Adam first sinned, and as our representative, he caused us to sin with him – much like how the president of a country starts a war, and then all of its citizens are at war. Adam started war against God, and the battle rages daily with us all suffering casualties. That first sin infected creation, causing aging, death, barren land, natural disasters, loneliness, and heartbreak.


But we did no go along with Adam passively. We sinned with him and we continue to choose sin. If we have any doubt that we participated in declaring war against God, we should try to go a day without complaining or being angry. Try going a day loving others with no regard to self.


Sometimes God may allow us to suffer because of specific sins we commit. Our sins have consequences. Notice that Lamentations says He is compassionate even for those who are guilty of sin. And that is exactly our hope, our only hope! God does not wish us grief, but He wishes for our repentance, endurance of sin’s consequences, and life with Him forever.