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It’s Just Not Fair!!
Daily Office Readings:
Psalms 31, 35 and 95
Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32, Philippians 4:1-9, John 17:9-19
25Yet you say, “The way of the Lord is unfair.” Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way unfair? Is it not your ways that are unfair? 26When the righteous turn away from their righteousness and commit iniquity, they shall die for it; for the iniquity that they have committed they shall die. 27Again, when the wicked turn away from the wickedness they have committed and do what is lawful and right, they shall save their life. 28Because they considered and turned away from all the transgressions that they had committed, they shall surely live; they shall not die. 29Yet the house of Israel says, “The way of the Lord is unfair.” O house of Israel, are my ways unfair? Is it not your ways that are unfair?
30Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, all of you according to your ways, says the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions; otherwise iniquity will be your ruin.£ 31Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? 32For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Lord GOD. Turn, then, and live.
It’s just not fair!
How many times have you heard that? Maybe it’s from a child, or from a spouse, or a friend or coworker. Or better yet, how many times have we said this ourselves, in response to some perceived injustice or wrong that has been done to us?
Today’s Old Testament lesson from Ezekiel calls us to do something that is undeniably countercultural: stop complaining about those things that have been done to us, and start focusing on those things that we are doing to the world, to our fellow Christians, and to ourselves, through our sinful nature. Sometimes we get on our soap boxes, sinning all the time, yet worrying about what everyone else is doing, and we get called onto the carpet, we often answer by saying “That’s not fair!”
Ezekiel says “Repent and turn from all of your transgressions; otherwise iniquity will be your ruin.” Christ does not call us to complain about the situation we are in, but rather, calls us to repentance for our own sins. This involves a continual, thorough, prayerful examination of the conscience. It is very easy, on the surface, to dismiss sin, especially if we have not done anything so grievous that it is on the tip of our tongues. In fact, one of the hardest things to do sometimes during confession, whether private, or during corporate confession at the Eucharist, is to come up with ways in which we have sinned. Sure, we know that we sin – a lot! It is part of our fallen nature. At the same time, it is often hard to pinpoint those areas in our lives where we are sinning. Sin is usually subtle, as our tempter is subtle. Through routine prayer and examination, our sins can become much clearer to us, so that we can readily repent and give them up to God. If we have done that, iniquity no longer has power over us, and Satan is driven out of our lives through the power of Christ.
In this day and age, especially with the strife that we are dealing with in the Church, it is very easy to worry about everyone else’s transgressions and not our own. By doing this, we sometimes allow others to define us, instead of allowing Christ in to shape our lives and our wills. This is a subtle form of idolatry. I’m not saying that we should roll over and play dead to the issues facing us, not at all. Rather, we should not allow the issues of the National Church to define our ministries, and to keep us from being the Disciples of Christ that He calls us to be. We should be vessels of the Holy Spirit which allow Kingdom Power to come into this world.
My prayer for all of us during this Lenten season goes hand in hand with the passage in Ezekiel. I pray that we will be able to let go of our perceived iniquities, and let God into our lives to shape us and mold us in the living creations that He wants us to be. Let our hearts be prayerfully open to his calling in our lives, and wills closely knit with His will.
Let us pray.
Almighty and everlasting God, in your power and great glory, you sent your only Son Jesus Christ to be our light and our savior: Grant us the wisdom to discern those areas where we are not allowing you to be fully present in our lives. Show us where we are blocking you out, and give us the strength and the courage to open ourselves more fully to you, so that we can repent of our sins, and be guided by the light of your presence; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
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-Townsend Waddill is junior seminarian at Nashotah House and is originally from Tallahassee, Florida. He is married to Lisa Waddill, and they have a 2.5 year old son, Benjamin.
Traditional Anglican ping, continued in memory of its founder Arlin Adams.