WORSHIP GOD NOT YOUR ANCESTORS PART lll
Over the last two issues of our series, we concluded with a question based on Deuteronomy 18:9-22. Who is the Prophet that is to come to show us how to worship God?
What is an ancestor?
Before we look at the answer to our question, let’s look at what an ancestor is. According to Africa Mhlophe, ancestors are people who have lived and died and from whom we can trace our lineage (ancestry). The Bible embraces ancestors as people who have existed (Leviticus 26:42-45), but not as people who after having died play any fatherly or motherly role in the lives of those who are alive today.
‘The dead know nothing’
Look at Ecclesiastes This implies that the dead no longer have any knowledge of the living and/or any relationship with those who are still alive. Solomon even makes his point by using an illustration in verse 4 that a living dog is better than a dead lion – implying that a dead lion cannot protect or care for his or her young ones, but a living dog can.
