November 20, 2006 - Ezekiel 14-15 and James 2
There are some sins that God hates more than other sins. I believe we see several of these in these two passages. I know a sin is a sin, but sins have consequences. I believe the Bible teaches us that God is very sensitive to the consequences of the sins, and He punishes according to the seriousness of the consequences of our sins. I pray that all of us will consider this as we read these passages.
In Ezekiel 14 and 15 there are two particular sins mentioned, and each is shown to be very serious in God's eyes. The first one is idolatry. Ezekiel 14 tells us that if a person is given over to idolatry, and he or she tries to inquire of the Lord, He will not hear them, and He will punish any prophet who tries to help them. (v.7,8) God knows when a person is just being selfish, and He will not reward that selfish desire to manipulate Him. God hates for people to try to manipulate Him. He does not want anyone to think that He can be manipulated, so He punishes that sin severely. Then, the rest of chapter 14 and chapter 15 is about the sin of persistent unfaithfulness. God will not overlook it or forgive it. He even mentions that if Noah, Daniel, and Job were present in the midst of a persistently unfaithful people, He would not pardon the people only those three men. Because of this unfaithfulness Israel was like a branch from a grape vine. It is worthless to make anything. The only thing it is good for is to burn. That is a terrible indictment of Israel by God. He hates persistent unfaithfulness.
Then, James 2 shows us that God hates the sin of partiality. He never judges someone by their appearance or their wealth. He always judges by the heart. God always gives us severe punishment when we show partiality. This chapter tells us that if we keep all the other commandments, but we show partiality, we have broken them all. In other words, God hates it, and He will not overlook this sin.
Finally, in James 2 we read the famous passage about faith without works. It is easy to understand if we realize the word "justified" is used the way we use it every day. It means to show or to prove something. Therefore, a person is justified by his works, because it proves that his faith is alive. If there are no works that follow after his faith, then, it is dead faith. Remember, we do not save ourselves. God saves us. If He saves us, there will be a change in our lives. There will be works that can only be explained by the power of God being in our lives.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Ezekiel 16-17 and James 3.
In Ezekiel 14 and 15 there are two particular sins mentioned, and each is shown to be very serious in God's eyes. The first one is idolatry. Ezekiel 14 tells us that if a person is given over to idolatry, and he or she tries to inquire of the Lord, He will not hear them, and He will punish any prophet who tries to help them. (v.7,8) God knows when a person is just being selfish, and He will not reward that selfish desire to manipulate Him. God hates for people to try to manipulate Him. He does not want anyone to think that He can be manipulated, so He punishes that sin severely. Then, the rest of chapter 14 and chapter 15 is about the sin of persistent unfaithfulness. God will not overlook it or forgive it. He even mentions that if Noah, Daniel, and Job were present in the midst of a persistently unfaithful people, He would not pardon the people only those three men. Because of this unfaithfulness Israel was like a branch from a grape vine. It is worthless to make anything. The only thing it is good for is to burn. That is a terrible indictment of Israel by God. He hates persistent unfaithfulness.
Then, James 2 shows us that God hates the sin of partiality. He never judges someone by their appearance or their wealth. He always judges by the heart. God always gives us severe punishment when we show partiality. This chapter tells us that if we keep all the other commandments, but we show partiality, we have broken them all. In other words, God hates it, and He will not overlook this sin.
Finally, in James 2 we read the famous passage about faith without works. It is easy to understand if we realize the word "justified" is used the way we use it every day. It means to show or to prove something. Therefore, a person is justified by his works, because it proves that his faith is alive. If there are no works that follow after his faith, then, it is dead faith. Remember, we do not save ourselves. God saves us. If He saves us, there will be a change in our lives. There will be works that can only be explained by the power of God being in our lives.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Ezekiel 16-17 and James 3.