City on a Hill

Sins of Our Fathers

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In this episode, we begin to think about how we might interact with the sins of our fathers. Our guest last week got us thinking about how we interact with sins that others have done before us. Some are done by people we are related to. Others shape the places we live. Others are by institutions we are responsible for. We talk about how we process those sins.

NOTES:

Our interview last week with Sarah Sanderson, author of The Place We Make: Breaking the Legacy of Legalized Hate started us thinking about this topic.

Psalm 106:6-8 is one of many scriptures that talks about the sins of our fathers.

 Both we and our fathers have sinned; we have committed iniquity; we have done wickedness. 7 Our fathers, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wondrous works; they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea. 8 Yet he saved them for his name's sake, that he might make known his mighty power.

RECAP/TAKEAWAYS

  • We think of sin as exclusively individual when the Bible and many cultures throughout treat sins as corporate.
  • Identifying with the sins of my fathers is an exercise in humility. One of God's ordained ways to cultivate humility is identifying with sins of your fathers.
  • Two options are open to you beyond ignoring sin.
    • You can lament sin that is distant from you. Make it clear it is wrong or evil and express your sadness and regret at the consequences of it. Ask God to heal it. "How long oh Lord" is a refrain of lament.
    • Or, you can confess those sins that you identify with most closely.
    • Differentiate between sins done in the name of Jesus and sins that are committed by others.

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      MUSIC:

      Little Lily Swing, Tri-Tachyon, Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 International, https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tri-Tachyon/the-kleptotonic-ep/little-lily-swing

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