Ezekiel

Our Bank for Native Missionaries just received 6$, thanks to the giver!

This morning I was reading in Ezekiel 18. I never noticed that sort of thing elsewhere in the Bible and I thought it was really interesting. It starts with these words from the Lord:

“What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel: ‘The fathers eat sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’? As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel.”

I don’t know why, but the Israelites thought that children paid for their parent’s sins, that it was the way God dealt with them. In Deuteronomy 24:16 we read, “Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin.” Somewhere along the road, people obviously thought differently, I need to look into that, because I am pretty sure it’s written somewhere that children had to bear the consequences of the sins of their parents (but I might be mistaken). Anyways, here’s what is interesting, the response from the Israelites is shocking:

“Yet you (Israel) ask, ‘Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?’” (v.19)

Later, God tells His people that if a wicked person turns to righteousness, that person will surely live, and that if a righteous person turns to wickedness, then, this person will surely die and nothing of his/her former righteousness will be remembered. That’s their response:

“Yet you (Israel) say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’” (v.25)

It seems as if for a certain period of time God had made the children share in the guilt of the parents’ sins (I am not sure how true this is, but it seems it is the way that the Israelites perceived it) and now God was telling them that it was not going to be so any longer. These people were probably so rooted in tradition and how things were dealt with, that when a better way was offered, they totally disagreed and even called God unjust. Isn’t that silly?

I wonder if there is anything of the kind happening in our lives right now. Sometimes we are so used to the routine, we hold so tight to the traditions in our churches or denominations, that when God offers us a better way of living, we see it as evil, non-biblical and wrong. That’s what happened to many Christians living in 19th century America. Christians were taking sides, some believed slavery should be abolished and some firmly believed that the Bible taught that slavery was good. They had lived like that since ever but now God was opening the way for more shalom in America, was offering a better way of living. Good Christians held on to their beliefs for slavery and could not understand that it was not God’s idea for His children. He had put up with slavery since long for the best interest of His ultimate plan, but now was the time to bring more peace, more respect. Who would argue that slavery is God’s will for our society today and that it is biblical?
Anyways, that’s only one example. We must be very careful and always read the Word of God with an open heart to what GOD wants to teach us, not what WE think He’s saying. We must always be humble and ready to change our thinking in order to align it with God’s. We must put aside traditions and come to the Word of God emptied of any pre-conceptions. Because we might become blind to the good that God wants to do us and we might refuse to be blessed.

Bank for Native Missionaries: 20$ as of May 21, 2006.
What’s that? See www.banknm.blogspot.com