“Statutes that Were not Good”
When God brought the Israelites out of Egypt, He gave them good statutes and judgements: “And I gave them My statutes, and showed them My judgements, which if a man do, he shall even live in them. Moreover also I gave them My sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them” (Ezek 20:11-12).
After their repeated rebellions and refusals of God’s offers of mercy, God took away from them His good statutes: “Wherefore I gave them also statutes that were not good, and judgements whereby they should not live” (Ezek 20:25). God gave them up to their own invented laws, and to the customs of the heathen nations round about: “And I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that openeth the womb, that I might make them desolate, to the end that they might know that I am the Lord” (v 26). Whether “passing through the fire” describes the sacrifice of these children to false gods, or simply the dedication of these children to
false gods, is not clear; but either way, the firstborn, who ought to have been sanctified unto the Lord (Ex 13:2), were being devoted to devils.
God has dealt in a similar way with Britain. He has taken away the good Christian laws that we used to have, and has given us wicked laws of our own devising – laws which extend special protection to sins such as abortion, sodomy and transgenderism. Through abortion, we are sacrificing our children to women’s rights and to pleasure. The “right to abortion” has become a battleground for atheists against Christianity. Not only are these evil laws destructive of natural life, they are contrary to spiritual life. In the recent census, 51.1% of the people in Scotland stated that they had “no religion” – plainly declaring that they are presently on the path to “everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power” (2 Th 1:9).
DWBS
Corruption in Society
The former Conservative Government in the UK fell out of favour with the electorate for a number of reasons, not least of which was a perception of incompetence and corruption. They were seen to favour their friends when allocating government contracts, of which the Covid pandemic provided a prime example. At that time the Government was faced with the unprecedented problem of supplying, with extreme urgency, personal protective equipment in quantities never before envisaged. Due diligence was not followed, and accusations of cronyism were made, and in some cases apparently substantiated.
During this period when the country was in lockdown and people were placed in isolation, it turned out that many of those in Government held the attitude, Do as I say and not as I do, and some politicians were fined for breaches of their own recently enacted laws. Yet some in Government seemed neither to know or care that their behaviour conflicted with what is upright, honest and honourable. There is a greed and self-entitlement which tends to quieten the conscience and engenders self-justification.
A new government was elected as a new broom to sweep away sleaze and corruption. Yet we appear to be starting the whole sorry cycle again.
Outside Westminster other instances of corruption in high places may be cited. Seventy-two died in the fire in Grenfell Tower. According to the inquiry, there seems to have been a deliberate policy on the part of a number of suppliers and builders to conceal the fact that the cladding panels were extremely flammable. This known risk was ignored for the sake of profit. Following the fire, no one has accepted their share of responsibility.
Following the so-called “Horizon scandal” in the Post Office, the public inquiry showed that faults in the system were suspected, yet managers
preferred to continue the prosecution of innocent sub-postmasters and postmistresses than admit fault.
The Metropolitan Police, an organisation once greatly respected, with an international reputation for excellence, has been tainted by stories of sexism, racism and the covering up of corrupt behaviour by its officers. The police deserve our respect for the difficult and courageous work that they do, but there appears to be a prevalence of misbehaviour never heard of before.
Why are these things so? We have slipped our moorings and become irreligious, without respect for God or His Word. Restraining grace has been taken from us as a nation, and there is little respect for the basic decencies and honest relationships that were once held dear. The attitude of today’s society is, “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?” (Ex 5:2). And what is the solution? “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecc 12:13). FRD