Reparations
is the same as Restitution which means to compensate, pay
back, restore , heal, redemption, etc. for an injustice, wrong deed or sin
done to God and/or the community of Humanity.
The Hebrew Prophet Moses
teaches that the way to atonement
with God and Humanity is via
heartfelt confession of wrong doing and making AMENDS -
REPARATIONS-RESTORATIONS, even adding 20% of the principal or original
offense.
Read and Study
HEBREW HOLY SCRIPTURES – The Torah, or “Old Testament of the Bible in
Leviticus 5 and most particularly Leviticus 6:1-7
Reparations
IS
GENERATIONAL Responsibility. God
will hold one Generation responsible and accountable for the wrongdoing of
previous ones…even thousands.
The Second
Commandment of the Decalogue (Ten
Commandments) states that GOD will hold children –
descendants responsible for the deeds of parents – ancestors…
“visiting the iniquity (rebellions-sins) of the
fathers” – ancestors “upon the children” – (descendants) “to the third and
fourth generation of them that hate me” (Exodus20:5) and
“….recompenses (compensate-pay back) the
iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after
them….” (Jeremiah 32:18).
GENERATIONAL
RESPONSIBILITY
is found in the prayer of Prophet Daniel.
He prays “O Lord, to us (today) belongs the confusion of faces, to our
kings, to our princes, and to our fathers (ancestor of
yesterday), because we (generational-collectively, past & present) have
sinned against thee…because of our sins (today) and the iniquity of our
fathers (ancestors of yesterday) (Daniel 9 9-13)
Moses
teaches “and they shall pine (slowly die) away in
their iniquity, also in the iniquities of their fathers shall they pine away
with them” And “if they confess their
iniquity (sin), and the iniquity of their fathers (ancestors)…”
GOD
REMEMBERS
Humanity may forget the
past sins of their ancestors against another people, but GOD does not.
* The SOLIDARITY
and ONENESS of ANCESTORS/DESCENDANTS:
GOD who is eternal, and presides
over time, resides in the past, present and future simultaneously, observing
and noting the behavior of each generation in their respective times on
earth.
RESTITUTION: THE
PRINCIPAL PLUS.
Moses teaches that when a person has
done wrong in the sight of GOD, violating any holy thing even though in
ignorance, once the trespass is made known, he/she is to seek
forgiveness from GOD and make atonement with HIM by confession, followed by
RESTORING to GOD, and/or humanity the PRINCIPAL and even to add a fifth
(20%) of the original principal.
It is only after
confession of wrong doing followed by REPARATIONS is forgiveness granted and
atonement finished.
In fact, Moses
also teaches that “if a soul sin and commit a trespass against the
LORD and lie unto his neighbor in that which was delivered him
to keep, or in fellowship, or in a thing taken away by violence, or hath
deceived his neighbor, or have found that which was lost and lies
concerning it, and swears falsely in any of all these that a man does,
sinning in it, that person must repent, confess RESTORE."
WE (today) are the
children (offspring-descendants) of our fathers (ancients-progenitors), and
simultaneously the fathers of our children.
I REMEMBER
Samuel
15:1-9 demonstrates that GOD remembers the deeds of one people against
another, even hundreds of years later. The fathers – ancestors of a people
known as Amalek unjustly attacked the ancestors of Israel
hundreds of years earlier.
Example: GOD
says “I remember”, not
Israel’s children, nor those of Amalek remembers, but rather GOD Himself
remembered… and HE is demanding REPARATIONS from Amaleks’
children.
RESTITUTION: THE PRINCIPAL
PLUS
Moses teaches that when
a person has done wrong in the sight of GOD, violating any holy thing even
though in ignorance, once the trespass is made known, he/she is to
seek forgiveness from GOD and make atonement with HIM by confession,
followed by RESTORING to GOD, and/or humanity the PRINCIPAL and even to add
a fifth (20%) of the original principal.
It is only after
confession of wrong doing followed by REPARATIONS is forgiveness granted and
atonement finished.
The Prophet Isaiah
says of GOD. “For behold the LORD comes out of HIS place to punish the
inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity (sin); the earth also shall
disclose (make publicly known) her blood, and shall no more cover her
slain.” (Isaiah 26:20-21)
JESUS and The Precepts of REPARATIONS
Jesus Christ
Himself teaches that without REPARATIONS, GOD will not hear prayer nor
receive praise and thanksgiving. (Mathew 5: 23-26)
Jesus Christ
says that when a person comes before GOD in prayer, but is somehow reminded
that their brother is offended or has something against him or her, that
person is to leave off seeking GOD and go make amends (confession of the
wrong, be remorseful about it, seek to make repairs) for any damages
done according to the teaching of Moses.
Then,
and only then is that person to resume their prayerful relationship
with GOD Who IS the AUTHOR of Reparations (Mathew5:23-26).
"Therefore, if you bring your gift to the
alter (of GOD), and there you remember that your brother
has something against you;
leave your gift before the alter, and go your way; first be reconciled to
your brother and then come and offer your gift."
In the Last Day, the Day of Judgment,
JESUS CHRIST as JUDGE actually holds His own
generation accountable for the past deeds (sins) of generation gone by.
He says to His generation –
“you be (are) witnesses to yourselves, that you
are the children (descendants) of them that killed the prophets.
Fill you up then the measure of your
fathers (ancestors)… that upon you (the present generation) may
come (all) the righteous blood shed upon the earth… all these things shall
come upon this generation.” (Mathew 2:30-37)
NOTE: We (today) are
the children (offspring-descendants) of our fathers (ancients - fore fathers
- progenitors), and simultaneously the fathers of our children.
Reparations: Sign of the End of All
Generations - The Consummation
of the Ages
“And He (Elijah
the prophet) shall turn the hearts of the fathers-ancestors to the
children-descendants and the heart of the children – descendants to
their fathers- ancestors, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse”
(The Bible-Malachi 4:6)
