"Parents shall not be put to death for their children, nor children for their parents. Each person shall be put to death for his own sin."
It seems that it is all the rage to pass blame around. Take for example our court system. Let’s say that you kill somebody. Obviously, it is not your fault. You couldn’t have committed such a heinous crime on your own. No, there are other factors to blame. It is your parent’s fault for not showing you enough love. It is your body’s fault for having the improper chemical makeup causing you to act out in improper ways. It is the Hollywood’s fault for glorifying murder. It is the rapper's fault for singing about his gat. It is the video game maker’s fault for encouraging violence.
The list goes on and on, but it seems that a winning defense can be built around blaming others for your own actions. But the Bible, especially the Law Code in the Old Testament is clear—we are responsible for what we do. I am tired of people copping out and blaming everything else. I don’t deny that our environments contribute to our personalities, or that our experiences play a role in our future decisions. I sympathize with those who have had to experience abuse or have seen things that people never should. But notice the verbs I used—“contribute” and “play a role.”
In the end, regardless of where we have come from or what has happened to us we still make our own decisions and we must be held responsible and accountable for them. Otherwise, I would like to see defenses in murder cases put the parents on trial, or Hollywood, or whomever or whatever else they think has caused the crime. Just as that sort of defense would be ludicrous, so too is it ludicrous to blame others for what each of us do. It is time for people to buck up, and take some responsibility. Only when we take responsibility will we be able to fully accept God’s grace and forgiveness, which is the first step in the process of growing into better people.
No comments:
Post a Comment