Psalm 106:6 We have sinned, even as our ancestors did;
    we have done wrong and acted wickedly.

Awareness of sin is a strange thing. Some actions jump out at us, in our own lives or in the lives of those around us, and some we either don’t see or we don’t recognize as sin. That is certainly applicable in reference to our ancestors. All of us have “black sheep” somewhere in our family tree, but I don’t think most of us have much awareness of all the sins committed by our genetic ancestors. The thing is, the Bible is very clear that all have sinned, so our ancestors aren’t let out of that. In idolatrous countries, becoming a Christian involves recognizing that your ancestors were unbelievers, and that can be a very high step for some people. My wife had a friend who steadfastly refused to become a Christian because “My ancestors aren’t in heaven, and I’m supposed to go where they are.” She sadly had no real concept of hell, and one day she abruptly dropped dead. Ancestor worship, either formal or informal, is a very real thing in Japan. God’s grace is absolutely essential for every person in every age. Until we grasp that, we won’t be secure in our own salvation.

I find it particularly difficult to imagine the sins of my ancestors, at least in the short term, because they were active, faithful believers. It takes a real effort on my part to realize that they too had minds that wandered and hearts that sometimes hardened. I honestly don’t know of any “active sins” of my ancestors going back at least three generations, but thinking about my own heart, I do know that they were as human as I am, and that means they sinned. And that doesn’t touch on all the people My Heritage has come up with, tracing my family tree. I’ve got a lot of royalty in it, from England, France, Hungary and the like, so I can see that pride came naturally to me, and if it was sinful for me – which it certainly was – then it was equally sinful for them. I need to expand my awareness of the grace and mercy of God, to understand that He stands ready to extend it to all who will come to Him in repentance and faith. I have the privilege of sharing that truth with others, and I must not let it go to waste!

Father, thank You for this reminder. It’s not at all something I think about most of the time. Help me walk in humility all the time, so that I will be available for whatever You want to do through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!