

When the deaf employee stepped over the line again, I first had to take out the special place in my heart for them and put that away. He was tried, found guilty, and asked to leave. My heart skipped a beat a few times. 

As the saying goes: Sometimes you need to be cruel to be kind. He had to learn the consequences of his actions, otherwise he would stumble down the wrong path. If he wasn’t going to learn to handle his colleagues with respect, he might attack other people with poles. 

I think sometimes we simply stretch God’s grace too far. Yes, the grace of God is as wide as, well, the Lord’s grace. It is never-ending, but that doesn’t mean we can abuse it. 

God also draws the line at some stage. Man finds himself at places where there is no mercy and God is not your pal: 3-4They’ll come to a bad end, for God has never just stood by and let that kind of thing go on. God didn’t let the rebel angels off the hook, but jailed them in hell till Judgment Day.  

We must not waste God’s grace and go too far. There is a line and if you step over the line, you must be ready to bear the consequences. Therefore, let’s stay within the instructions that God gives us and live peacefully within His grace. 

Scripture
2 Peter 2:1-9  

Reflection
How do you feel when you hear God doesn’t let anyone mess with Him?
What springs to mind first: fear or awe of God?
How do you see God in His role as Father? 

Prayer
Father, you are almighty, and I believe in Your grace, which is more than enough for me. I also believe we should not mess with it. Please help me to always live within the boundaries. Amen.