Does God hold you accountable for the sins of your forefathers? What about the sins of your nation? Joshua 7, 22:20, Numbers 16:1-40, Numbers 21 shows us how Yehovah will never hold us accountable for the sins of our forefathers or our country, but we will share in their guilt.
What is the difference?
The Bible says a believer in Christ (a Christian / a child of God) is someone who obeys the law of Moses and has become reconciled to Yehovah by the Blood of Yeshua (Jesus Christ.) Isaiah 53 says such a person is no longer under condemnation and judgment for individual sins (Rom 8:1-2). Still, they will be held accountable to the Mosaic law from now on (2.Chor 5:10.) And if they, for some reason, decided to disobey the law of Moses, they would lose their salvation and never be able to retrieve it. (Hebr 10, 1. John 3:9.) But as long as they live their lives following the law of Moses, they are living under the blessings of the law (Deut 28:1-14), showing their love for Yehovah (John 14) and will be blessed in return forgiven for their past sins. (Matt 6:25-34, John 3)
In Jeremiah 31:30, the Bible says we are each held accountable for our sins. Yehovah will never hold you responsible for the sins of another person, and others will never be held accountable for your sins. Collective judgment is not found in the Bible; you will never be judged for the sins of your fathers or great grandparents or your nation.
On the other hand, the Bible says that you will share in the collective guilt caused by others’ sins. Believers will be affected by others’ sins, and sometimes, we will even be casualties when the effects come upon the earth or the society we are a part of. This is what happens here in Joshua 7, 22:20, Numbers 16:1-40, Numbers 21.
We see this in the Exodus story; the first three plagues affected the Israelites just like the Egyptians, but the following seven did not. Why? Because the first three were not judgments, only consequences of the sins of the Egyptians.
This proves to us how we are believers share in the guilt and the consequence of others, but not in their judgment.
So as a believer, you share in the guilt of your nation, your family, the sins of your employer, your pastor, and your congregation. As a believer, you will experience the consequences of your nation’s sins, your family’s sins, the sins of your employer, your pastor’s sins, and the sins of your congregation. But Yehovah will not hold you accountable for their sins, so Yehovah will not judge you for something they did.
As a husband, your wife will not be judged for your sins, but she and your children will suffer the consequences and the guilt. Husbands, you have a responsibility to make sure your life is lived following the Mosaic law. You will be held accountable for the suffering your sins inflicted upon your wife and children.
Pastors, you have a responsibility to make sure your preaching and life is lived following the Mosaic law. You will be held accountable for the suffering your sins inflicted upon the members entrusted to your spiritual leadership.
Employers, you are responsible for making sure your life and business practices follow and obey the Mosaic law. You will be held accountable for the suffering your sins inflicted upon your employees.
What are we to do if we find ourselves working for someone who does not live up to their responsibility? What if we are members of a congregation where the pastor does not assume his or her responsibility? What if we are married to someone who does not take his responsibility? And what if we are citizens of a country where our leaders do not assume their responsibility?
You can find another job working for someone who obeys the law of Moses. You can find another congregation led by a pastor who obeys the Mosaic law. But you can not divorce someone who refuses to follow Moses’s law, and most of the time, you can not change your citizenship.
On a national level, we have to accept that we will suffer for our nation’s sins and rejoice over the fact that we will not suffer judgment. Because we share in our nation’s guilt, we have a responsibility to affect our nations’ outcome by involving ourselves in politics and voting.
On a personal level, we can pray for our spouse to assume his responsibility as a leader, and we can follow the Spirits guidance on how we can inspire him to do so. But you can never force him to change. As a woman of faith, you can rejoice over the fact that even though you and your children have to suffer for his sins, Yehovah will not hold you accountable for his sins. And if you are successful in changing him, the Bible says in Isaiah 53, Deut 28:1-14, Yehovah promises to remove most of the consequences and help you accept the rest. This is why it is so important as a woman you choose for your spouse a husband capable of leading his home according to the law of Moses.
Yehovah will never judge you for someone else’s sins, but you will share in their collective guilt. Make sure you do what you can get involved in politics, vote, leave your job or congregation if needed, and pray for and do what is possible so your husband can become the leader he is supposed to be.
But what happens if we do nothing if we are passive?
If a believer is passive and does not try to speak up against the evil sins committed by his employer, nation, her husband, or pastor, they will be judged for it and seen as committing the same sins. Suppose you choose not to get involved in politics, not voting, no doing nothing as a woman of faith to inspire your husband, continue as a member of a sinful congregation, or work for a wicked employer. In that case, you will not only share in their guilt; you will share in their judgment and perhaps lose your salvation.
Do not let that happen to you; guard your salvation even if it means having to become unpopular.
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