Latest / Journey Elgin / Journey Through Scripture - Ezekiel 13-18
Transcript
- Phillip Thomas: Good to see you on this edition of our Journey Through Scripture. My name is Philip Thomas, pastor of Journey here in Elgin, Texas, and we're going to be looking at Ezekiel chapters 13 through 18 today. So Ezekiel 13 through 18. These are very interesting. I encourage you to read ⁓ through these. I'll hit some of the highlights, but we are at that time. Remember, Ezekiel is a prophet. He's ⁓ prophesying ⁓ in captivity. So he is ⁓ in Babylon. ⁓ This is kind of the in-between time, but from when King Nebuchadnezzar came and took the initial group out of Jerusalem, brought them to captivity. That's where you had Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. You also had Daniel. So they've all been in captivity now a while. But it's getting close to when he is going to go back, Nebuchadnezzar will go back and destroy Jerusalem because remember the king, we talked ⁓ quite a bit about this on Tuesday, the king Zedekiah is making alliances with Egypt and stuff like that. He's trying to push back and thinking he's doing what is right. But eventually Jerusalem is just going to be destroyed. by Nebuchadnezzar. So Ezekiel is sharing that really uplifting message, right? But really reminding the people of what the prophets have been saying for years and years and years. And there's some really interesting things here. It starts off in chapter 13, and it's talking about the foolish prophets, the prophets who are telling the people that it's going to be okay. that everything's going to be fine, don't worry about it, God is going to restore everything, and basically indicating that Babylon is going to be destroyed and everything will be made right again. And these really ⁓ speak to me a lot, and I've really thought a lot about these passages. In verse 2 of chapter 13, says, the Son of Man prophesied against the prophets of Israel who prophesied and say to those who prophesy out of their own heart, hear the word of the Lord." So the false prophets are those who are prophesying out of their own heart. And that's something that all of us have to be very aware of and careful of. Are we ⁓ believing things and saying things and attributing them to God because that's what we like to hear? That's because what we've always believed? ⁓ Or is it something that is truly coming from the Lord? ⁓ Then it continues, says, Thus says the Lord God, woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing. O Israel, your prophets are like foxes in the deserts. This really spoke. You have not gone up into the gaps to build a wall for the house of Israel. to stand in battle on the day of the Lord. You have not gone up into the gaps to build a wall for the house of Israel to stand in the battle on the day of the Lord." To me, what that is saying is that there were a lot of the prophets who were saying things that the people wanted to hear, but those prophets weren't preparing the people for the battle that was to come. They weren't preparing the people for what they needed to do. Where were they? speaking out and telling the people that they were going down a wrong path when they started worshiping the idols of Baal. ⁓ Where were they in those moments telling the people you're going down the wrong path, you're weakening your own wall, right? That these prophets, they should have been there helping the people strengthen their wall, strengthen their relationship with God so that they would be prepared for the battle instead. They did not. They hid like foxes. And I'll be honest, I don't do as much going through this journey through ⁓ Scripture, but my focus has changed quite a bit the last couple years. Talked a lot more about the spirit of the age and the spiritual struggle and the spiritual battles that we're in. And I am afraid that too many churches and church leaders and pastors like myself have not stood in the gaps of the walls. And we have tried to bring encouragement, encourage people to do the right things, but not ⁓ actually prepare people for an actual spiritual battle. And I think that we're here now. And it's important to think about that because there are... Maybe at no other time in history, are there more divergent views and messages coming from the Christian church in today's age. And it's vital that we seek wisdom from God to know what is true. And I strive to do that each and every day. I do this podcast and I preach every week with fear and trembling. as I desire to speak what the Lord has given me. says, they have envisioned futility and false divination, saying, thus says the Lord, but the Lord has not sent them, yet they hope that the word may be confirmed. Have you not seen a futile vision and have you not spoken false divinations? You say, the Lord says, but I have not spoken, therefore, thus says the Lord God, because you have spoken nonsense and envisioned lies, Therefore I am indeed against you, says the Lord God. My hand will be against the prophets who envision futility and who divine lies. They shall not be in the assembly of my people, nor written in the record of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God." Verse 10, because indeed, because they have seduced my people saying, peace when there is no peace. and one builds a wall and they plaster it with untempered mortar, saying to those who plaster it with untempered mortar that it will fall. There will be flooding and rain and great hell stones shall fall and the stormy wind shall tear it down. Surely when the wall has fallen, will it not be said to you, where's the mortar with which you plastered it?" You know, we can easily preach a... a nice comforting message about how much God loves you. And that's important, but does that prepare us for the storms of life? Does that really prepare us when the walls are attacked? It's much easier and it's more well received when we just preach peace. But what about in those times where there is no peace? Verse 15, thus I will accomplish my wrath on the wall and those who have plastered it. with the untempered mortar, and I will say to you, the wall is no more, nor those who plastered it. That is the prophets of Israel who prophesy concerning Jerusalem and who see visions of peace for her when there is no peace." Right? So there were so many prophets that were just saying, Jerusalem is going to survive, Zedekiah is going to ⁓ save us, ⁓ but that completely went against all that God had been saying to them through the prophets for years. and years and years. ⁓ continuing, that's chapter 13. The very end of chapter 13, ⁓ verse 22, says, Because with lies you have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad. And you have strengthened the hands of the wicked, so that he does not turn from his wicked ways to save his life. Therefore you shall no longer envision futility nor practice divination for I will deliver my people out of your hand and you shall know that I am the Lord." So this is again talking about prophets, this talking about godly leaders. ⁓ Because with lies you have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad and you have strengthened the hands of the wicked so that he does not turn from his wicked ways to save his life. So what he's saying is that you haven't even shared and preached the things that are wicked. So how are the wicked ever going to turn from their wicked ways if they're never taught what God considers to be wicked? Right? And I think there's definite parallels to where we are today. You know, we've talked about that in Isaiah where good is called evil and evil. is called good. That is what Ezekiel is also talking about here. Chapter 14 really goes into idolatry. Remember, that's one of the biggest things that ⁓ the prophets have harped on and God has harped on that the people need to put their trust in Him and Him alone and not to follow ⁓ other gods. ⁓ Verse 12 says, word of the Lord came to me again saying, son of man, when a land sends against me by persistent unfaithfulness, I will stretch out my hand against it. I will cut off its supply of bread, send famine on it, cut off man and beast from it. Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel and Job were in it, they would deliver only themselves by their righteousness, says the Lord God. Right? So, so he's saying. even these great heroes of the faith, they would be okay, all right? They would be delivered because of their own righteousness, ⁓ but their own righteousness would not be enough to save the nation, right? That ⁓ when a land, when a nation ⁓ practices persistent unfaithfulness, even the most godly among them may not be able to hold back. ⁓ the tides of God. It continues, it says verse 22, ⁓ verse 21, how much more shall it be when I send my four severe judgments on Jerusalem to cut off man and beast from it, yet behold, there shall be left in it a remnant who will be brought out, both sons and daughters. Surely they will come out to you and they will see their ways and their doings. Then you will be comforted concerning the disaster that I have brought upon Jerusalem. So again, even as these this harsh, difficult talks and what God is proclaiming, He's always reminding them that there is going to be a remnant, that He will be faithful. Chapter 15 uses a vine, the image of a vine that grows and then burns from both sides. basically that that is Jerusalem. So I encourage you to read chapter 15, it's very short. It says, you shall know that I am the Lord when I set my face against them. Thus I will make the land desolate because they have persisted in unfaithfulness, says the Lord God. Then chapter 16, a talk starts off, it uses the illustration of a child being born, of a young girl becoming a woman. and how God loved this child even though this child was kind of an outcast. So it's making that this child is Israel, is the people of God. And so while there was nothing special about them, in fact, they were kind of discarded from the beginning, God loved them. It says verse 8, when I passed by you again, looked upon you indeed, your time was the time of love. So I spread my wing over you. This is a kind of metaphor that's going on here. And then in verse 13, 14, says, For it was perfect through my splendor, which I had bestowed upon you, says the Lord." And then verse 15, things change. It says, but you trusted in your own beauty, played the harlot because of your fame and poured out your harlotry on everyone passing by who would have it. So he brings this outcast of a child, brings this child up, lavishes them with fame and prestige and... It makes them a prominent ⁓ place in the world. And then this person who is ⁓ an illustration of Israel, decides she's just going to be a harlot. so starting in verse 15, it just talks about that. says, verse 20, moreover, you took your sons and daughters whom you bore to me, and these you sacrificed them to be devoured. Were your acts of harlotry a small matter that you would have slain my children and offered them up? ⁓ by causing them to pass through the fire. And in all your abominations and acts of harlotry, you did not remember the days of your youth when you were naked and bare, struggling in your blood." So the harlot is turning its back on God, just as Israel turned its back on God and went after other gods, basically went after their own desires, made themselves God. That is the danger. That is what ultimately it comes down to when we talk about worshiping an idol. is that we worship ourselves by reaching after something other than God. ⁓ Verse 30, how degenerate is your heart, says the Lord God, seeing you do all these things, the deeds of a brazen harlot. ⁓ And then, this is crazy. What a great example. Says you erected your shrine at the head of every road, built your high place in every street, yet you were not like a harlot. because you scorned payment. So basically you're worse than a prostitute. At least a prostitute got paid for giving themselves up, but you just gave yourself up for free. says you are an adulterous wife who takes strangers instead of her husband. Men make payments to all the harlots, but you make your payments to all your lovers and hired them to come to you from all around your harlotry. You are the opposite of the other women in your harlotry because no one solicited you to be a harlot. in that you gave payment but no payment was given. Therefore, you are the opposite. So basically saying you just gave yourself over freely. You invited this upon you and you didn't even get paid for it. You were just taken advantage of in your own stupidity. Then it talks about how Jerusalem or the and the metaphor that she will be abused and she will be, that there will be, will be taken advantage of. Verse 40, they shall also bring up an assembly against you and they shall stone you with stones and thrust you through with their swords. And it goes on to talk about basically what's going to be happening to Jerusalem. You know, it talks about how they're more wicked than Sodom and Samaria, you know, of all the abominations. that the harlot has participated in. But then we have verse 60. says, Nevertheless, I will remember my covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you. Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed." Verse 62, and I will establish my covenant with you. Then you shall know that I am the Lord, that you may remember and be ashamed. and never open your mouth anymore because of your shame. When I provide you an atonement for all that you have done, says the Lord God." You know, sometimes we talk a lot about, don't feel ashamed, don't feel ashamed. Well, you know what? We should be ashamed of our sin. We should be ashamed whenever we choose to act the harlot, to reject God. But when we repent, when we come back to God, His atonement will be given to us and he can take away our shame But this idea that we should just not feel shame is ridiculous Because without that you're you're never going to adjust your behavior if you just always justify Every action that you take and never feel shame then why would you change it? Right that we should feel shame whenever we have chosen to go our own way that feeling It's a check engine light that you're going down the wrong path. And so now it is time to repent and to come back to God and He will receive you. But we have to make that turn. We can't just expect Him to ⁓ save us when we are not adjusting our behavior, when we're not changing our ways, and when we're not living righteously. ⁓ It talks about the eagles and the vine. You can reach that. This is talking specifically about how the people have been taken to exile, and now they're going to be taken again when Jerusalem is destroyed. It talks about how King Zedekiah is ridiculous to make a pact with Egypt that he is going against what God wants. ⁓ talks about ⁓ Proverbs and talks about men and their son that the sons will not be held accountable if they act righteously. It really talks about kind of individual accountability, that if you act righteously, then you will live. If you act wickedly, then you will not. And I encourage you to read that. Verse 19 of chapter 18. ⁓ is really powerful. It says, "'Yet you say, Why should the Son not bear the guilt of the Father? Because the Son has done what is lawful and right, and has kept all my statutes and observed them. He shall surely live. The soul who sins shall die. The Son shall not bear the guilt of the Father, nor the Father bear the guilt of the Son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon Himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon Himself.'" our actions, the way we live makes a difference. We will be held accountable. I know we don't like to hear that, but it is the truth. Verse 21, but if a wicked man, and remember, this is the God of the Old Testament, which many of us Christians, we don't like the God of the Old Testament because He's this mean God and judgmental and all this stuff. But if a wicked man turns from his sins, which he has committed, keeps all my statutes and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. None of his transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him. Because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall live. Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die, says the Lord God, and not that he should turn from his ways and live?" And that shockingly sounds like New Testament language, maybe because it's the same God. He doesn't desire people to follow a wicked path, but he requires that we change. He requires that our behavior starts to imitate him. Our behavior should be righteous living. One of the dangers of our Christian message is that we say, well, God just forgives you of your sin if you just ask Jesus into your heart. True, but if your behavior doesn't start to be righteous, That's a problem. That means you probably haven't truly accepted Him for the God that He truly is, because He is a God who desires and in fact mandates that our behavior begin to change. Right? Yes, we won't be perfect. Yes, He will continue to forgive us, but we should strive to live righteous lives. ⁓ And we see that all the way back in the Old Testament. Verse 30, "'Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways,' says the Lord God, "'Repent, turn from your transgressions, so that the iniquity will not be your ruin. Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.'" For why should you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies, says the Lord God. Therefore turn and live. We need to always be looking at how we're living our life. Because there's many times it's easy to get off track, but we can always turn and live. I encourage you to look at your life. Are you living the righteous life? Or are you starting to maybe follow some of the ways of the world and begin upholding ideas that actually lead to wickedness? Always know that God is a God who desires for us to live the righteous life, to live, to turn, and to live for Him. All right, we will be in Ezekiel chapters 20 through 24. All right, we'll see you all.