What Do I Mean by “The Cycle?”
Estimated reading time: 10 minutes
When I say that “The Cycle” is the sixth principle of the Old Testament, what do I mean? Well, since this is an Old Testament principle and the Old Testament is mainly about the Jews, what cycle do we observe the Jews going through time and again? For those who have studied the Old Testament, the cycle of behavior I’m referring to is the one where they continually forget about God, disobey His laws, and then receive some type of punishment for their actions. But, before you get too tough on the Jews, take a close look inward. This cycle is not limited to just the Jews—it’s a cycle humanity has been going through since the beginning of time! See if this sounds familiar to any part of your life:
Condition #1 in the Cycle: Peace & Security
The only time in the history of the world where humanity truly had “peace and security” was in the Garden of Eden. There, Adam and Eve had direct, daily fellowship with the one and only true God—the creator of the universe. What they did not know at the time was that God was the only thing that stood between them and utter emptiness and chaos. God provided the daily order that brought them comfort and their feeling of security. But, to maintain that order, God gave them one rule—”Do not eat from one certain tree.” God knew that His rule would be broken because there is something within us that cannot resist seeing what will happen when we do something we’re told not to do. He also knew we needed to experience this loss of order before we could truly appreciate what we once had. The memory of the Garden is embedded in us as we subconsciously try get back the peace we once with God. For now, it’s an impossible dream, but God has plans to correct that! Part of His plan to bring us back to Him took place when He selected the Jews to be His chosen people in the Abrahamic Covenant. God picked a time and a people He could work with on this concept. God was pleased with His people, and they were pleased with Him. Hopefully, you can relate to a time in your life when “all things seemed right with the world.” God was good, life was good, and things (seemed) to make sense. Even if you’ve never experienced such a time, most of us would do anything to find such peace and security in our lives. We long for a world that appears under some degree of control and nothing is threatening us. When such times happen, we may not always attribute them as a blessing from God, but that is often what it is. The Jews knew it was God who brought them peace and security, but that knowledge was not enough to keep them on track. Thus, they entered into a cycle that, to this very day, continues going round and round without any evidence of stopping. Fortunately, as we shall see, there is a way out.
Condition #2 in the Cycle: Order
There’s one thing everybody can agree on about “peace & security”—we want it to last! And that’s never going to happen if your world is in chaos. Peace and security require order. But the world we live in is constantly fighting against order. People want to do their own thing and not be shackled by any rules or laws enacted by people they don’t agree with to exercise power over them. If you think this doesn’t describe you, see if you can relate to this example. You’re in your car going 65 mph and you see a curve up ahead. There’s a sign saying to “Slow Down” and a revised speed limit of 25mph. What do you do? Are you tempted to think that 25mph seems way too slow? The curve doesn’t look that tight. “I bet I can make it at 40mph,” you think to yourself. What do you do? Technically, if you went 1mph above 25mph, you broke the law. Not a big deal. Unless you consider what just went on in your brain. We know that laws are intended to protect us and others, yet sometimes, we choose to ignore them because “We know better” (we’ll talk more about that in the forth condition, rebellion). The lesson humanity has learned over the centuries is—to live together in harmony requires some form of mutually agreed to order. God knows that better than anyone. That is why He gave the Jews the Ten Commandments. They were intended to help them (and us) find a way of living that would bring us back into a relationship with God. Why was that necessary? Because God is the God of order. The exact opposite of Him is chaos and emptiness. Peace and security are only possible when we are in a right relationship with God. But we must desire that relationship enough and believe and trust that God is the only one who can satisfy our needs. This is a concept that is easier said than done. It requires discipline to maintain order.
What many people don’t know is that the laws that define most developed societies were derived through some version of the Ten Commandments. God gave the Jews the Ten Commandments and other societies copied them because they saw they helped bring order and peace. Laws are intended to help us make better choices that protect the stability of the society we live in. Those who violate the law and order, threaten the peace and security of its citizens.
Condition #3 in the Cycle: Voices & Temptations
The enemy of order is dissension. And dissension is birthed when we listen to the voices of outside persuasion, self-persuasion, or just pure evil persuasion. ((Refer to my blog on faith to learn more about how our inner voices affect us: https://its-a-god-thing.blog/2024/10/12/discovery-21-the-second-principle-of-the-old-testament-faith/)) In any society, there is always someone who questions how things are done. They suggest some laws are unfair, others are outdated, or other societies do things better. When we give such people a voice, we let them disrupt the order in our society. Gradually, their voices erode our confidence in what has worked in the past and we open ourselves to change. Now change, in and of itself is not always a bad thing. But when we consider changing something that violates a law that God has given us, such change is not good. This is what the Jews did over and over. They questioned the laws given to them by God. They said, “There’s more to life than this!” The voices tempted them to “try new things,” “think new ways,” and question what had worked in the past. As Dr. Timothy Leary once said, “Turn on, tune in, and drop out.” ((https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/47718.Timothy_Leary)) The actions of the Jews were not unique. What they demonstrated was the raw edge of our sinful nature—where the voices in our heads tell us there is something better than God and being “good.” This is the Pandora’s Box of the Cycle where temptation leads us down the path to destruction—where we take something that works and exchange it for a lie.
Condition #4 in the Cycle: Rebellion
It is one thing to listen to the voices that tell you, “You can do better.” But you cross the line when you rebel against God or society and refuse to follow their rules. Individual rebellion may just land the individual in jail. Group rebellion may change a society for the good or destroy it. In the example of the Jews, when they rebelled, they did so against God. That is never something God is going to tolerate. Thus, there is a fine line we must consider when we question the wisdom of our society—are we rebelling against the wisdom of the people or of God? King Solomon expressed the human condition in this way:
20 Surely there is not a good person on earth who always does good and never sins. . . . 29 One thing I have learned: God made people good, but they have found all kinds of ways to be bad.” (Ecclesiastes 7:20,29, NCV)
Solomon was right! Rebellion is in our blood! Fortunately, God has given us His wisdom in His Holy Book, the Bible, and all those who have questioned it have found their “wisdom” to be wanting. The fallacy of rebellion against God is—God always wins! ((Check out my post on Sacrifices: https://its-a-god-thing.blog/2024/11/23/discovery-21-the-fifth-principle-of-the-old-testament-sacrifices/))
Condition #5 in the Cycle: Consequences
Rebellion is not generally a good state of mind to be in. The fruit of rebellion is most often bitter and comes at a high cost. It can destroy families, strain relationships, and usually does not provide the change that started our rebellion in the first place. In other words—rebellion has consequences—consequences that are usually not pleasant. For the Jews, God often punished them by withdrawing His blessings. To lose God’s blessing meant many things. It could involve famine, disease, defeat by one’s enemies, exile to foreign lands, loss of family, possessions, or even death.
In today’s society, those who rebel might become a “thing” on social media, or they might get ostracized for being “extreme.” As a result, the consequences for our actions are always changing as is the punishment. Such fluidity breeds confusion and society may lose its sense of direction. Order is disrupted and peace and security becomes elusive when the definition of “right” or “wrong” is blurred. Chaos grabs another ring of control. At times when everything seems in flux, it helps to know that God is the exact opposite of chaos . He is the only predictable, stable, and totally reliable force in the universe! That is why we can always trust Him during times of uncertainty. God understands that we are always looking for a better way—one that fits what we think is right. Yet, we seem programmed to learn via the “school of hard knocks.” Every time we make a bad decision, there are consequences and hopefully, we learn from our mistakes. But the one truth we cannot avoid is that the peace and security we seek, demands accountability to God. Otherwise, there is a price to pay.
Condition #6 in the Cycle: Recognition & Repentance
There’s often a predictable side effect to facing the consequences of one’s actions. It forces us to reflect on the outcome of our choices—that we were not as smart as we thought. Moreover, the rules we rebelled against may not have been worth the price we paid. Sometimes, our reflections may lead us to seek absolution for our transgressions. But. from whom do we seek forgiveness? in the case of the Jews, they rebelled against God’s laws—and they sought His forgiveness. Societal forgiveness may sooth the wound, but holy forgiveness heals the soul. Both require a sincere heart. Until we recognize our wrongdoing, we cannot truly repent with sincerity, sorrow, and humility. True repentance is the soap that washes us clean of the guilt we’ve accumulated due to our actions. This is the most important step in the cycle! Without genuine contrition, there can be no forgiveness. The Jews saw this lesson many times and repeatedly forgot it. But they cannot claim exclusivity to this human failure. All humanity goes through this step with unbelievable regularity. It is part of who we are as sinners. Yet, only God can wash us clean of the guilt that comes from rebellion.
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 NIV
God knows what’s on our heart when we come to Him for forgiveness. If we are not truly repentant, there will be no forgiveness and the cycle continues.
Condition #7 in the Cycle: The Grace of Atonement
Grace is an interesting word. As an acronym, its often translated to mean, “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.” Grace is the ONLY WAY to break out of “The Cycle” and claim “God’s Riches” — His peace and security. In one sense, grace brings us back to the Garden. When we recognize and accept that Christ (Jesus) paid for our right to claim “God’s Riches,” we receive grace and the cycle is broken. Our sins have been atoned for at “Christ’s Expense.” The example of the Jews proved that we were unable to claim God’s grace and stop the cycle on our own. Only Christ could do that! The Apostle Paul made that very clear in his letter to the Colossians:
He (Jesus) canceled the debt, which listed all the rules we failed to follow. He took away that record with its rules and nailed it to the cross. (Colossians 2:14, NCV), emphasis added.
As a result, in step seven of the cycle, God gives us an opportunity to “break away” and find our path to a permanent and satisfying form of peace and security that is only available through placing our faith and trust in Jesus. Will you choose Jesus and break your cycle?
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