Category: Ezekiel-BibleTrekToday
Day 4–God Personally Cares!
Scripture reading for May 21: Ezekiel 34:15-16“I Myself will be the Shepherd of My sheep, and I Myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them justice.” John 10:14 “I am the Good Shepherd. I know My own and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.”
In this passage of Scripture, the Israelites are in Babylonian captivity because the leaders (shepherds) of their nation had failed them and many were sick, injured, and strayed. These lazy shepherds had been feeding themselves and not the sheep entrusted to their care. (Ezekiel 34:2-3) These shepherds had not strengthened the weak or healed the sick sheep. They had not bound up the wounds of the injured or rounded up those who had strayed into enemy territory. Instead of gentle care and correction, they had been harsh and mean. God’s people had become like sheep with no shepherd, and food for wild beasts. (Ezekiel 34:4-5)
God had raised up Ezekiel to speak to the people about this breakdown in leadership and His own plan to shepherd His people in righteousness. This passage reminds us of Psalm 23, where David calls God ‘my Shepherd.’ God would lead His people to green pastures and they would lie down in peace. He would seek the lost and bind up the injured and strengthen the weak. In justice, He would also deal with the leaders, here referred to as ‘fat and strong.’
As those charged with responding to people in need and often weak and injured, we must follow the example of our ‘Good Shepherd’ Jesus Christ. We are called to set aside our own agenda and plans and respond to the call for help from our community members. We use our skills and equipment to care for the hurting. We seek out those lost in a crisis and bring them to better pastures, medical treatment, and connect them with skilled assistance.
Prayer: Father God, thank You for sending Your Son as the Good Shepherd to care for the hurting and wounded. Thank You for calling me and others to represent Your great mercy and love to those who are hurting. Amen.
Week 2–Day 1–Jesus Loves the Hurting
Scripture reading for January 5: “Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin. Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn and live.” Ezekiel 18:31-32
Man’s biggest need is forgiveness for sins and transgressions. We have all broken God’s laws or crossed over His boundary lines. When we fall into sin, we are separated from God and damage our relationship with those around us. Our own soul becomes clouded in darkness. Scripture declares that all have sinned or transgressed and all have fallen short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23)
But God the Father sees everything and knows every heart, thought, and transgression. He loves each person and desires that none die for their transgressions. In today’s passage, God sent Ezekiel to His people with a call to repent. Repentance is a change of mind that precedes a change of direction. If we continue in sin, it will lead to our ruin. If we will confess and acknowledge our sins and turn from them in biblical repentance, God is faithful and will forgive us. Turning to God saves us from ruin and death.
As first responders to the calls of hurting people for help, we must always keep God’s love for hurting people as a foundation for our response. We enter each incident responding to people God loves and desires to help. We would do well to start each day with humble repentance and invite God to lead us in His ways to provide the help called for. We represent Him and are sent as an act of God’s love. He wants no individual to die or come to ruin.
Father God, thank You for Your love for each person, desiring their highest good and meeting their deepest needs. Search my heart today and reveal anything that displeases You. Fill me with Your love to respond to others who are in need. Amen.
Your sins have been your downfall!
Scripture reading for September 9: Hosea 12-14
“But I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt. You shall acknowledge no God but me, no Savior except me. I cared for you in the desert, in the land of burning heat. When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot Me. Hosea 13:4-5
For people who have been saved from sin and delivered by God from bondage, God’s love initially is so good and following Him is their heart’s delight. It would appear that such a people would love and follow God forever, enjoying the abundant life and celebrating their deliverance. (John 10:10) In Hosea, God tells how His once faithful and thankful people became proud and satisfied and forgot Him. (Hosea 13:6)
Pride is the sin that caused Satan’s downfall from the highest heavens. Satan desired to be like the Most High and to sit on the throne of God. God’s abundant blessing on his life in making him beautiful and giving him a place of honor brought out iniquity hidden there. (Ezekiel 28:1, 14-17) He was cast down from heaven’s glory to earth. Satan’s sin of pride was his downfall and now he tempts man made in God’s image with forgetting God and His grace!
“Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall! Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to Him: “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously; that we may offer the fruit of our lips.” ” Hosea 14:1-2
God’s mercy reaches toward those whose sins have taken them down! Hosea gave a wonderful altar call of repentance. Repentance is an act of faith in the patience, kindness, love and mercy of our Lord. We can offer Him nothing but ourselves and our words. Life and death are in the power of our tongue and confession brings life! (1st John 1:9) God desires to heal us and repentance restores the flow of His love. Check your heart and attitude today and ask God to expose any pride that could be your downfall.
“I will heal their waywardness and love them freely; for my anger has turned away from them.” Hosea 14:4 “Who is wise? He will realize these things. Who is discerning? He will understand them. The ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them.” Hosea 14:9
A River to Swim in!
Scripture reading for August 29: Ezekiel 44-48
As we close out Ezekiel, we come to the vision recorded in chapter 47. Ezekiel was taken by the man with the measuring line to the entrance of the temple facing east. There he saw a stream of water coming down from the south side from south of the altar. He then took Ezekiel out the north gate to the outside of the east gate and measured off a thousand cubits (450 meters or 1500 feet). Ezekiel found the water there to be ankle-deep. Another thousand cubits and the water was knee-deep and another thousand the water was waist-deep. A final thousand cubits and the water was so deep that he could not cross it by walking. Along the banks of the river, a great number of trees were growing. (Ezekiel 47:3-7)
Ezekiel was told by the man that the water entered the Dead Sea and there those waters became fresh. The waters were full of swarms of living creatures and large numbers of fish. Fishermen stood on the banks and cast their nets harvesting the fish. Fruit trees grew along the banks and they were always green and yielded fresh fruit each month. This fruit would be for food and the leaves of these trees would bring healing.(Ezekiel 47:8-12) Following this vision, there were detailed instructions about how to divide the land among the twelve tribes. Finally, the city of Jerusalem has 12 gates named after the twelve tribes of Israel. The name of that city will be “The Lord is There”. (Ezekiel 48:30-35)
This vision is similar to the Apostle John’s vision in the book of Revelation. John saw an angel with a measuring rod of gold who was measuring the city, it’s gates, and walls. (Revelation 21:15-21) The walls were made of precious stones and the gates were made of single pearls. The street of the city was pure gold! God’s presence filled the city with light and there was no need of sun or moon because of this glorious light! There was a river flowing from the throne of God down the middle of the street with trees bearing fruit each month. (Revelation 22:1-5) The leaves of these trees were for the healing of the nations! Best of all, God and the Lamb would be with His people and they would behold His face!
Do you have this river flowing in you? Come to Jesus Christ and drink freely of this water of life! Your Heavenly Father wants you to have His Holy Spirit filling your life to overflow. You will be eternally satisfied! (Revelation 22:17)
The Glory returns!
Scripture reading for August 28: Ezekiel 40-43
“Then the man brought me to the gate facing east, and I saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of rushing waters, and the land was radiant with His glory. The vision I saw was like the vision I had seen when he came to destroy the city and like the visions I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell face down. The glory of the Lord entered the temple through the gate facing east. The the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.“ Ezekiel 43:1-5
Ezekiel had been taken with the “hand of the Lord” upon him to the city of Jerusalem. (Ezekiel 40:1) It was not quite the “hair-raising” experience of his first trip! (Ezekiel 8:3) This time Ezekiel found a heavenly being with an appearance that glowed like bronze. This man had a linen cord and measuring rod in his hand and told Ezekiel to pay attention and tell the house of Israel everything he saw. This ‘man’ proceeded to measure everything in the temple and surrounding area, showing Ezekiel that the temple had been precisely rebuilt.
It was after this measuring job that Ezekiel beheld his vision of a returning Glory! He saw the cloud of glowing Glory coming from the east! The land was radiant with the glowing fire, and the Lord’s voice was like roaring waters! He saw the glory of the Lord enter the temple where it had departed, through the east gate! Suddenly, Ezekiel found himself inside the temple and it was filled with Glory! (Ezekiel 43:3-5)
From inside the temple, a Voice spoke to him. “Son of Man, this is the place of My throne and the place for My feet. This is where I will live among the Israelites forever.” (Ezekiel 43:7) Ezekiel was told that he was to describe the temple to the Israelites and that as they considered the plan, if they would be ashamed of all their sins, God would reveal His design of the temple to them! (Ezekiel 43:10-11)
Today, this beautiful restored temple is currently composed of living stones. God’s glory fills each stone as they look to Jesus Christ, Who baptizes them in His Holy Spirit! They now know Him and His laws are written on their hearts and God has forgiven them their sins and remembers them no more. (Ezekiel 36:24-27) (Jeremiah 31:31-34) We will behold His glory from within the heavenly city forever and ever!
Speaking life to dry bones!
Scripture reading for August 27: Ezekiel 37-39
God used words to bring about creation out of nothing. He tells us that our words also have power, the power of life or death! God showed Ezekiel a valley full of very dry human bones. God asked Ezekiel if he thought that all the scattered and dry human bones could live again. Ezekiel cautiously answered: “O Sovereign Lord, You alone know.” (Ezekiel 37:3) Ezekiel understood that with God, all things are possible and we must make room for every possibility!
The Lord told Ezekiel: “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the Word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin. I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.'” (Ezekiel 37:4-6) When Ezekiel began to prophesy, there was a noise and rattling sound as the bones came together. Then the tendons and flesh appeared and skin covered them. He was told to prophesy to the breath from the four winds to come and enter the slain. As he spoke, these newly formed bodies came to life and stood up on their feet.
What was the meaning and purpose of this vision to those people and for us today? First, God’s message of hope and restoration was given to the people of that day who were scattered in foreign lands because of their sins and the judgment of God upon them. God was showing His ability and plan to restore them. It would not be by their own strength, because dry bones have no power. It would be according to God’s powerful Word and the power of the Holy Spirit that it would be accomplished.
Second, as we look at this passage today, we can see the fulfilment of God’s promise. God restored His people to the land and rebuilt the temple. Jesus Christ, the Messiah, came to that temple and offered Himself to restore all of humanity. We have resurrection life in us by the Holy Spirit and will one day have a resurrection body when Christ returns. When we confess the Lordship of Jesus Christ with our mouth and believe in our heart that God raised Him from the dead, we are saved! (Romans 10:9-10) Confess your faith and thank God for His gift of eternal life! What an awesome God we serve!
Prophetic Entertainment?
Scripture reading for August 26: Ezekiel 33-36
God had made Ezekiel a watchman to warn His people of coming judgment and disaster because of sin. Like a mailman for God, he was to deliver God’s Word. (Ezekiel 33:7-9) After he warned them, they would be responsible. You might say that Ezekiel was a prophet of individual responsibility. Each person was to become responsible for the Word from God that was delivered to them. What they chose to do with it determined their destiny! (Ezekiel 33:11) Ezekiel warned them faithfully but the people complained that God was unjust in His dealing with them. (Ezekiel 33:17) The people accused but it was they who were guilty of injustice! They were under the bondage of sin and blinded to the truth that could make them free.
These people were proud of their preacher and seemed to want to hear him. God told Ezekiel that the people were talking about him in their houses. They were telling each other to come and hear the message of the prophet. The problem was that they did not want to put any of his message into practice. Their hearts were greedy for gain and they were selfish and unchanged after hearing. They viewed his messages as entertainment, such as a beautiful love song or a concert. (Ezekiel 33:30-32)
How are you receiving the word of God today? Do you read your Bible for entertainment with no heart to put it to practice? Do you listen to the preacher at church just to get a good feeling? Ezekiel was received the same way! However, he could not quit or he would be guilty of their blood! But after listening, God hold each person accountable for their reception of truth and obedience.
“If you warn the wicked man to turn from his ways and he does not do so, he will die for his sin, but you will have saved yourself.” (Ezekiel 33:9)
“And if I say to the wicked man, ‘you will surely die’; but he then turns away from his sin and does what is just and right–if he gives back what he took in pledge for a loan, returns what he has stolen, follows the decrees that give life, and does no evil, he will surely live; he will not die.” (Ezekiel 33:14-15)
The Day of the Lord is near!
Scripture reading for August 24: Ezekiel 29-32
Whenever they got into trouble, Israel would often seek to go back to Egypt. After Moses led them out with a mighty deliverance, they talked of stoning him and choosing a new leader who would take them back. They easily forgot that that was a land of idolatry and slavery. Even after Babylon had conquered the nation of Israel and left a remnant there in the land of Israel, that group went down to Egypt for protection, against the advice of Jeremiah the prophet. (Jeremiah 42:19-22) (Jeremiah 43:7) In Ezekiel 29 was a prophesy given to Ezekiel concerning Egypt and Pharaoh. God warned them that their pride would bring judgment and defeat. God was bringing a sword against them that would leave the land of Egypt desolate for forty years. (Ezekiel 29:8-12) After forty years, God would bring a remnant of Egyptians back and they would be a lowly kingdom. Israel was to learn not to rely on Egypt and that the Lord was sovereign. (Ezekiel 29:16)
The prophet Ezekiel was to then announce that the day of the Lord was near. That day was to be a day of clouds and darkness. It would be a day of doom for the nations that Ezekiel had spoken about. A sword would arise from Babylon that would bring destruction on Egypt and her surrounding friends. (Ezekiel 30:1-4) This “day of the Lord” came to these people during the lifetime of Ezekiel. His Word from the Lord came to pass and Egypt went into captivity; Israel, Cush, and Tyre were destroyed as well.
We often hear the messages of the “day of the Lord” and “the end” and tend to think that they are a long way off. We feel that this could possibly be thousands of years away, or at least, not in our lifetime. I want to encourage you that this day could be today! We are told to live in readiness for Christ’s return. (Matthew 22:42-44) We are told that no one will know the day or hour, but that we should be watchful and prepared. (Matthew 24:36) For those who are ready by faith in Jesus Christ, it will be a day of joy and gladness. For those who experience this day outside of God’s mercy, it will be darkness, trouble and doom. We don’t know when that day might come, but we do know that it is nearer today than yesterday!
King of Pride
Scripture reading for August 23: Ezekiel 24-28
Satan is not mentioned by name often in the Old Testament. This fallen angel inhabited the body of a serpent in the Garden of Eden and enticed Eve to eat the forbidden fruit in rebellion to God’s express command. The serpent was told by God that the Seed of woman would crush his head one day and he would bruise the Seed’s heel. (Genesis 3:1-6, 14-15) In perhaps the oldest book of the Bible, Job underwent a difficult trial as a result of Satan’s accusations of him before the throne of God. Satan was given permission to test Job by first taking his possessions and children and then taking Job’s health. In 1st Chronicles 21:1, Satan stood up against Israel and enticed King David to number the people and take pride in how many fighting men he had. In Zechariah 3:1-2, Satan stood before the Lord and accused Joshua, the high priest, and was rebuked by the Lord.
There are two other passages that commentators say refer to Satan because the descriptions go beyond that of an earthly man or king. One is found in Isaiah 14 and the other is here in Ezekiel 28:11-19 and is a lament composed by Ezekiel concerning the king of Tyre. This lament describes this ‘king’ as being the model of perfection and full of wisdom and beauty. He was in Eden, the Garden of God and covered with many precious stones. This king was anointed by God to be a guardian cherub on the holy mountain of God. There he walked among the fiery stones and was blameless from the day he was created. Then wickedness was found in him and he was filled with violence and sinned. God drove him from the mountain of God in disgrace. The sin was pride because of his beauty and wisdom. God threw him down to earth and by his many sins and dishonest trade he corrupted mankind with pride . God brought him to a fiery end and reduced him to ashes in the sight of all who watched.
You might say Satan is the king of Pride and of all the proud of the earth. All mankind has fallen under his spell because of Adam and Eve’s sin in the Garden of Eden. But God has provided One who has crushed the head of this serpent, Jesus Christ the Lord. The end of time will see Satan (the Devil) cast into the Lake of Fire to endure his fiery torment that lasts forever! (Revelation 20:10) Check out your heart for pride today and allow the cleansing blood of Jesus to wash it away!
Confronting sin!
Scripture reading for August 22: Ezekiel 20-23
Confronting sin in people is the calling of the prophet and preacher. We who minister the Word of the Lord must speak plainly to those whose souls are in danger of God’s eternal wrath. Sin brings the wrath of God. That wrath is ongoing in the law of sowing and reaping. It is also an eternal thing that will happen to all who die in their sins on the day of judgment. (Romans 1:18-19) (Romans 2:5) God loves each person enough to confront him before He judges him. In fact, He has stated that He will not send His wrath without revealing His plan to the prophets. (Amos 3:7)
In today’s reading, Ezekiel was told to confront the people of Jerusalem with all of their detestable practices. (Ezekiel 22:1) God declared that the sin of bloodshed was bringing doom on the city. The people’s sin of sacrificing their children in the fire to the false idols was bringing God’s wrath! Ezekiel pointed out mistreatment of fathers and mothers by children and mistreatment of the alien and orphan as reasons for the coming destruction. The people had despised the holy things and desecrated the Sabbath as a day of worship and rest. (Ezekiel 22:7-8) Adultery, incest, and lewd sexual conduct were hastening the day of wrath! Excessive interest was being charged and people were extorting money from the weak and powerless with mafia-like tactics. Sure sounds like today!
God also confronted the priests who were doing violence to God’s law. They were twisting God’s law to call evil, good and then to call good, evil. They did not help people to discern between what was holy and what God considered profane. They whitewashed their evil deeds by giving the people false visions and lying divinations. They claimed the the Lord had spoken when He had said nothing of the sort! (Ezekiel 22:26-28) When the ministers of God are messed up, the people are led further astray by their false teaching and example. God looked for one man to stand in the gap on behalf of the land so He would not have to destroy it, but found none! (Ezekiel 22:30-31)
Why does God confront people who are in sin? God is loving and wants all to know that He is the Lord and that what He has decreed will come to pass. He is to be honored and obeyed by those who are His people. When God confronts sin, He gives His people opportunity to repent and be delivered. Take time today and allow the Lord to speak to your heart. Listen and repent so that the wrath may be turned away! If you are right with the Lord, stand in the gap for someone who is lost and in need of His grace!