Ezekiel 18
COMMENTARY:
: 4 Behold, all souls are MINE; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is MINE: the soul that sins, it shall die. (5315 “soul” [nephesh] means life, person, mind, heart, breath, living being, human being, appetite, emotions, will, activity of the character or inner being of man.)
DEVOTION: Every individual who has ever lived or will live has to answer to the LORD for all the actions in their life. Every action is known to the LORD. HE knows us from before the foundation of the world. There are no surprises from God’s perspective. HE knows the beginning to the end of our lives.
We are judged by our actions. If we chose a life of sin HE is going to judge accordingly. If we chose to become a follower of HIM HE knows that as well. Our actions determine our place after death.
Those who are in proper relationship with the LORD will spend eternity in heaven. Those who don’t have a proper relationship with the LORD will spend eternity in the lake of fire. HE is the judge. HE will always judge righteously.
Do we completely understand our relationship to the LORD and HIS relationship to us? NO!! HE is omniscient and we are not. Sometimes we might think it would be good for the LORD to come down or send an angel down to us and give us daily instructions, so that we would know where we stand with HIM. HE DOES DO THAT THROUGH THE MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT ONCE WE BECOME A GENUINE BELIEVER.
HE has given us the ministry of the HOLY SPIRIT within us if we are a believer and we are supposed to listen to HIM on a daily basis as we pray and study the Word of God.
Here we find the LORD making a statement regarding the FACT that every individual has to answer to HIM. HE states that there are consequences to sin. For a believer one of the consequences is an early death if we are not willing to confess our sin and turn from living in sin.
There is a difference between sinning and living in sin from the perspective of God. HE knows that we sin daily and gives us the command to confess our sin and HE will forgive. If we chose as a believer to not confess, HE will send chastening our way and if we don’t listen to HIS chastening, HE will end our life. We will be saved yet so as by fire. If we confess our sin daily and keep short accounts with HIM
HE will continue to use us for HIS glory while we are here on this earth.
Death comes to all individuals. The judge of the world will then judge us according to our relationship to HIM. If we have a proper relationship, we will have rewards in heaven. If we don’t have a proper relationship with HIM we will spend eternity in a lake of fire where there are degrees of punishment as well.
Again we don’t completely understand what happens after death but we know that we are in HIS hands. If you are a believer you need to listen to the HOLY SPIRIT and the Word of God (BIBLE) now.
CHALLENGE: God is the final judge. What would HE do with us if we were to die today? HE gives us a choice!!!
: 9 Has walked in MY statutes, and has kept MY judgment, to deal truly; he is just, he shall surely live, says the Lord God. (6213 “deal” [asah] means to make, manufacture, to carry out or perform an action or course of action, apply, work, act with effect, or put in order.)
DEVOTION: The LORD wants us to put in order our lives in a way that is pleasing to HIM. HE wants those who claim HIM as their God and Savior to live a life of obedience to the commands of HIM.
The children of Israel in the Old Testament were HIS people and HE gave them instructions as to what HE expected of them each day of their lives. If they were obedient to HIS commands, HE would bless them and protect them from their enemies.
Israel was not faithful most of the time. They would listen to and obey when there was times of trouble but as soon as things were going well they would follow false gods that they saw in the nations around them.
God would have to judge them and they would have to repent before they could be blessed again. It was a cycle that they would practice throughout their history. It is sad to read through the Old Testament and see them go from times of blessing to times of trials because they would not stay obedient to HIM.
Even today we are individuals who seem to be prone to wander from the LORD instead of staying faithful day in and day out.
The church from its beginning has had problems with sin because believers are tempted by the world, the flesh and the devil with the temptations to wander winning more than they should.
Why did it happen in the Old Testament and even today? It is because we are individuals who think that a little sin will not hurt us. We think that the LORD will forgive us no matter what we do but HE will also send judgment to bring us back to a proper relationship with HIM.
Our nature as created beings is to think wrongly regarding sin in our life. We think HE has forgiven us in the past and will in the future but faithfulness is what HE wants from us.
So, is our salvation genuine or not? HE knows! Consistency is what HE would like in HIS servants in the Old Testament as well as in the New Testament time. Our goal should be to be consistent followers of HIM with confession as we sin and a return to an obedient walk with HIM.
CHALLENGE: Where are you today in your relationship with HIM? Are you faking it or are you a genuine follower of HIM? If genuine, consistency is necessary to receive HIS blessing. This only happens as we keep short account with HIM.
: 20 The soul that sins, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the Father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. (5771 “iniquity” [awon] means punishment, fault, mischief, sin, perversity, depravity, activity that is crooked or wrong, or an offense against law of God.)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel were complaining that they were suffering for the sins of their fathers and not their own sins. They thought God was unfair in HIS treatment of them.
We know that the sins of the father visit to the third or fourth generation according to the Word of God. But sometimes we don’t understand the meaning of this statement.
There are family sins. When we read the story of Abraham we find that he told his wife Sarah to lie for him regarding their relationship. Isaac did the same with his wife. Next we find that Jacob or Israel did the same with his father. He tricked him by lying to him regarding his true identity. This can be found in other places in the Word of God. There are besetting sins in each family that can be overcome with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Here we find that the children of Israel thought God was unfair because they were going into captivity because of their father’s sin. They had wrong thinking.
The LORD gave Ezekiel the message that everyone is judged for their own sin. If a child continues the family sin he can’t use the excuse that his parent taught him to do this sin. He had a choice as far as the LORD was concerned. They didn’t have to worship false gods because their father’s did. They could have listened to the prophets who told them the true way to worship the LORD. They just took the easier path.
Each of us are going to be judged for the sins we commit. God is always just. The righteous will not suffer for the sins of their parents or their children. They will be rewarded for their righteousness. The wicked will be rewarded for their sin.
Don’t blame others for your sins. The LORD gives each of us power through the ministry of the Holy Spirit to overcome any besetting sin our family might pass down to us.
CHALLENGE: We can do ALL things through Christ who gives us strength. Even overcome family sin.
: 31 Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby you have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will you die, O house of Israel? (7993 “Cast away” [shalak] means to throw, hurl, scatter, make a linear motion, abandon, fling, or shed.)
DEVOTION: This chapter is dealing with the difference between righteous and wicked in the eyes of the LORD. There are actions that the righteous performs which are lawful and right. The wicked will act in the opposite direction.
The LORD makes it plain that people are judged for their own sins and not the sins of their parents. There are three generations covered in this chapter. The first generation was righteous. The second generation was wicked. And the third generation was righteous. Each generation was judged on its own merit.
The LORD is asking the children of Israel to shed their sins. There is a possibility that they can receive a new heart and a new spirit within them. The LORD asks why they would want to die in their sins.
The chapter gives us some standards the LORD had set for the behavior of the children of Israel. If they obeyed – they would live. If they disobeyed – they would die. HE would rather that they lived. HE wanted them to do what was “lawful and right.” HE wanted them to turn and repent.
The children of Israel were stating to the LORD that HE was unjust. They thought HIS judgments were wrong. HE told them that their actions were wrong and that they would be judged by their actions.
HE wants the same of us. We know what we are doing that is wrong in the sight of the LORD. The Bible instructs us what HE expects of us. Ezekiel instructed the children of Judah of their responsibility to the LORD.
If the wicked turn from their wickedness, their sins will not be mentioned again. Isn’t that a great promise? They were promised a new heart and a new Spirit.
Our relationship is based on the shed blood of Christ. Our fellowship is based on our actions. A warning needs to be given even today. Those who think that if they have a relationship with the LORD but their actions are wicked are probably thinking like the Israelites in this chapter. Our actions speak louder than our words!!!
The Psalmist asked for “fresh oil” from the LORD to help him face the trials the LORD allowed in his life. We can ask for a fresh moving of the Holy Spirit in our life as well as we face trials daily.
CHALLENGE: Repentance is necessary in every believer, so that, fellowship and blessings can come our way from the LORD. Throw your sins away to the Savior.)
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