Ezekiel 28:17 (HCSB)

Your heart became proud because of your beauty;

For the sake of your splendor

you corrupted your wisdom.

So I threw you down to the earth;

I made a spectacle of you before kings.

This is a prophecy against the king of Tyre, but it is more so a description of the fall of Lucifer. He was the “seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty,” an “anointed guardian cherub.” He became full of pride in his station and his beauty. He said in his heart “I am a god, and I sit on the throne of the gods.” He became full of wickedness.

God expelled him in disgrace. He was cast down to the earth. Here on this globe he has remained for the last six thousand years. But the day is coming when he will be chained and cast into the pit of hell. Until then he seems to have the run of the place. But we have the power through the Holy Spirit to resist him and thwart his efforts.

Resist him, steadfast in the faith. Rebuke him, in the name of Jesus, and he will flee from you. Don’t become his patsy. Be his worst nightmare!

Beginning in Ezekiel 25 the Lord begins to announce judgments upon the nations. These are the nations that stood by and cheered as Jerusalem was destroyed and the Hebrews went into exile. God declares they are coming down.

Is there any application of this to our day? I think there may be a few.

First, those nations that criticize and condemn Israel are standing on shaky ground. The enemies of Israel are the enemies of God, and He will exact judgment.

Second, I believe there is a metaphorical application. God has one church. This church is called by many different names throughout the world. When one group condemns another group, or smiles at their misfortune, God in heaven takes notice. He is paying attention. When one church suffers within a community, and another church seeks to take advantage of the situation God is grieved. We must never smile at or seek to exploit the hardships of another congregation. Those churches are our sisters. There are genuine Christians within that church who are hurting. Our reaction is not to point a finger and say, “They had it coming.” Never! Our reaction is to pray, extend a hand of help, and love them. We may not agree on every point of doctrine—and this side of heaven we never will. But many times it is not a doctrinal point that is at issue, but a methodological one. Let us not become ornery over incidentals. We are a family. The world should see us love and behave like one.

Ezekiel 23:49 (HCSB)

They will repay you for your indecency, and you will bear the consequences for your sins of idolatry. Then you will know that I am the Lord GOD."

We must know that there are consequences even for forgiven sins. If you are a child of God your sins are under the blood. Those sins are forgiven and they are forever gone from the record. But God chooses not to protect us from the consequences of our sins here on earth. If He did that would be an encouragement to sin.

Viewing pornography can lead to addiction. Even if one does not become addicted those images are indelibly etched upon the brain. An illicit affair can lead to pregnancy. Even if one does not become pregnant there is still an emotional attachment and broken trust and broken hearts. Cheating on taxes can lead to jail time. Even if restitution is paid one will still undergo the ordeal of an audit for years. All these sins can be forgiven, but there are still consequences.

If the image of our Savior hanging on the cross is not enough to make us loathe our sin, then the prospect of the consequences should be.

Standing in the Gap

Ezekiel 22:30 (HCSB)

I searched for a man among them who would repair the wall and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land so that I might not destroy it, but I found no one.

What an indictment! The wall around the city of Jerusalem was in bad shape. Siege ramps had been built against it. Holes had been dug through it. Battering rams had been used to knock it down. It was in pitiful condition. Consequently the city was vulnerable. It was open to invasion and attack.

God is speaking here figuratively. The wall He is speaking of is spiritual. It is a wall of prayer for spiritual protection. God looked for one man in all of Jerusalem who was standing in prayer for the city, but He found not a single one.

As men it is our job to guard our families, our churches, and our country from Satanic attack. We must pray for God’s protection. We must intercede for our leaders. We must lift up our loved ones.

Are we doing our job? Are we standing in the gap? Will our city be destroyed on our watch?

We must act like men. Let us see the breech and not wait for someone else. May we see it as our job, our responsibility, and take our position and pray!

God's New Contract

Ezekiel 16:59–63 (HCSB)

"For this is what the Lord GOD says: I will deal with you according to what you have done, since you have despised the oath by breaking the covenant.

But I will remember the covenant I made 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 when you receive your older and younger sisters. I will give them to you as daughters, but not because of your covenant.

I will establish My covenant with you, and you will know that I am the LORD, so that when I make atonement for all you have done, you will remember and be ashamed, and never open your mouth again because of your disgrace." ‹This is› the declaration of the Lord GOD.

Here God talks about renewing His covenant with Israel, but on different terms. Now, instead of it all depending on Israel, it will all depend on Him. And it will be an everlasting covenant. He says, “I will make atonement for all you have done….”

This was done at the cross. God has established a new contract with us. He takes full responsibility for fulfilling all the terms and conditions of this contract. All we have to do is put our trust in Jesus Christ as our Savior.

At the cross a sovereign and infinite God did everything that needed to be done to make fallible and finite men forever right with Himself. This contract ensures everlasting salvation to all you come by faith to Christ. Since we did nothing to establish this contract, we can do nothing to dissolve this contract. God Himself has taken upon Himself responsibility for doing it all. Now all that remains is for us to simply exercise childlike faith and accept it. Praise God!

Idols of the Heart

Ezekiel 14:1–8 (HCSB)

Some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat down in front of me.

Then the word of the LORD came to me:

"Son of man, these men have set up idols in their

hearts and have put sinful

stumbling blocks before their faces. Should I be consulted by them at all?

"Therefore, speak to them and tell them: This is what the Lord GOD says: When anyone from the house of Israel sets up idols in his heart, puts a sinful stumbling block before his face, and then comes to the prophet, I, the LORD, will answer him appropriately. ‹I will answer him› according to his many idols,

So that I may take hold of the house of Israel by their hearts, because they are all estranged from Me by their idols.

"Therefore, say to the house of Israel: This is what the Lord GOD says: Repent and turn away from your idols; turn your faces away from all your abominations.

For when anyone from the house of Israel or from the foreigners who reside in Israel separates himself from Me, setting up idols in his heart and putting a sinful stumbling block before his face, and then comes to the prophet to inquire of Me, I, the LORD, will answer him Myself.

I will turn against that one and make him a sign and a proverb; I will cut him off from among My people. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

The most dangerous idols are not those we set up on our mantle but those we erect in our hearts. We would look silly to put a little statue of a car on our mantle and say to people, “This is my god.” But we can hide that same idol in our hearts. People may not know it is there, but it is just as much our “god.”

An idol is anything that we pursue before the living God. We put it in the place that is reserved for God alone. It becomes the passionate pursuit of our life. We bow down to it, giving it our adoration and attention. We pin our expectations for fulfillment, happiness and security upon it.

When we have idols in our heart the Lord promises not to hear our prayers. We have separated ourselves from the Lord and we put ourselves under the curse and judgment of God.

We must examine our hearts and see if these idols are there. When our prayers are ineffective this may be the reason. When the Holy Spirit shows us what our idols are we must not argue with Him. We must confess this as our willful sin and repent. We must consciously enthrone the Jesus alone as Lord in our hearts.

Idolatry is a part of our culture. It is just as prevalent today as it was 3,000 years ago—although it is not as ostentatious. We don’t want to appear to be superstitious. We do not erect our idols upon a pedestal in our living rooms.

Idolatry in our materialistic society is much more insidious. Idols slip into our lives. We must be on our guard. Christians are not immune to this. When the Holy Spirit makes us aware there has been a change in our fellowship with Christ we must check our hearts. Are there idols there?

False Visions

Ezekiel 12:21–25 (HCSB)

Again the word of the LORD came to me:

"Son of man, what is this proverb you ‹people› have about the land of Israel, which goes:

      The days keep passing by,

      and every vision fails?

Therefore say to them: This is what the Lord GOD says: I will put a stop to this proverb, and they will not use it again in Israel. But say to them: The days draw near, as well as the fulfillment of every vision.

For there will no longer be any false vision or flattering divination within the house of Israel. But I, the LORD, will speak whatever message I will speak, and it will be done. It will no longer be delayed. For in your days, rebellious house, I will speak a message and bring it to pass." ‹This is› the declaration of the Lord GOD.

 

I see a couple of things here. First, are not people saying the same kind of things today? “The Lord said He is coming back, but the days have passed—and the years—and He has not returned. He’s not going to return.”

 

But the Lord is coming back and one day the time of His return will arrive. I have some personal beliefs about our responsibility for getting the Gospel to the whole world—but there are other Christians in the world who are preaching the Gospel. The North American church is not a "lone ranger." We are not the only missionaries. The Gospel could go to the whole world in just a few years without our even knowing it. Then the Lord will fulfill His promise and return.

 

Second, the nature of a false vision or flattering message is that it makes us breathe a sigh of relief and basically say, “Everything is fine.” But when God gives a message it calls us to a posture of high alertness. God’s message always shakes us out of our apathy. He calls us to attention and action.

The spiritually discerning will be sensitive to this note in modern preaching.