Monday, April 11, 2005
The Whuppin’ We’ll Never Get
“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” —1 John 2:1-2 My mom liked the tree right outside our back door. “It’s got some good switches on it,” she’d say right before she made us cut one off.
It was true. It had thin branches that would eventually cut a boy into if he didn’t fake it on the first lash. All my brother and I had to do to get Mom to quit was act like she was killing us.
We performed drama that was worthy of an Academy Award. We would thrash around on the living room floor like a swarm of bees were in our pants, and when Mom left the room, we’d imitate her and laugh. We deserved every whipping we ever got.
Mom was easy, but when Dad got mad enough to punish you, it was not a slight whipping. Dad knew how to give a “whuppin’,” which is a Southern expression that means Daddy bypassed Mom’s tree on his way to the woodpile. My father meant business. I knew this.
So when he threatened me one day when I was ten-years-old, I ran away. I ran across the street to my Aunt Louise’s house, and I told her I was about to get a whuppin’.
“Is that right, child? What did you do?” Aunt Louise asked.
“I didn’t do nothing. I promise."
She knew I was guilty of something, but she said, “Come in here to the bathroom and we’ll fix this.”
And she commenced to putting toilet paper down the rear of my pants. After she gave me a good round, padded bottom, she said, “Now go on back over there and take your punishment.”
So I did, and my father said, “Boy, don’t you ever run from me again.” Then he administered the first lick and said, “What do you have in your pants?”
“Aunt Louise did it, Daddy! I didn’t have nothing to do with it! Aunt Louise did it!”
He did the unexpected. He burst out laughing, cupping his hand over his mouth when I turned to look. I stared at him for a moment, and then realized that I’d defeated a “whuppin’!”
Aunt Louise was a mastermind—the advocate for the weak and guilty! And Jesus is our Aunt Louise that puts the toilet paper in the back of our pants, so when the Father strikes, He hits the work of Christ.
And when He does, the only thing He can do is let go. It’s the work of Christ on the cross that took away God’s wrath toward mankind. “And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s judgment” (Romans 5:9, NLT).
So don’t run any longer. There is an advocate with the Father that will speak on your behalf. He will make the wrong things right. He can even erase the harsh embarrassment you’ve suffered.
He can restore your friendship with God.
Prayer – God, I’ve sinned and messed up, royally. I don’t deserve Your forgiveness, and I know the only reason You’re offering it is because of Your Son’s death on the Cross. So I come trembling to You and ask for Your mercy. Please take me back. Amen.
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© 2007 by Robert Stofel