Turn From Wicked Ways

In Ezekiel 18, repeatedly the principle is taught that the righteousness of the righteous will be upon themselves, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon themselves. Yet verses 21-24 teaches that the door of repentance and full restoration is open to any wicked person. 

Some people believe that judgment is God’s delight. How far from the truth (verse 23)? The Good News of the New Testament is that the guilt of Adam was passed on to the entire human race, and the righteousness of Jesus Christ is passed on to all who believe in Him (Romans 5). 

STUDY THE SCRIPTURE

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REFLECTION

It All Comes Back to Jesus

by Kelsey Bacon

What would we do without Jesus? It's passages like this one that make me so unbelievable grateful for our savior, for second and third and hundredth chances, for grace upon grace upon grace. This passage drives me to the gospel. We know that we will never do enough righteous things to earn our life. We know that we will never reach perfection here on earth. However many times we turn back to God, we are always having to turn back to him because, at some point, we've turned away from him--even if it's in small, inconspicuous ways. 

We know that the law was fulfilled in Christ, and that there is no longer any condemnation for those who are in him. Passages like this can seem harsh and even give us a little anxiety as we think about our righteous and unrighteous deeds, trying to figure out if we measure up. But I believe the true purpose of passages like these are to 1) remind us that sinners can be saved and 2) drive us back to Jesus.

1) Sinners can be saved. Verse 21 says, “But if a wicked person turns away from all the sins they have committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, that person will surely live; they will not die." In this verse, God communicates to us that we can turn away from our patterns of sin. People can change. There is hope for those who are lost, and redemption still to come. Take a moment to pray for someone in your life who needs Jesus.

2) It all comes back to Jesus. Romans 8:1 says that "there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Today's passage presents high standards for those who call themselves "righteous." Tell me, have you kept all of God's decrees? Because I know I haven't! But here and now, with the law fulfilled and the gospel of Christ in us, we know that grace abounds. Jesus asks us to keep trying to follow his ways, to keep repenting, to continue to turn back to him. And this passage is a reminder that we have a faithful savior who loves us enough to give us new mercy each morning. Take a moment to pray and repent of your sins, receive his forgiveness, and thank Jesus for his abounding mercy.

UALC’S CAMPAIGN OF PRAYER

Thursday: LIFE Lord God Almighty, we lament the current distress of our nation and we ask for your intervention. We implore you that every precious life would be protected – lives of minorities, lives of the unborn, lives of the hopeless, lives of the mentally ill, lives with deep roots in this land, lives who have recently arrived -- each and every precious life for whom You gave Your precious life.