“If I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.” – Luke 19:8
Many of us know the story of Zacchaeus; he had taken things that did not belong to him, but when he met Jesus, he wanted to restore the things he had taken falsely.
There is just a good feeling about someone “making things right.” A couple of months ago I purchased a half-gallon of milk at the grocery store. When I poured some out, there were dark brown chunky objects floating in it! I called the toll free number on the carton and a very nice lady explained that it was called “burnout,” particles that had come loose from the vat during the pasteurizing process. She mailed coupons to me that totaled approximately $10.00. The store also refunded my money. They wanted to make things right too, and I appreciated it.
During my lifetime I have had to go back and make things right myself. Before I became a Christian, I stole some small items. I was just a child, but I knew better than to do that. After I was saved, the Lord impressed upon me that I needed to make restitution, which I did. What a nice feeling it was to have it all cleared up!
Even after I became a Christian, I had to correct some words that I had foolishly spoken. There was a vocal trio at our church made up of what I thought at the time were extremely old ladies. Someone had called them the “birdseed” trio, and I repeated that unflattering comment a number of times and laughed about it. The Lord pricked my conscience and told me I needed to make that right! It seemed a hard thing to do, but with God’s help I did it. I felt much better afterward.
Things that were not necessarily my fault have needed to be corrected. One day I purchased an item at a downtown store in Portland, Oregon, and the girl accidentally gave me too much change. When I returned to work I noticed this. I knew that money was not mine, so later I returned to the store and gave the change back. She was amazed that anyone would bother to do that! I knew I had done the right thing.
Satan will tell you not to bother to make anything right because it is either “too small” or “too hard.” But I have found the Lord goes before you and will stand beside you and bless your life when you make the effort to clean up your past life and keep it clean.