Who Sinned?

"There's one question," the man said at our Bible study, "that I don't understand. When an innocent child dies, whose fault is it? Is it a sin of the mother or the father or is it some sin of the uncle? I've asked a lot of people and nobody seems to really know."

In this culture, people believe that when a child dies, he is being punished for the sin of somebody in his family. After the death of a child, the family and neighbors chatter about which person they think has some hidden sin and what that hidden sin might be.

"What do you think?" he asked.

"It doesn't matter what I think, although I'm happy to share my opinion. But let's look at a couple Bible texts first to see if we can find an answer."

John 9:1-7 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.  2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  3 Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.  4 I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.  5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  6 When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  7 And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.

With excitement, he realized that while the exact circumstances in this story were different, the question and root issue were the same. This passage helped a lot. I suggested that he read the rest of the chapter when he got home, as it discusses this question in more detail. At the end Jesus brings out a lesson on spiritual blindness.

"But if your neighbors came to you with this question, what would you tell them?" he persisted.

"What I say can be helpful, but others can argue that they think something different. But if we approach people with answers from God's Word, they can't argue with that. Let's look at another verse," I suggest, as Melody points to a passage in Ezekiel.

Ezekiel 18:19-20 "Yet you say, 'Why should the son not bear the guilt of the father?' Because the son has done what is lawful and right, and has kept all My statutes and observed them, he shall surely live.  20 The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself."

As he finishes reading this passage, a big smile of surprise and satisfaction spreads across his face. "That's enough. It couldn't be clearer. Now we know the answer to this difficult question! Thank you!"

"Thank God," I reply. "It is the Holy Spirit who brings texts to the thoughts and gives us wisdom."

(We did briefly touch on the topic that sometimes innocent people do suffer from other sins. For example, an alcoholic pregnant woman harms her baby. The son may be affected by his parents' sins, but he does not bear their guilt.)