Luke 11:37-52
“Woe also to you lawyers!… from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it will be charged against this generation” (Luke 11:46, 51)
Over the last half-year or so, there’s been A LOT of talk around America’s racial history and its import for and impact on today. The most dismissive talk wants to try to perforate history in such a way that the sins of “yesterday” should not be held to account today. This talk is dismissive, not only because it betrays all logic, but more importantly because it rejects the Lord Jesus Christ. For our selection today makes it clear – and addressed the lawyers, who represent obviously enough the law – that all the blood from Abel to Zechariah will be charged against the current generation. Is it fair? It’s a moot point. Jesus has said it is such. All we can do is accept this judgment or cry out like the lawyers “when you say these things, you insult us too!” (verse 45).
But this devotional is not meant to be an apologetics for systemic racism (or, if you prefer more biblical language, for the generational curse of racism). That this exists is obvious to anyone who follows Jesus’ teachings and trusts them as a guide to Life. Instead, we should seek to reverse the “woe” that Jesus pronounces when He says, “Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge; you did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering” (verse 52).
Apparently, the reversal of the Lord’s woe over our lives comes in entering into knowledge and helping others do the same. And what knowledge is this? It is the knowledge that God has seen and condemned the sins from the past, in the present, and those that will be performed in the future; He has seen and condemned them all, but then sent His Son to be for us grace and salvation. It is the knowledge that though we may have mucked up the works royally, Christ the King has come to set things right. We can have hope. We must trust.
I often find myself extremely discouraged by Christians who don’t want to face the reality of generational sins squarely primarily because I know that means they won’t also get to see the God of grace move in their lives. It’s not just that they betray all reason, they also neglect all blessings. For our God is good – He is love – and so we can trust that even our worst will always be overwhelmed by His best. But only if we quit darting our eyes away from everything that makes us uncomfortable and steel our gaze upon what He is doing in the world. Amen.
