Ezekiel 33:12-15 – “Son of man, give your people this message: The righteous behavior of righteous people will not save them if they turn to sin, nor will the wicked behavior of wicked people destroy them if they repent and turn from their sins. When I tell righteous people that they will live, but then they sin, expecting their past righteousness to save them, then none of their righteous acts will be remembered. I will destroy them for their sins. And suppose I tell some wicked people that they will surely die, but then they turn from their sins and do what is just and right. For instance, they might give back a debtor’s security, return what they have stolen, and obey my life-giving laws, no longer doing what is evil. If they do this, then they will surely live and not die. None of their past sins will be brought up again, for they have done what is just and right, and they will surely live.”
A little repentance goes a long way. But this passage is a really good reminder that we never have the power to save ourselves. No matter how many good deeds we’ve done, they never outweigh our sins. It just doesn’t work that way. And if we are wicked, God gives us chances to come back to him. All of this is God’s grace, not our own power to save ourselves.
It’s really freeing, when you think about it, that you can’t save yourself. It really shortens the to-do list. Life can become all about seeking after the heart of God. Religion says, “Do this, do that, and you’ll be good with God.” That’s a lot of pressure! The good news of Jesus says, “Your deeds are a reflection of your heart, they don’t save you. I will save you, come on over!”
Here’s your freedom for today:
Stop trying so hard.
God loves you. He wants you. He is calling you to come to him. He has offered to save you. Staying close to him does mean that you will move away from sin, because sin isn’t where God is. This chapter is all about Ezekiel sounding the alarm for God’s people — “Come back to God!” Today I’m sounding the alarm for you. If you’ve drifted farther away from the heart of God, come back. Having a previous “Christian streak” won’t do you any good now. Come to him. Turn from sin. Move out of a mindset that says you can weigh your good and bad. Stop trying to “do” and start trying to be all that you were meant to be.