Amen. All right, well we're there in Ezekiel chapter 18, and we've been
working our way through the book of Ezekiel on Wednesday nights, and we come
to this chapter in Ezekiel. Ezekiel 18 is actually a very misunderstood chapter, a
little bit of a controversial chapter, in the sense that it is often taken out of
context, and we're gonna go through the whole chapter, and I'll explain to you
tonight, but let me just begin by telling you what this chapter is not about. This
chapter is not about redemption, and what I mean by that is that it's not about
salvation. Oftentimes people will go, and the people who want to prove to you that
you can lose your salvation, or that you have to repent of your sins to be saved,
they always want to go to Ezekiel 18, and what's interesting about you about that
is that you have to go to some obscure passage in Ezekiel, which is probably the
second most, if not the most difficult book to understand, and then you've got
the book of John, that's literally the simplest book in the Bible to understand,
the book that we're told was given to us to explain to us what salvation is, but
they don't want to go there for gospel doctrine, you know, for doctrine on
salvation, but what you need to understand about Ezekiel 18 is that it's
not about the gospel, it's not about salvation, it's not about soul winning or
people getting saved, it's about, what we're reading about is literally, when it
talks about people dying, it's literally physically dying. It's talking about God
bringing his judgment upon a nation because of their wickedness, and what
they can do to avoid that judgment. So this chapter is not about redemption, but
I do want you to understand that the major theme of this chapter is about
responsibility. This is probably one of the greatest chapters in the Bible that
in regards to personal responsibility. Notice what it says there in Ezekiel 18
in verse 1. The Bible says this, the word of the Lord came unto me saying, came unto
me again, excuse me, saying, what mean ye that ye use this proverb concerning the
land of Israel? So God, through Ezekiel, is asking this question. He says, what do
you mean by this? He said, I've heard that many of you are using this
proverb, you're using this common saying concerning the land of Israel, saying the
fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge. So this
is a proverb that people are saying, a thing that people are often saying, and
what you say, what was it? Here's what they were saying, they were saying, the
fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge. Notice
verse 3, as I live, saith the Lord God, ye shall not have occasion. He said, you're
not going to have the opportunity anymore to use this proverb in Israel.
And here's what the proverb is about. The proverb is about shifting the blame, and
earlier this year, I preached an entire three-part series on personal
responsibility, and if you remember, we talked about passing the buck and
bucking up and all those things, and this is what this proverb is about. It's about
passing the buck. It's about shifting the blame, playing the blame game, and what
these people are saying, they're saying, the reason that we are suffering, the
reason that the children's teeth are set on edge, is not because of anything we
did, but because of what our fathers have done. They're saying, the fathers have
eaten the sour grapes, they're the ones that took the action, and we are dealing
with the consequences. That's the saying that was going around during the time of
Ezekiel. Remember, Ezekiel is a captive in Babylon. He is living among the captives,
and the people there are saying, this is happening to us because of what the
previous generation said. But notice, God does not agree with that commentary. He
says, you will not have occasion anymore to use this proverb in Israel, and God
goes into, and Ezekiel goes into this chapter explaining the personal
responsibility, and what I want to do tonight is we're going to go through
this. I'd like to give you three principles for personal responsibility,
three principles we find in this chapter of personal responsibility, and I realize
I preached the whole series on responsibility earlier this year, but
it's where we're at in Ezekiel, and it's good for us to learn and be reminded
about responsibility. And let me say this, whenever, it's funny, I was just reading
an article earlier today, an article had nothing to do with my study of this, but
in that article I was reading about how when they have studied successful
people throughout the world, successful people in whatever area, careers or
whatever they're doing to be successful, what they have found is that there are
three major factors in regards to people being successful. There are three major
factors that help people be successful in whatever area of life they are in.
One is the ability to set and achieve goals, and what's interesting is that
we're actually going to talk about that on Sunday morning when we begin our
Peculiar People series, the ability to achieve and set goals. One is discipline,
and having character and the ability to make yourself do what you
know you should do, even though you don't want to do it. But the third factor for
success in people's lives is the ability to take personal responsibility. They
have found that when an individual learns to take personal responsibility
for their life, for their action, that is usually the turning point in which they
begin to live a more fruitful and successful life. And the reverse is true.
A loser in life, someone who you would not want your kids to grow up to be like,
is probably someone who is very low in personal responsibility. So what we're
going to do tonight is I'm going to give you three principles, three thoughts,
three ideas that people who are high in personal responsibility have not only
identified, but they've learned to live with these. They've learned to leverage
these for their own good. The first one is this, and I'd like you to write these
statements down. I've only got three of them. We hopefully won't be very long
tonight. On the back of your course of the week, you do have a place to write
down some notes, so if you don't have a baby sitting on your lap, maybe you can
write these down. Personal principles for personal responsibility. Number one,
here's the first statement, and then we'll look at it here in the text. Your
actions determine your outcome. Now, this is not deep. It's not deep at all,
but if you can get these principles and apply them to your life, here's what
successful people, here is what people who are high in personal responsibility
have identified in their lives. They have identified the principle that your
actions, your actions will determine your outcome in life. And here's what you need
to understand. Where you are in life right now, your current state is a result
of the prior decisions that you made up to this point. Notice Ezekiel 18 and
verse 4. Notice what the Bible says. Behold, all souls are mine. As the soul of
the Father, so also the soul of the Son is mine. Notice what God says. The soul
that sinneth, it shall die. Because remember, what they're saying is the
fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge, and God
says no, no, no. Let me correct that for you. Here's what you need to understand.
The soul that sinneth, it shall die. Not the soul of the Father that sinneth, the
Son shall die. He says you need to understand that you must take personal
responsibility. Notice verse 5. But if a man, now he's given us an example. He says
if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right, and hath not eaten upon
the mountains, neither had lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,
neither had defiled his neighbor's wife, neither have come near to a
menstruous woman, and hath not oppressed any, but hath restored to the debtor his
pledge, has spoiled none by violence, hath given his bread to the hungry, hath
covered the naked with a garment. So he's talking about the fact that they've kept
the Levitical, Mosaic laws. They've done good deeds. They've done charitable acts.
Notice verse 8. He that hath not given forth upon usury, neither had taken any
increase, that hath withdrawn his hands from iniquity, hath executed true
judgment between man and man, hath walked in my statutes, hath kept my judgments to
deal truly. Notice the words. He is just. He shall surely live, saith the Lord God.
Here's what God is saying. God is saying when my judgment comes upon this nation
for your wickedness and for your sinfulness, he says please understand
this, that no one is going to have the judgment of God upon their lives because
of what someone else did. In fact, God says I will make sure that your actions
determine your outcome, and if you live right, and if you do right, and if you do
the things that you know you should be doing, things will work out in the end
for you. And the perfect example, go to Galatians chapter 6. In the New Testament
you have Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1st, 2nd Corinthians, Galatians. When you
get to Galatians, put your ribbon or a bookmark or your bullet in there. We're
gonna leave it and we're gonna come right back to it, so make sure you can
get there. But the perfect example of this is Jeremiah. If you remember
Jeremiah is Ezekiel's contemporary. He, Ezekiel is in Babylon preaching. Jeremiah
was in Judah preaching. Jeremiah of course started his ministry before the
Babylonian takeover, and if you read the book of Jeremiah, it takes you from
before the Babylonian takeover, in the myths of the Babylonian takeover, and
after the Babylonian takeover, and then the book of Lamentations as well, after
the Babylonian takeover. And what's interesting about the book of Jeremiah
is that God's wrath got poured out on Judah, and Babylon came in and
everything that had been prophesied happened, but you know what? Jeremiah was
fine. He was safe. God took care of him. With all the chaos around him, with all
the grieving around him, with all the issues around him, God took care of
Jeremiah. Why? Because he was righteous, because he did right, because your
actions determine your outcome, and your current state is a result of prior
decisions. And I know you know these verses, but let's look at them together.
This is often referred to, or this concept is called the concept of
reaping and sowing. Galatians chapter 6, notice verse 7. Be not deceived. Be not
deceived. See, when you want to shift the blame, when you want to pass the buck, when
you want to play the blame game, and say that the fathers of Venus tower grapes,
and that's why our teeth are set on edge, and you want to say it's somebody else's
fault, somebody else's, because they did this, and because they did that, now I'm
suffering the consequences. God says, be not deceived. You are
deceiving yourself. God is not mocked. Notice, for whatsoever a man soweth, that
shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh, shall of the flesh reap
corruption, but he that soweth to the Spirit, shall of the Spirit reap life
everlasting. Here's what he's saying. He's saying your life is a result of the
decisions that you've made. Your actions determine your outcome. Your current
state is a result of prior decisions, and here's what successful people have
learned. Here's what people that are high in responsibility have learned. They've
learned this principle, and instead of telling cute stories, and cute proverbs,
and stories about why it's not the case, and why I'm the exception, and listen, if
you got up here, and you told us your story about why, you know, you failed in
this, and you failed at that, and you didn't make it, and you told us your
story, we might all agree with you. We might all cry with you. We might all weep
with you. We might all accept your story, but at the end of the day, it's still you.
It's still your life. It's still your outcome, and what people who are high in
personal responsibility have found is that their actions will determine their
outcome, and then we see the second principle. Keep your place in our
Galatians. We're gonna come right back to it. Go back to Ezekiel. Notice the second
principle we find in the story. The first principle is the principle of your
actions determine your outcome. Your actions
determine your outcome. Your current state is a result of prior decisions.
Here's principle number two. You will bear your own consequences. You will bear
your own consequences, and here's what Ezekiel is teaching the people. No matter
what others do, no matter what others do, at the end of the day, you are
responsible for yourself, and no matter what others do, you will bear your own
consequences. The actions of others do not have to dictate your outcome. Notice
what he says. Ezekiel 18. Look at verse 10. Now what he does is he begins to give
us a series of examples, and he's going to use the example that it's interesting
to be, you know, here we are reading a book that would be considered ancient
literature. Hundreds of hundreds and maybe, I guess not thousands, but
definitely hundreds, maybe I think 600 or 700 years before Christ, so thousands of
years for us, but less than a thousand years before Christ. The book of Ezekiel
was written, and he's talking about personal responsibility, and he says, let
me bring up someone who you are trying to blame, because remember in the story,
in the proverb, who are they blaming? They're saying the fathers have eaten
sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge. Well, here's what's
interesting. Today in America in 2018, you go to the average psychiatrist, and you
walk in, and you say, my life's a mess. My marriage is falling apart. My kids hate
me. I'm broke, and I'm in debt, and I don't have a career, and I'm this, and I'm that,
and the psychiatrist looks at you and says, lay down. Tell me about your father.
Tell me about your mother. You know, people are often trying to blame their
parents, and look, you may have had some pretty lousy parents. You may have had
some pretty bad parents. I'm not going to sit here and try to pretend
that. Some of you may have not grown up in some environments that were pretty
bad, but here's what you need to get, and here's what people that have high levels
of responsibility understand. No matter how lousy, no matter how bad,
no matter how bad of a job my parents did in raising me at the end of the day,
I am responsible for my actions. And here's what he says. He says,
let me give you this example. He says, the actions of your parents do not
define you. Notice verse 10. He says this, if he, now remember,
we're talking, because he started talking to us about this guy, right?
This guy who does right, he follows the Mosaic law, he's charitable,
he's kind, and God says, look, I'm going to take care of him. Why?
Because your actions determine your outcome. But then he says this, if he,
if that guy, the good guy that we just read about, beget a son.
Now, notice his son is different. His son, notice, that is a robber,
a shudder of blood, and that doeth the like to any of these things,
and that doeth not any of those duties, but even hath eaten upon the mountains,
and defiled his neighbor's wife, hath oppressed the poor and needy,
hath spoiled by violence, hath not restored the pledge,
and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination,
hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase.
Notice what he says, because we're talking about the guy's son.
The first guy was a good guy, but then he has a son, and his son is bad.
He's a robber. He doesn't follow the commandments of God.
He's doing all these things, and notice what he says.
At the end of verse 13, he says, shall he then live?
He asked a question. Here's the answer.
He shall not live. He hath done all these abominations.
He shall surely die. His blood shall be upon him.
And here's what he's saying. Here's what he's trying to explain to the people.
He's trying to explain to the people that someone who does wrong,
but has righteous parents, those righteous parents are not going to help
the consequences that that individual has to deal with.
What he's trying to teach them is this.
There is no such thing as communal righteousness.
And look, whether it's your parents, or whether it's your husband,
or whether everybody's always trying to tell us when we're out sowing him.
Do you know for sure if you died today, if you're on your way to heaven?
Well, I've got an aunt that's a preacher.
Well, there's a lot of problems with that statement.
Well, I've got an uncle who's a Baptist minister.
That's got to account for something. No, actually, it accounts for nothing.
Because there is no such thing as communal righteousness.
It doesn't matter if your parents, or your grandparents,
or people that came before you did right.
If you're wrong, you will bear your own consequences.
Then he says this. He says, let me give you another example. Look at verse 14.
He says, now lo, if he, so now we're talking about the bad guy.
They had a good grandfather, or a good father, excuse me.
He says, lo, if he beget a son that seeth all his father's sin, which he hath done.
I love this phrase. You ought to underline this in your Bible.
And consider it.
Does that remind you of Mary and Joseph?
We learned about them on Sunday.
They pondered in their hearts. They kept all these sayings.
You say, Pastor Mendez, you don't understand. I grew up in a really bad environment.
I grew up with parents that really set me up for failure.
If I told you my story, look, you say, what should I do?
Here's what you should do.
You should consider.
And consider it, notice, and doeth not such like.
See, I grew up in a bad environment.
Well, consider that.
Consider that you don't want to raise your kids in the same type of environment that you grew up in.
Consider that you don't want your kids to have to grow up with the same temptations,
and the same stumbling blocks that you grew up with.
And consider it, and doeth not such like, verse 15,
that hath not eaten upon the mountains,
neither have lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,
and hath not defiled his neighbor's wife,
neither hath oppressed any, hath not withhold him the pledge,
neither hath spoiled my violence,
but hath given his bread to the hungry,
and hath covered the naked with a garment,
that hath taken off his hand from the poor,
that hath not received usury, nor increased,
hath executed my judgment, hath walked in my statutes.
Notice, he shall not die for the iniquity of his father.
He shall surely live.
And here's what he's trying to explain to the people.
He's trying to explain to them that the actions
of your parents do not define you.
The actions of others do not have to dictate your outcome.
You and you alone will bear the consequences of your actions.
There is no such thing as communal righteousness,
and there's no such thing as communal wickedness.
Notice verse 18.
As for his father, right, because we just saw a guy
that got raised in a really bad home,
was raised in a really bad environment.
He considered and said, you know what?
I'm going to change my family tree.
I'm going to change my family legacy.
I'm going to turn this thing around,
and I'm going to do something different.
And you say, well, what about his dad?
Well, notice verse 18.
As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed,
spoiled his brother's violence, and did that which
is not good among his people, lo,
even he shall die in his iniquity, yet say ye, why?
Doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father?
When the son hath done that which is lawful and right.
Here's what they're saying.
But is that right, God?
And here's what God, God's response is this.
When the son hath done that which is lawful and right
and hath kept all my statutes and has done them,
he shall surely live.
Notice verse 20.
The soul that sinneth, it shall die.
The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father,
neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son.
And by the way, the reverse is true.
The son shall not bear the blessing of the father,
neither shall the father bear the blessing of the son.
The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him,
and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
No such thing as communal righteousness.
No such thing as communal wickedness.
Now let me just say this and go to Galatians chapter six.
Let me say this.
Obviously how you are raised can have a huge influence
and impact on the choices you make.
Obviously if you study people's lives
or if you read statistics or things,
we understand that when your parents smoke,
that makes you a lot more likely to become a smoker.
If your parents were alcoholics and drunkards,
that's gonna make you way more likely to be a drunkard.
If you were raised in an environment with drugs,
then you're gonna be way more likely to be into drugs.
We understand that the environments you grew up in
are going to have a huge influence on the choices you make,
but the choice is still yours to make.
And what people who have developed
high personal responsibility understand,
they understand that you will bear your own consequences.
And you may have a good story.
You may have a nice proverb.
You might be able to tell us all about,
let me tell you about how I grew up
and my mom did this and my dad did this
and my uncle did that,
and then I grew up on this side of the town
and I didn't have this and I didn't.
And you might tell us all those things
and we might walk away saying, wow, that is so bad.
But at the end of the day, you still bear the consequences.
And what successful people,
what highly responsible people have found
is that it does not matter what they did.
It does not matter.
And I don't mean it doesn't matter in the sense
that it doesn't matter that it happened to you.
It doesn't matter in the sense
that you don't have to suffer their consequences
because the choice is yours to make.
Galatians 6, look at verse five.
Galatians chapter six, verse five.
Notice what the Bible says.
For every man shall bear his own burden.
You don't have to bear somebody else's burden
and somebody else will not bear your burden.
Every man will bear his own burden.
Go back to Ezekiel 18.
We're looking at three principles from this chapter.
Principle number one, your actions determine your outcome.
Your actions determine your outcome.
Your current state is a result of prior decisions.
Principle number two, you will bear your own consequences.
No matter what others do, you are responsible for yourself.
No matter what others have done,
you will bear your own burden.
You say, well, that's not fair.
That's exactly what they're telling God.
It's not fair.
And here's the thing, you're right, it's not fair.
Life's not fair.
Life's not fair and then you die.
And you say, well, it's not right.
And you can sit there and say, it's not right,
it's not right, it's not right.
While your marriage falls apart,
while your children fall apart,
while your finances fall apart,
you can say, it's not fair, it's not right.
Or you can say, it's not fair,
but I'm not gonna let that stop me.
It's not fair, but I'm not gonna let that define me.
And I'm going to realize that at the end of the day,
I must bear the consequences of my actions.
And my actions will determine my outcome.
Here's what people who are high
in personal responsibility understand.
Number three,
they understand this.
Direction determines destination.
Notice what God says here, Ezekiel 18, verse 21.
But he just got done telling us,
your actions determine your outcome.
You will bear your own consequences
no matter what anybody else has done for you
or not done for you, set you up for failure.
He says this, but if the wicked will turn,
again, this is not about salvation.
We're talking about being physically,
people get into heresy when they take passages
that are about physical salvation
and they apply them to spiritual, gospel,
your soul being saved and going to heaven when you die
and not going to hell.
Same thing people want to do in Matthew 24.
It's about the physical tribulation.
If you endure unto the end,
you'll be saved from the tribulation physically.
People say, oh, see, that means
that's the perseverance of the saints.
You gotta make it to the end.
No, you're taking that out of context.
And anybody who tries to teach
that you have to repent of your sins in order to be saved,
out of Ezekiel 18, is taking it out of context.
Notice what he says, verse 21.
But if the wicked will turn from all his sins
that he hath committed and keep all my statutes
and do that which is lawful and right,
he shall surely live, he shall not die.
All his transgressions that he hath committed,
they shall not be mentioned unto him.
In his righteousness that he hath done, he shall live.
Have I any pleasure at all
that the wicked should die, saith the Lord God,
and not that he should return from his ways and live?
Now let me just take a break from the sermon for one second
and just deal with verse 23.
Because for those of us who preach the reprobate doctrine,
Ezekiel 18, 23 is often thrown in our face.
Because we'll get up and say,
people that have rejected God and rejected God
and rejected God, they had the opportunity
to say he rejected the truth, they didn't want to hear it.
And then we'll say, like Jeremiah,
I'm not going to mourn the death
of a stinking pedophile reprobate.
I don't really care if they die and go to hell.
That's where they, there's nothing
that anybody can do for them.
And people will say, well, God says,
have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die,
saith the Lord God, and not that he should return
from his way and live?
Well, number one, remember,
Ezekiel 18 is not about spiritual salvation.
So your application doesn't apply.
But let's just pretend it did.
Let's just say we're wrong, Ezekiel 18 is actually the,
I mean, good night, forget the Romans road,
you need to be preaching the Ezekiel road.
Ezekiel 18 is the clearest passage
on salvation in the Bible.
This is the gospel presentation.
Let's say that was true, it's not.
But let's say that was true.
You're still wrong.
Because notice, these people aren't reprobates.
You say, how do you know?
Because they still have a chance.
Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die,
saith the Lord God, notice,
and not that he should return from his way.
See, the guy he's talking about,
if he turned, God would be happy with it.
A child molesting pedophile, God's not gonna be happy
that that guy shows up at church on Sunday morning.
And I'm not gonna be happy that guy shows up
at church on Sunday morning.
And you shouldn't be happy that that guy shows up
at church on Sunday morning.
So even if you try to apply to salvation,
this guy's not a reprobate,
because you know what, a reprobate is someone
who does not have the opportunity anymore.
They don't have the chance.
They've crossed the line.
Jesus said, I'm not even gonna preach to them,
I don't even want them to hear it,
I'm gonna speak in parables to them
so they won't understand.
So even if you try to apply to salvation,
you're still wrong.
So look, obviously, look,
if someone has the ability to be saved,
let's get him saved.
You know, if that's how you wanna apply it,
then let's apply it that way.
Give people the benefit of the doubt
and try to get them saved or whatever,
but once they've proven themselves to be a reprobate,
you know what, they're done.
And it doesn't even apply here.
But notice what he's saying.
He's saying, look, and that's just,
I just wanted to deal with that,
because that's the verse that people have to bring up.
But the context and the teaching here is this,
that if someone does wrong and they turn,
that they can change their direction,
and when they change their direction,
their outcome will change,
because direction determines destination.
And then he gives us another example, verse 24.
But when the righteous turneth,
now this is a bad example,
there's a good guy doing wrong.
But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness,
and committed iniquity,
and doeth according to all the abominations
of the wicked man doeth,
shall he live?
All his righteousness that he hath done
shall not be mentioned.
In his trespass that he hath trespassed,
and in his sin that he hath sinned,
in them shall he die.
And by the way, what we can learn from that is this,
that it is more important to finish right.
Well, I started right, but did you finish right?
Because here's the thing,
you can start right and finish wrong,
and no one will remember all the right things you did.
Here's what's interesting.
You can start wrong and finish right,
and you can be like the apostle Paul.
Now the best thing would be to just start right
and finish right.
But it's more important to end right
than it is to start right.
You know, if David, don't we all wish that David
would have just not had that episode
with Bathsheba of adultery?
You know what, it's always gonna be
David and Goliath, David and Bathsheba.
Because when you do wrong, when you do wrong,
that's what people remember.
That's what gets written down.
And here's what he's telling them.
He's telling them, look, direction determines destination.
If you go in the wrong direction,
you're gonna end up where you don't want to go.
Go to Proverbs, just real quickly.
Proverbs, we're almost done.
Proverbs, chapter number four.
And I've showed this to you, I think, recently,
but let me just show it to you again.
Proverbs, chapter four.
You open up your Bible, just right in the center,
you're more than likely found in the book of Psalms.
Right after Psalms, you have Proverbs.
People who are high in personal responsibility
do not only understand that their actions
determine their outcome, do not only understand
that they must bear their own consequences
no matter what other people have done around them,
but they understand this,
that direction determines destination.
That direction determines destination.
And wherever you get to, or wherever you find yourself
in life, you did not get there by accident.
You took purposeful steps to get there.
Look, these bums out here, living out there in the cold,
all high on drugs or whatever, unemployed,
have burnt every bridge, every relationship in their lives
there were no one, I mean, they had a mom,
they had a dad, they had somebody,
they had a friend, I mean, they've gotten to the point
where no one is willing to take you in.
You say, oh, poor people, no, no, no.
They took purposeful steps that brought them to that place.
Direction determines destination.
And often, when we're making choices in life,
we don't have the wisdom to look ahead and think,
where is this going to take me?
You see the 18-year-old and the 19-year-old and 21-year-old
who's out there partying and drinking and doing drugs
and thinking, wow, I'm just having a good time,
I'm just having fun.
They don't realize that they're taking steps
in a direction that's gonna take them somewhere
they don't wanna go.
Because direction, people who are high
in personal responsibility, you know what they understand?
They understand this, that direction determines destination.
And if I start taking steps in the wrong direction,
I'm going to end up in a destination that I don't want.
You say, well, what does a person in high responsibility do
when they get there?
Here's what they do.
They turn around.
They turn, they turn from the steps that they were taking.
They go in a different direction.
You're there in Proverbs four, look at verse 11.
Notice what the Bible says.
Notice the emphasis that Solomon tells his son here.
Proverbs chapter four, verse 11.
I have taught thee in the way,
notice the word way there, of wisdom.
I have led thee in right path, notice the word path there.
When thou goest thy, notice this word, steps,
shall not be straightened.
And when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.
Take fast hold of instruction, let her not go,
keep her for she is thy life.
Verse 14, enter not into, notice the wording,
the path of the wicked and go not in, notice the wording,
the way of the evil man.
Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it and pass away.
Notice verse 18, but the path of the just
is as the shining light that shineth more and more
unto the perfect day.
Notice verse 19, the way of the wicked is as darkness.
They know not at what they stumble.
Look at verse 26, ponder, Mary, ponder the,
notice, don't miss it, the path of thy feet
and let all thy ways be established.
You think that Solomon's trying to make a point here?
He's saying, son, consider the way you're going,
the path you're taking, the steps you're taking,
the path, the way, the path, the way, the path, the way.
You say, why would Solomon say this?
Here's why, because direction determines destination
and the steps you're taking, the path you're on
will determine where you end up.
Look, and you say, well, I'm not happy where I am.
Please get this, you will be what you are becoming.
You will be what you are becoming and you are today
what you were becoming yesterday.
See, the wonderful thing about life is that you have
the wonderful privilege to change it.
If you don't like where you're at, then change it.
If you don't like what the future holds for you,
then change it.
If you don't like the way that your marriage is going
or your child ring's going or your finances are going
or your health is going, if there are things in your life
that you don't like, then change it.
Because direction determines destination.
Go back to Ezekiel 18, we'll finish up.
Ezekiel 18, verse 25.
Here's what he ends his talk with, his sermon with.
He says this, if you're doing right, stay with it.
Ezekiel 18, verse 25.
Yet ye say, the way of the Lord is not equal.
That's not fair.
Here now, O house of Israel, is not my way equal?
Are not your ways unequal?
It's really interesting to me how we always want everything
to be fair.
We always want everything to be fair and equal and right
when we're the judge.
But when we're the ones being judged,
you know what we want?
Grace.
You know what's not fair?
Salvation.
But you didn't complain about it
when you called upon God and Jesus for it.
It wasn't fair that Jesus had to take my sin,
but I'm thankful he did.
Here's what I'm saying.
Whenever you're saying it's not fair,
it may be because you're the judge,
you're the judgmental, critical,
and maybe this is the opportunity, like Joseph,
to extend grace.
Because usually when we're on the opposite end of that thing
we're not saying, man, it's not fair,
you should really fire me.
It's not fair, you should really divorce me.
You know what we're saying?
Extend grace.
So whenever you have the urge to say,
it's not fair, it's not equal,
consider the fact that you are the one
in the position to judge,
and that puts you in a position,
and I don't want to re-preach my sermon from Sunday night,
but that puts you in a position to extend grace
and mercy and forgiveness.
You say, why would I want to do that?
Because that'll make you like Christ.
Notice verse 26.
When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness
and comitteth iniquity and dieth in them
for his iniquity that he hath done,
he shall die.
Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness
that he hath committed,
and doeth that which is lawful and right,
he shall save his soul alive.
Because he considerth and turneth away,
and all his transgressions that he hath committed,
he shall surely live, he shall not die.
Yet saith the house of Israel,
the way of the Lord is not equal.
No house of Israel are not my ways equal,
are not your ways unequal,
therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel.
Everyone according to his ways saith the Lord God.
And here's what he's telling them.
He's saying, because direction determines destination,
here's what you should do.
Repent and turn yourselves from all your transgressions
so iniquity shall not be your ruin.
And people, people who are low in personal responsibility,
people who fail to understand the principles
that your actions determine your outcome,
that you will bear your own consequences
no matter what people have done around you,
and that your direction determines your destination.
You say, what do those people look like?
Well, they look like this.
They're iniquity, it's their ruin.
Cast away from you all your transgressions
whereby ye have transgressed,
and make you a new heart and a new spirit.
For why will ye die, O house of Israel?
For I have no pleasure in the death of him that die,
saith the Lord God.
Wherefore, turn yourselves and live ye.
And you know, this is a great lesson
to kind of learn as we end the year and begin a new year
because this new year is a great opportunity
for some of you to turn some of these things around.
Some of the direction you've been heading
and you have now realized that it's taking you somewhere
you do not want to go.
The beginning of a year is a great time
to turn those things around,
to get some new perspective and to decide
I'm going to begin to go in a different direction.
Because this is what people
who are high in personal responsibility do,
and people who are high in personal responsibility succeed.
They, as the chapter ends, live.
Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer.
Heavenly Father, thank you for your work,
thank you for this chapter,
thank you for the principles that we can learn from it.
And Lord, I pray that you would help
each and every one of us.
Lord, I pray that you'd help all of us
to not just hear these things,
but to apply them to our lives.
Lord, I pray that you would help us to be high,
help all of us to be high in personal responsibility.
Help us not to shift the blame.
Even if it's justified.
And even if it's not fair.
Help us, Lord, to learn these principles of responsibility
and to begin to live an abundant Christian life.
We love you, we thank you for your word.
In Jesus' name we pray, amen.