Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 20:1-32 (day one)
“Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel and say to them. . .’I will not let you inquire of me.’ ” (v 3) In the seventh year of their exile, a strange and sad moment comes for the leaders of Judah in Babylon. After much adversity they are ready for spiritual help, only to find that God is unwilling to communicate with them. So long as the idols of Egypt are still secretly in their homes (see v 7), and so long as they remain resistant to the faithful participation in the covenant sign of Sabbath, He will be fiercely silent. Most of forget that repentance from sin is part of the faith equation. “Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” (Isaiah 59:2) Why should God face us until we are willing to face ourselves and our sin?
Category: Jeremiah & Ezekiel
Is it a choice?
Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 18:1-18 (day seven)
“Suppose there is a righteous man who does what is right. . .he will surely live. . . Suppose there is a violent son who sheds blood . . .he will surely be put to death.” (v 5,9,10, 13) One of the great moral debates of this generation centers around same sex attraction and homosexual behavior. Is it a choice? “No”, say those who advocate for societal acceptance. “This is the way God made me”. The scientific data is still indefinite. However, one thing is certain. Even within the variations of our attractions and sexual interest there are very real choices being made. Do I come to God with my sexuality? Do I subordinate it to His holy will or does it become an idol? Do I participate in impurity? NONE of us can control all circumstances of interior or exterior life. ALL of us have choices that either lead to freedom or bondage. In that sense, it is a choice!
Unlearning Old Proverbs
Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 18:1-18 (Day 6)
“What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel: ‘The fathers eat sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge?’ As surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel.” (vs. 2-3). Ezekiel knew it. When God works in our lives, things change! What we think. What we expect. Even old proverbs (unchallenged and oft quoted statements of truth) are discarded. “God helps those who help themselves” is a modern example. Those of us who have experienced God’s grace would never say it. We are more likely to say, “For by grace you have been saved through faith.” Just as Ezekiel predicted, encountering God teaches us new truths. Old proverbs unlearned, check! New ideas embraced, check!
American Idols
Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 18:1-18 (day five) All the talk of idols seems really outdated and not applicable to 21st Century American Christian Culture. Right?? Wrong!! That’s what I was thinking until I began reading a book I just purchased by Kyle Idleman. He writes, “What if the gods of here and now are not cosmic deities with strange names? What if they take identities that are so ordinary that we don’t recognize them as ‘gods’ at all? What if we do our ‘kneeling’ and ‘bowing’ with our imaginations, our cash, our search engines, our calendars? What if I told you that every sin you are struggling with, every discouragement you are dealing with, even the lack of purpose you’re living with are because of idolatry?”
So, I again have such a respect and hope in reading the scripture. I also have an opportunity to search my heart and life and look for idols while reflecting on Ezekiel 18.
Active Faith
Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 18:1-18 (day four) Verse 9 says, “if He walks in My statutes and My ordinances so as to deal faithfully-he is righteous and will surely live, declares the Lord God.” This verse seems to mirror the message found in Habakkuk 2:4. “…the righteous will live by his faith.” When we live by faith, we live in obedience to God’s commands. Ezekiel has listed a number of things that the righteous man will or will not do. Faith is a very active state…when we walk by faith, we are not passive and inactive. Some believe that to walk by faith is blind, thoughtless motion…not so! Faithfulness is yielding to God’s way of life…putting aside our prideful pursuit of our own will. In Romans 1:17, Paul introduced this same truth into his own theology…”the righteous man will live by faith.” The truths of God’s Word never change…it is still true today!
Responsibility
Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 18 (Day Three)
“I will judge each of you according to your own ways.” If that is so, are we off the hook for the kind of society we live in? Does the prophet’s declaration of the Lord’s word in fact create a public/private divide so that as long as I remain pure in my behavior, I bear no responsibility addressing what goes on around me? The Pharisees thought so. In truth, though, Ezekiel’s words do nothing of the sort. Because we are responsible for our own sin, the question is not, “Why did my ancestors get us here?” Rather, the question becomes: “What am I going to do about the world in which I live?”
Standing On Our Own
Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 18:1-18 (day two)
Each year when I was in the classroom I would meet young people with varying degrees of baggage (spiritual, physical, emotional, etc.). And the more I got to know each of them and their personal stories, I realized much of what they brought to the table was somehow inherited. Like it or not the consequences of our sin will impact our children. It was always disheartening to see the damage parental choices cause their children. But there is another side to that story. I would often see children who were not encumbered by those choices. Young men and women who realized the folly of their parent’s decision and pledged to take a different path. Their journeys were often more difficult than others, but they understood the reward more clearly than anyone else. This is the promise in Ezekiel and thanks be to God that we are no longer condemned by the sins of our parents. God has given each of us a place to stand and choose which path we will take.
New day. No victims.
Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 18:1-18 (day one)
” ‘The fathers eat the sour grapes, but the children’s teeth are set on edge’. . . you are not going to use this proverb in Israel anymore.” (v 2-3) It was radical thinking! After Jerusalem was destroyed, the people of Judah began to drift into despondent “national fatalism”. They felt helpless and hopeless because God was judging them for the sins of their parents. There was no way out! Very similar to a modern mistake. Many feel trapped by the mistakes their parents made, wounded, helpless to do anything about it. Ezekiel saw a different day coming. (He saw the day we live in now.) He saw a day when people could know the empowering presence of God through a personal relationship with Him by faith in His Son. We are not victims now! What our parents did or didn’t do, what our circumstances gave or didn’t give does not limit who we can be in Christ.
A “stand up” person
Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 1:28; 2:1-10; 3:1-4 (day seven)
“Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.” (2:1) We are not helpless, not without strength or duty. God instructs us to stand up. Makes it a condition for further communication with us. It requires courage. Large challenges are ahead. The Holiness of God and our consequent fear of failure will discourage us from trying. Even so, God does not want us to cower or retreat from Him or His holy assignment. He wants us to stand at attention and accept His commission. It was true for Ezekiel and Joshua and true for us. “Be strong and courageous. . .only be strong and courageous. . .Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:6-7.9) Most of us would rather take a nap. God commands us to stand and face a holy and demanding vision.
Stubborn and obstinate
Re: Verse reading–Ezekiel 1:28; 2:1-10; 3:1-4 (day six)
“I am sending you to. . . stubborn and obstinate children.” (2:4) It was more verdict than compliment. When God described the people of Judah, He focused on their pride, their resistance to change. I have recently become aware of this same stubbornness in my own life. I am slow to respond to the voice of the Spirit if the direction is not what I want. Unconsciously, habitually, I prefer my will over His, turning to Him as a “last resort”, only when I have tried everything else. Dangerous! The human heart is not naturally soft to the Spirit. Unless I HUMBLE MYSELF, my ego will stay unchallenged and in charge. James describes the painful process. “Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy into gloom. Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.” (James 4:9-10) Repentance from self is the painful grace of God.