Jim Frantti | The Voice of Zion February 2025 - The Sabbath Word 2 Article --
Therefore, O thou son of man, speak unto the house of Israel; Thus ye speak, saying, If our transgressions and our sins be upon us, and we pine away in them, how should we then live? Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel? Therefore, thou son of man, say unto the children of thy people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression: as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness; neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousness in the day that he sinneth. When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it. Again, when I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right; If the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die. None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him: he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live. – Ezekiel 33:10-16
Prophet Ezekiel was among the Jews in exile in Babylon in the 5th century BC. The Jews had been brought in captivity away from their homeland. They longed to return and especially clung to the memory of Jerusalem. They received the news that Jerusalem had been destroyed, and now they asked, “If our transgressions and our sins be upon us, and we pine away in them, how should we then live?” They saw, in the destruction of Jerusalem, God’s punishment for their sins and felt that hope was now gone.
In some way, the people looked to their own righteousness as being needed to please God. He was not pleased with their goodness and merit, and now they had lost hope. It is a human way to look to a person’s goodness or evil to explain things that happen in one’s life or to measure who is acceptable to God. However, God’s ways are above our ways.
Once when Jesus and His disciples encountered a blind man, the disciples asked, “Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?” (John 9:2). Jesus explained that his blindness was not a result of his sins nor the sins of his parents. Sometimes when God’s children confess that there is only one kingdom of God and one fellowship of believers on earth, they are accused of thinking that they are better than others in this world. God’s children, on the other hand, acknowledge that we are great sinners and no better than others.
What is in question is human righteousness versus God’s righteousness. When we compare human righteousness, we see that there are many good people in this world. However, when we compare to God’s righteousness and the demands of His holy law, we find that all have sinned and come short of God’s glory (Rom. 3:23).
Righteousness of Faith
Ezekiel had the duty to bring the message to the people of God’s righteousness, which is owned by faith and not by one’s own merits. The righteousness that is acceptable to God is joined to faith. The writer to the Hebrews expressed it this way, that without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6). Jesus encouraged all people to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matt. 6:33).
The righteousness of faith is often described as a day-old righteousness. When one is believing today, he or she owns this righteousness. Yesterday’s faith cannot save nor make righteous. Ezekiel clearly explains this in saying that if a person trusts to his own righteousness, and commits iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered (v. 13). On the other hand, he said that if a wicked person repents and turns from his ways none of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him (v. 16). What matters to God is the condition of a person’s heart today. Thus, we believe for one day at a time and own this day-old righteousness of Jesus Christ.
A Word of Promise
The message of the prophet contains a word of promise that applies as well today as it did for the exiles in Babylon. A person cannot rely on his or her own goodness, merits, or righteousness. Often at a funeral or in the memorial obituary for a person who has passed away their good deeds or accomplishments are remembered. However, the message of the prophet is that the most important testimony is that one endeavored day by day in faith.
The message of the prophet is one that encourages watchfulness in faith and that teaches of God’s great love. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). God still calls those who are in the darkness of unbelief unto repentance. To those traveling in faith, as Martin Luther once wrote, God daily and richly forgives all sins. When one is believing today, it is sufficient. Today we can live of the gospel, and we can place the cares of tomorrow in God’s hands.