TAWG - August 2, 2024 - Ezekiel 18:1-32
August 2, 2024

Ezekiel 18:1-32

18:1-2 | The people’s proverb essentially indicated they would be punished for what their ancestors did, and there was nothing they could do about it. While they had no trouble admitting the spiritual fault of their forebears, they took no responsibility for their own wicked actions.

18:3-18 | God refused to allow this faulty proverb to remain unchallenged. While there are numerous instances in the OT of children suffering the effects of their father’s sin (Ex. 20:5; 34:7; Num. 14:18; 16:27; Josh. 7:24; 2 Sam. 21:1-9), God in His mercy told Ezekiel’s audience that He was providing opportunity for them to repent and turn from the sinful path that they and their parents were traveling.

18:20 | Although certainly we are influenced a great deal by the behavior, beliefs, and habits of our parents and family, each of us is fully responsible for what we believe and how we act. Each of us individually, must place our faith in the risen Christ in order to be saved, or each of us, individually will pay the penalty for our own sins.

18:21-22 | God always holds out the possibility of repentance for those who have strayed from Him. He always invites those who have rejected Him to turn around, change their ways and their minds, and begin to follow Him through faith. No one is too bad to be saved, any more than anyone is too good to need a Savior. Rather, He says to us all, “Behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Chron. 6:2).

18:29-30 | How easy it is for fallen people to claim that God is not being fair in the way He deals with us! Our natural eyes are so blind and our natural minds are so darkened that we always imagine we are the aggrieved party, even when our own sin has landed us in trouble. God will judge each of us on the basis of our individual, spiritual connection to Christ and on our personal behavior.

18:32 | Contrary to what many think, God does not delight in the death of any wicked person. Much to the contrary, He pleads with everyone to repent – to turn and live! Why die when you can live? Why fall under His judgment when you can receive His mercy? Why persist in earning wages that lead to eternal destruction when you can, through faith, receive a reward that you can enjoy forever and ever?