In Ezekiel’s prophecy to Jerusalem he warns them that they are listening to his words but not putting them into practice. In effect, using today's language, they are practicing churchianity instead of Christianity. The heading in today's reading seems to say it all: NOBODY REALLY CARES (Ezekiel 33:30-33)
Ezekiel
33:30-32
"As for you, son of man, your countrymen are talking together about you
by the walls and at the doors of the houses, saying to each other, 'Come and
hear the message that has come from the LORD.' My people come to you, as they
usually do, and sit before you to listen to your words, but they do not put
them into practice. With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts
are greedy for unjust gain. Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who
sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they
hear your words but do not put them into practice.
Ezekiel
pronounces judgment against the spiritual leaders. God tells the people
through Ezekiel that the shepherds have not taken care of the flock and that
He, Himself will tend His sheep as recorded in Psalm 23 and again in John
10. The shepherds have not searched for the lost or brought back the
strays. They did not bind up the injured or strengthen the weak. A
person could make many, many applications to the church today and shepherds of
the flock who are acting only as hired hands.
In
the millennial kingdom, David will be shepherd and prince.
Ezekiel
34:23-24
I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend
them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. I the LORD will be their God,
and my servant David will be prince among them. I the LORD have spoken.
Another
prophecy of the millennial kingdom is that there will be true peace.
Ezekiel
34:25
"'I will make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land of wild
beasts so that they may live in the desert and sleep in the forests in safety.
Ezekiel
34:28
They will no longer be plundered by the nations, nor will wild animals
devour them. They will live in safety, and no one will make them afraid.
Wild beasts here have a literal (literal wild beasts) and a figurative
(unbelievers) meaning.
Ezekiel
once again pronounces judgment on Edom in chapter 35. These are the
countries today that are east of Israel. Not much has changed, has
it? These countries still want to claim Israel.
Another
great promise for the millennium is this one.
Ezekiel
36:24-28
"'For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all
the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean
water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your
impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new
spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of
flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be
careful to keep my laws. You will live in the land I gave your forefathers; you
will be my people, and I will be your God.
All
people will be moved to follow His decrees and His laws.
All
these great promises for the millennium will of course follow on the heels of
the cleansing of the earth by fire.
Ezekiel
36:35-36
They will say, "This land that was laid waste has become like the
garden of Eden; the cities that were lying in ruins, desolate and
destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited." Then the nations around you
that remain will know that I the LORD have rebuilt what was destroyed and have
replanted what was desolate. I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it.'
There
will be a replanting and the land will be made fresh and new with new growth.
In order for there to be a replanting, there must first be a cleansing fire and
then a plowing.
The
following verse reminds us of Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit.
"I
will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to
keep my laws."
We
sometimes forget that the people before Jesus had little knowledge or
experience with the Holy Spirit living within.
For
more details see the book THESE LAST DAYS - Second Edition!
In
Ezekiel 36 the people are reminded that they have profaned God's Holy name
among the nations. The current connection today - when false doctrine is
preached and taught as if it were the truth, then God's Holy name has been
profaned.
"I
will show myself holy through you before their eyes."
Wow! How
would it look for God to show Himself holy through each one of us?
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