Have you ever been unfairly judged because something either your parents or your children have done? Many people have been wrongly judged, and their characters besmirched because of this type of circumstances, things that had nothing to do with them and who they were as a person. Our passage today from the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel deals with this. Let’s see what God’s Word has to say about this issue.
As this passage indicates, the Jewish people had been in the habit of frequently holding the children in just as much condemnation for the sins that their parents had committed. The same held true if someone’s children had fallen into sin. They would often hold the parents just as guilty. If one’s father was a thief or a drunk, if one’s mother was promiscuous, the children, even into adult years, were also judged. “You’re parents are sinners! How can you be any different at all? God, and the religious community, can not accept you.”, was often the general opinion. Or else one heard, “You must not be very godly parents because look what kind of children you raised. They are nothing but good-for-nothing lawbreakers!”
How often do we see this today? If someone is the offspring of a known criminal, drug user, or promiscuous woman, etc., don’t many people cast negative judgment upon them? And doesn’t the same hold true if someone’s children do not turn out well? We are so quick to cast stones at them.
God does not look at it that way. As His prophet says here, God judges each person individually. Many times people suffer from the effects of the sins that their parents or their children committed, sometimes even from their grandparents. But God does not punish us because of someone else’s sins. Each person is accountable to God for their own sins. Nor can we use their sins and mistakes as an excuse for our sins.
The people of Judah used the fact that they were “God’s children and chosen people”, and thus were His blessed ones as an excuse for supposedly getting away with sinning. They felt they could safely sin because of righteous ancestors. God said “No!” An evil son of righteous parents would be punished for being evil. The same with God blessing the righteous son of evil parents. The same goes for today. The good and godly children of notorious criminals are accepted by God, and the disreputable and sinful children of a great man of God will be held accountable for their sins.
The people of Ezekiel’s day did not like to hear this, and said that God is not fair. They seemed to enjoy throwing judgment at other people, holding children just as guilty as parents, and parents for children. They especially liked to think they were fine because they were descended from some “spiritual giants”. That’s not God’s way, though. God’s love causes Him to be merciful to those who recognize their sin and repent. Though He will not wink at those who wilfully sin, He has no joy in the spiritual or physical death of sinners. We all will be judged according to our own individual faith and conduct. Each person is responsible for their own personal sins. When we return to God, we will live and be blessed.
As parents, we are responsible to God for how we raise our children, but we are not responsible for their adult choices. Nor are children ever responsible for what their parents do. We cannot be judged for what anyone else ever does, nor can we ever get any credit for being related to some spiritually great man or woman of God.
Look around. Is there anyone that we have judged because of their family tree? Do we scorn them because there are a few rotten apples in that tree, or think them mighty special because their great-grandfather was so and so? God judges everyone on their own merit, and that’s a good thing for us to do, as well.
The same is true today. We are not responsible for what our parents or children do. Thanks for your wonderful writing Sarah.
ReplyDelete