“Son of man, give your people this message: The righteous behavior of righteous people will not save them if they turn to sin, nor will the wicked behavior of wicked people destroy them if they
repent and turn from their sins.
Ezekiel 33:12
repent and turn from their sins.
Ezekiel 33:12
Righteous vs Wicked. Good vs. Evil. The Israelites were being forced to take a long hard look at life without repentance; death and separation from God. This lecture was not new to them. God was pressing the rewind button to reply His ever familiar lesson of repentance. God, just like He had done time and time again was explaining to His children what needed to happen before they could be forgiven and restored. They needed to repent. The application to our lives is so clear.
We must repent of our sins. I needed a refresher in Repentance 101. The lesson has been taught numerous times in our journey. It is one of the themes threaded through the tapestry of the Old Testament. However, it never hurts to review. The word repent is the Hebrew word shuwb (shoob). It means to return, to turn back. Return or go back to what? Return or go back to the Lord.
Interwoven in the words concerning repentance, the Lord shakes up the Israelites thinking. He is determined to set the record straight. I feel sure our key verse did just that. If I may modernize the Lord's words a bit, careful not to add to or take away from them, "Yes, the wicked will be judged and condemned if they don't repent but those of you who think your are going to be saved because you do or have done some good things you are sadly mistaken." Ouch!
There are so many times when I try to convince myself because I teach, give to those in need, take a meal to a sick person, or do the things I am "supposed to do" that I am somehow counted as one of the "righteous." Can you believe, I even recount the good things I have done in the past as an excuse for my disobedience of the present? My mind races back to the word of the prophet Isaiah. He calls such righteous act filthy rags.
All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. Isaiah 64:6
We are counted as righteous, not because of anything we have done or will do in the name of Jesus Christ. We are righteous because of what He did for us and our faith in that. We must only believe.
Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.
Genesis 15:6
Genesis 15:6
Just believe. Our belief in God grows within us, then overflows into deeds we do for others. The "righteous acts" or "good deeds" will happen as a result of our salvation and belief in God not as a means to earn it.
8 Comments:
Happy September 1st!
Wendy, I'm pretty much speechless today; you have said it so well, what more can be added? Thank you, dear sister!
We are accountable, aren't we?! It's a self-accountability, each one of us hears that little voice...each one of us can obey or disobey. It's up to us. Ezekiel 33:20, "But I judge each of you according to your deeds."
The NIV says, "I judge you according to your ways."
Why does God judge? He has stressed this over and over again during this chapter of Ezeikel (67 times!) He so dearly wants each one of us to know without a doubt, "That I Am The LORD." and how to we know Him? By reading His Word every single day. Believing in Him. Believing. The more we believe, the closer we get to Him. The dearer our relationship is with Him. The more we "hear" him whisper to us. The more we "see" him in our everyday...The more we become like Him. Transformed, and able to do the good deeds!
I have a long way to go, dear sisters! Thank you for walking along this journey with me each day. Each day, I feel closer to Him as I know you must too.
Enjoy!
Lori - AZ
good morning dear sisters!
after lamentations and ezekiel and jeremiah, i am wiped out!!!
only 23 days until we reach the New Testament and our Jesus!!! Forgiveness, Righteousness, Grace... I cannot wait... and I will appreciate it even more, having read the ENTIRE Old Testament!!! (thank you Wendy!)
Hallelujah!!
love,
amy jane
Amen! Very Well Put, Wendy and thank you. I also have been there done that and bought the T-Shirt. But as Lori said everyday in His word we draw closer to God.
Those who continue in my Word, will know the truth and the truth shall set them free. (paraphrased)
Have a nice day everyone!
Lynn
Hi Wendy,
I needed this today. I have been scurrying around trying to "fix," make things right, and do good deeds all so that I can say to God, "See how good I am! I deserve my desires to come true."
I really need to rest in faith that what He set out in motion will be completed without any help from me.
This minute I am not going to try I am going to trust!
Thanks my sweet friend!
My heart and my toes needed this one today!
Pamela
I'm ashamed to admit it, but I'm struggling to keep up with the daily readings. Life just continues to get in the way!
But I've missed the reading, reflecting and learning from His teachings. I'm not giving up and I will make time each day to read the Bible and catch up. I'm so thirsty for His word.
What a reminder. We are not saved by works, lest any man should boast. How I need that daily repentance before His throne of grace.
I underlined so much in our reading today. I camped out here: “When the watchman sees the enemy coming, he sounds the alarm to warn the people. Then if those who hear the alarm refuse to take action, it is their own fault if they die. They heard the alarm but ignored it, so the responsibility is theirs. If they had listened to the warnings, they could have saved their lives.” Ezekiel 33:3-5
On my blog I paralleled that to other "alarms" that go unheeded in our every day life. How often we grow accustomed to their sound and completely ignore them, carrying on as if the warning signal hasn't even been given eg. fire alarms in malls, the evacuation notices announced by news broadcaster's during hurricanes, or even currently the California fires.
I wrote about times I chose to walk paths of peril. God implores, today, while you hear His voice, respond. (Hebrews 3:7-8) Do not harden your hearts. Do not reply in foolishness, believing you alone will be exempt from devastation. There will come a day when all will be judged, both the living and the dead. (1 Peter 4:5)
When warnings are adhered to, lives are spared. May this be a warning for eternity today. If you are not prepared for the sudden evacuation from earth to heaven, a decision today can change your life forever. Christ is the Eye of the storm. He is the calm in the center of life's chaos. Turn to him today. Like those who remain behind when warnings of approaching disaster are given, it is the fool who has said in their heart there is no God (Psalm 14:1). Let’s also be used to pull the alarm ourselves when we see smoke rising in the lives of others.
Listening and responding,
Joy
Wow Wendy! I am really being convicted!
In church on Sunday, an illustration was used, that we were all face down in an ocean of sin, until Christ leaned out and pulled us into His boat. Without His grace and mercy we are all dead and can't help ourselves.
I too have tried to convince God that I am being 'mostly' good enough - but this reading today is speaking so strongly to my heart. There is nothing I can do to deserve Christ's rescuing me, He just does it.My job is to just believe.
Joy I also took note of what happens to the watchmen who don't sound the alarm. How many times have I had the opportunity to share my faith with a friend or co-worker, and I was too afraid of what they would think of me to do it?And how many times has sin in my life left others with a distaste for Christianity?
Dear Lord, I pray today for all my blogging sisters and myself, that when you sound the alarm we will not only hear it, but have the courage to act.
Have a great day.
Patty
Right on sistas, right on!!
Morgen - MN
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