You have behaved more wickedly than your fathers. (Jeremiah 16:12)
When people ask why God had turned his face against them, Jeremiah was instructed to give this response: It is because your fathers forsook me and followed other gods and served and worshiped them . . . But you have behaved more wickedly than your fathers (vv. 11,12).
It's easy to blame previous generations for all the ills of the world. After all, I never took part in the crusades; I never owned a slave; I never turned a black man away from my place of business; I never sold guns to warlords or criminals; and I never dumped toxic wastes in a wildlife refuge. Don't blame me for the crimes perpetrated by those who came before me!
But the writers of the Bible don't let us off that easily. We all, like sheep, have gone astray; each of us has turned to his own way (Isaiah 53:6). All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).
Part of growing up is taking responsibility for our own actions and attitudes. Kids blame everyone else for their troubles. Adults don't get that luxury. In The Bait of Satan, author John Bevere writes: There is a false sense of protection in harboring an offense. It keeps you from seeing your own character flaws because the blame is deferred to another. [1]
Can you ask God to reveal where you might be culpable?
[1] John Bevere. The Bait of Satan. Rev. ed. (Lake Mary, FL: Charisma House, 2004), 60.
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