( Ezekiel 18:1-4, 21-24, 30-32 ) - [ Deutsch ] - [ Akündigungen421.92 KB ]
And the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen.
Dear congregation
We all know the email or sms messages telling us that we have inherited something. A distant relative, but completely unknown to us, would have left us thousands of pounds or US dollars. If we contacted this or that number and transferred a small amount, they would pay us the inheritance - the fastest way to get rich. Fortunately, we all know that this is just a joke, because even the closest relatives we have known for a long time would hardly be so generous.
But inheriting and bequeathing is quite a thing. One would like to leave something to one's own children; the antique dresser of the great aunt, the coin collection of grandpa, the diamond ring of grandma, the family farm or maybe even a considerable amount on the bank account - something from which the children would profit, something which could help them on their way, something which would lie however perhaps only in the drawer, but where one could proudly say, "I inherited that".
But there are not only "things" that are inherited or passed on, but also habits, attitudes towards life, tastes, customs. One hopes that most of them have positive effects on us, but unfortunately this is not always the case. There is unfortunately the inheritance with negative consequences: money debts, family disputes that have not been resolved for generations, past mistakes such as the persecution of the Jews or Apartheid. Such trauma, which is not self-inflicted, nevertheless weighs on us. One generation passes on its injuries to another, often consciously, but even more often unconsciously, without anyone wanting it, without anyone noticing. These hurts shape people: one rises above them and does better with his life, despite, or perhaps because of, the difficult circumstances; another goes to ruin because the extent of the trauma of the past is simply greater than the will to let life succeed. And still others literally ride on the mistakes of their ancestors, using them as an excuse for their own shambles of a life in which they cannot get the pieces neither swept nor glued together.
Thus the effects, which a "heritage" can have on humans, are nevertheless quite versatile. It is not a new topic, certainly not. The Old Testament prophet Ezekiel hears and conveys God's word on this serious subject in the 18th chapter. As an answer to the basic question: Who is guilty of what and how do we deal with guilt so that our life can succeed, we hear the following word of God:
1 The word of the Lord came to me:
2 “What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel: “‘The parents eat sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’?
3 “As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel.
4 For everyone belongs to me, the parent as well as the child—both alike belong to me. The one who sins is the one who will die.
21 “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.
22 None of the offenses they have committed will be remembered against them. Because of the righteous things they have done, they will live.
23 Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked?” declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?
24 “But if a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked person does, will they live? None of the righteous things that person has done will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness they are guilty of and because of the sins they have committed, they will die.
30 “Therefore, you Israelites, I will judge each of you according to your own ways, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall.
31 Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel?
32 For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live!
"The fathers eat sour grapes, and the sons' teeth grow dull from it"? In modern language, it would be more like, "The children have to spoon out the soup their fathers got them into."(“Face the music”) Or, "We have to pay for what others have done." A bitter pill to swallow.
Such complaints and mockery against the ancestors already existed more than 2000 years ago among the exiles of the Jewish people in Babylon. Homeless and insecure, growing sons and daughters experienced their situation as a punishment for the guilt of their parents, as a consequence of their arrogance and obstinacy, which cost them their inheritance, their homeland.
The complaint is also relevant in our modern world. We also feel the mistakes of the past in our own bodies. As ethnic German South Africans, our children were often bullied and ridiculed at their English schools in relation to World War II. As white South Africans they are still, almost 30 years after the beginning of democracy in South Africa, held responsible for the mistakes of apartheid. Many of our young people do not get jobs, for political reasons where origin, skin colour and gender are the main criteria, and they emigrate abroad. Poverty and unemployment also seem to be hereditary. For many in our country, once you've been down, you stay down. Proportionally, few get out of this impasse. The past stands in the way of the future of many. Sour grapes and blunt teeth. A bitter coupling that many people still experience.
Does this mean that we actually have to carry the guilt of the past forever and work it off? Most certainly not! That is what our sermon text today tells us. God has a way out ready for us. He invites us personally to walk this path with him.
As sure as I live, you will no longer quote this proverb...
Repent! Turn away from all your offences; then sin will not be your downfall. 31 Rid yourselves of all the offences you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Repent and live!
God does not only give us a new heart here, He opens His loving father heart to us that breaks when the godless have to die and are not united with Him in eternity. God begs His people for the umpteenth time that they may turn around, that they should throw off their debts. He stands waiting with outstretched arms, hoping for the conversion of all people - the place is there for all. He has prepared everything, He knows exactly how we can attain eternal life. But the final decision is up to us: turn away from debts, sins, and purify your heart! Each one should stand up for himself and not wallow in the failed past. Each and every one is responsible for himself before God, says Ezekiel, each generation anew for himself. The children, the grandchildren do not have to work off the mistakes of their parents, the mistakes of world history. But they are responsible for the mistakes they make themselves. They have to bear them themselves.
This is also true for us. The guilt of our ancestors cannot be paid off. We cannot undo the injustice of that time. But we can and must ask about yesterday, bear the responsibility today and do everything to ensure that we do not make the same mistakes tomorrow. "Sour grapes, blunt teeth" should no longer exist! Repentance, responsibility and acquiring the new heart, all this encourages God. "I give you a new heart and a new spirit," it says in the 36th chapter, verse 26. What a gift! There is nothing better, no inheritance can match it, no matter how great it is - a new heart and a new spirit - the prerequisite for eternal life with Him - what more could you want?
We have plenty of reasons to change, but if we think about it realistically, we also know that this conversion is not self-evident or easy. We know that the sinful nature is in us. You can't just throw that out on your sleeve.
A quote from Martin Luther encourages me to lay down my debts step by step so that I can accept his gift, the new heart. He writes:
“Life is not being pious, but becoming pious, not health, but becoming healthy, not only about being, but about becoming, not only rest, but also about exercise. We are not yet, but we are becoming. It is not yet done, but it is in progress and in becoming. It is not the end, it is the way.
A fresh beginning with God is possible for me. I am His beloved child and can count on His love and forgiveness every day. This makes me happy and gives me the strength to deal with my "inheritance", the burdens imposed on me from the past but also the debts I impose on myself. In this way, I can learn to forgive and always try to deal with my own “fractures”/ brokenness and those of others. God is the centre of my existence, His arms are wide open and He calls me to himself, always anew. This gives me the courage to shape my life according to His will and awakens in me desire and anticipation for the "inheritance" that He has in store for us, a life in eternity, with Him. Amen.
And the blessing of God, which transcends all human, keep and uphold us in Christ Jesus, Amen.