Is It Biblical That We "Get What We Deserve?"

The idea of getting what you deserve has become common in man’s thoughts, and in the vernacular. It is often used to describe several systems of interaction. These interactions can be in the working world, where if someone works hard, they will be rewarded with promotions and raises. Conversely, if they are uninvested, they will not progress or be fired.

Other people see morality through this lens: they believe if they are kind to others, good things will happen to them. Many of these individuals are genuinely altruistic, though some may be motivated by the idea that blessings could come as a result. If being good leads to good results, being mean to others leads to difficulties, and cosmic justice. 

Many world religions have some sense of this idea that what you receive as well, in this life and the next, is dependent on your behavior, thoughts, and feelings. In Hinduism, the idea of karma is a part of their worldview. While different schools of Hinduism give slightly different definitions, most do agree on a casual relationship between behavior and outcome. Pure deeds make a pure man, and dark deeds make a dark man. There are consequences for these decisions, which can lead to results in the rebirth cycle.

In Islam, there are five pillars which are mandatory for a good Muslim to do to be truly submitted to God. If a Muslim performs the profession of faith (shahada), prayer (salat), giving to the poor (zakat), fasting (swam), and a pilgrimage to Mecca if possible (hajj), that person is doing right before Allah, who will judge them, and “...[that person] be paid [his/her] full recompense” (Surah Ali-Imran - 3:185). In other words, there are things to be done in this life to be better prepared for judgment by Allah, who will decide your place in the afterlife based on your deeds. This sentiment is found in other religions as well.

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The Bible does not hold a world view that people get what they deserve. While there are verses about the benefits of hard work, primarily in the Book of Proverbs, it does not make any guarantees about good things happening; in fact, it promises seasons of hardship, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12). These trials are not the byproduct of bad behavior, rather the result of sin and a world broken by it.

In fact, if every person was to get what he or she deserved, then they would receive punishment for their evil thoughts and deeds. The Bible says that, “For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,  and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,  whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins” (Romans 3:22b-25). God is holy, and man’s sin is so deep that without the mercy He showed by sending Jesus to die and pay the price for the sins of the world, we would be without hope. 

The word propitiation in the Bible refers to the act of atoning and appeasing. God’s innate holiness and righteousness means that sinners cannot be with Him. In fact, the state of a person who has not repented of their sins, and accepted the forgiveness offered through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as spiritually dead, and subjects of Satan, the prince of this world; “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience —  among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind” (Ephesians 2:2-3).

Jesus’ sacrifice and offer of forgiveness - free, complete, and eternal - is more than anyone actually deserves. Because people sin, they deserve to pay the price for that sin; “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). This death is not just physical death, but damnation.

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God’s love manifested on earth as Jesus Christ, who offers forgiveness to us. But he also allows for grace for sins committed after someone accepts that offer, and receives salvation. People will continue to make mistakes and sin both in word, deed, and in their hearts. This side of heaven, we will all continue to stumble. The gift of Jesus was God’s way of permanently expressing His love for us, through His matchless grace.

John the Beloved Apostle wrote in his Gospel, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:12-14). That grace is eternal, just as our God is eternal. 

Unlike karma, cosmic justice, or a system of good behavior for a potential future in heaven, grace bridges the gap between the holy and righteous Lord of Hosts and wretched sinners. Grace, by nature, is undeserved by the recipient. The sins of man offend the Creator, but He provides the way for the slate to be wiped clean, and for people to receive greater blessings than deserved or imagined.

To read more Bible verses about God's grace, click here.

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There is nothing good from God that anyone can earn or deserve. When considering the idea that people get what they deserve, there is some truth in it in that God empowered governments to enact justice when possible if people commit crimes, and if people make foolish decisions, they feel the consequences of those choices. That can be true, but sometimes it isn’t. There will be criminals who escape justice, and fools who become famous, popular, and powerful. From a cosmic perspective, if people got what they deserved, they would not receive God’s forgiveness, or the opportunity to spend eternity in His presence. 

God wants all people to accept the free gift of grace and forgiveness He offers, and to absolve people of what they deserve. Everyone can receive so much better than that through the blood of Jesus Christ.

Sources

Aurobindo, Sri. Karma and Rebirth. Pondicherry: Lotus Light Publications, 1991.

Craig, William Lane. Reasonable Faith. Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1984.

The Holy Quran. Translated by Maulana Muhammad Ali. Dublin: eBookit.org, 2011.

Kreider, Larry. Discovering the Basic Truths of Christianity. United States of America: Destiny Image, 2009.

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