Are Your Britches Getting Tight?

"Never get too big for your britches!"

That word of warning from our 33rd president, Harry Truman, was not intended to be diet or fashion advice.

He meant, "Don't get too full of yourself, too prideful or arrogant."

In Ezekiel 36, the God of Israel, Yahweh, wanted His people to learn that same lesson.

It was their pride and arrogance that had set up the Israelites for their acts of idolatry.

They had reasoned, "We are Yahweh's chosen people. We can get away with anything because He won't call us on it."

And so they worshipped false gods.

Which led to their punishment at the hands of the Babylonians.

In 597 B.C. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took the best and brightest of ancient Israel into captivity, leaving those left behind without leadership and without hope.

Eleven years later, the capital city of Jerusalem and its Temple were destroyed by fire.

With Israel's punishment completed, the time for promises had come.

Yahweh promised to restore the nation of ancient Israel, but He had this to say about it.

"It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of My holy name, which you have profaned (i.e., made common) among the nations where you have gone. I will show the holiness of My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them" (Ezekiel 36:22-23).

I'm not delivering you for your sake, but for Mine -- that's Yahweh's message to ancient Israel. It's also His message to us.

Quite frankly it seems a little rude, maybe even a little harsh. "You're saying, Yahweh, that we don't deserve deliverance, that we should simply be grateful that you deign to save us?"

And the answer to that question is "Yes!"

Yahweh's words to ancient Israel and to us are really the voice of His grace.

The voice of grace says, "You don't deserve it, but I'm delivering you anyway. And by the way, all the glory goes to the Lord, none to you."

It's only our sinful sense of pride that chafes at those words.

Our new nature as a follower of Jesus rejoices to sing:

By grace! None dare lay claim to merit;
Our works and conduct have no worth.
God in His love sent our Redeemer,
Christ Jesus, to this sinful earth;
His death did for our sins atone,
And we are saved by grace alone. Amen.
(Lutheran Service Book, 566. Public domain)