July 9, 2018 Monday

“1 ¶  And He said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak to you.” 2  Then the Spirit entered me when He spoke to me, and set me on my feet; and I heard Him who spoke to me. 3  And He said to me: “Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. 4  “For they are impudent and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD.’ 5  “As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse — for they are a rebellious house — yet they will know that a prophet has been among them.” (Ezekiel 2:1-5 NKJV)

            Often when we think of Ezekiel we think of the song “Ezekiel saw the Wheel” but in this second chapter we see Ezekiel as a prophet speaking to a rebellious people. It is interesting many nations who conquered Israel would consider them stiff-necked and rebellious!

            Ezekiel is called the “son of man” a term which Jesus used for himself and others used for him. The position of son of man was given to Ezekiel by God and when the spirit entered Ezekiel he was able to stand not just at that moment but the many years he prophesied.

            Ezekiel was given the un-enviable task of calling such a rebellious and stiff-necked people back to God. Ezekiel has to go forth knowing that in reality he is to show Israel God cares enough to send a prophet!

            It is interesting to notice Ezekiel knew and understood his call when the spirit entered into him. Just as in the days of the apostles, when they received the Holy Spirit you could see the dramatic change in their lives and in their ability to minister.

            We too need the Holy Spirit if we are to hear God’s call upon our lives and be able to minister to the world that has sinned against God. We live in a world made up largely of people who are as this passage says impudent and stubborn!

            Christians are called to share with them they are rebellious and full of sin so some will hear and come to God while others will remain rebellious. Like Ezekiel we are to cry out to the people of this world not just their sin but the hope they have through Jesus Christ!

            We can quickly become despondent if we are more interested in numbers than in souls. But as prophets we are called first to be faithful to God, to care about the souls of the people Jesus died for and to share the hope of God’s love and forgiveness!

            We are called to judge sin not by our standards but by the standards of the Bible and to hate sin but love the sinner. For us to hate sinners is to hate the very people Jesus died for! To do so is to move from being a prophet to being an accuser and that is the role of satan!

            Have you received the forgiveness of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit? Do you love those who are rebellious against God as God loves them? Are you willing to go from being an accuser to being a prophet?

I was able to go to the men’s breakfast on Saturday and then to attend worship and Sunday school! God is so good to enable me to worship with God’s people and to be able to spend time with people. As a pastor I understood the loneliness and separation most shut-ins have. Some are forgotten by the people they have served and fellowshipped with. If you know someone who is a shut-in take time to call them or send a card. As the body of Christ we are called to reach out to those who need the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ but we are also called to remember and minister to those who are no longer able to serve.