Ezekiel 18:21-24
21 “But if a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. 22 None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall live. 23 Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?” says the Lord God, “and not that he should turn from his ways and live?
24 “But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die.
In this passage from the Old Testament, we see a clear depiction of redemption. In this New Year, we need to understand that God does not abandon us because of our sins. If last year was painful and sorrowful, we can be sure that we do not have to carry those troubles any longer. We can have this assurance because Jesus Christ chose to carry our sins for us and if we repent, we are a new creation. The former things have passed and there is no condemnation for us. (Romans 8:1, 2Cor. 5:17) There is no debt we have to pay. This New Year is not another opportunity to pay for all of our wrongs. They have already been paid. It does not matter how we start, what matters is how God helps us finish. We have to leave behind all of our guilt and place this year in God’s hands. The past has been forgotten. This is not about being a better person in order to pay for all of the wrongs in the past but rather it is about our journey with God and discovering his wonders and mercies for this New Year.
On the other hand, this passage warns us if last year was a year of victory. We know that salvation is not based on works but on faith in Jesus Christ, but there is still a warning to heed. It does not matter if we served God faithfully last year and we had a special encounter with Him. This should not cause us to lower our defenses. We cannot take our walk with God leisurely. Every day, we need to immerse ourselves with his power in order to continue walking with Him and not allow ourselves to get caught up in worldly matters. Many times after walking with God we think that everything is fine and we do not seek Him. It is in these moments that we are most liable to fall into temptation and our enemy, the devil, slowly begins to tempt us with sin and then torment us with guilt.
We look forward to this New Year not trusting in ourselves, but in God, believing that we will see His glory in this New Year.
Happy New Year brothers and sisters! We pray for God’s blessings to manifest in your hearts, jobs, and families.
Josue Yrion Ministries
