206 Saturday, July 25, 2009

206 Ezekiel 35 – 37; Acts 19.21 – 19.41

Israel was chosen to be a channel of redemption for the entire world. God was at work in and through Israel in order to bring blessing, goodness, and beauty to people who did not know Him. What did it mean to know and live for God? The answer could be gained by watching God’s people, Israel. Things did not go according to plan. Listen to God’s lament over His people.
Ezekiel 36:20-21 (MSG)
20 Wherever they went, they gave me a bad name. People said, 'These are God's people, but they got kicked off his land.'
21 I suffered much pain over my holy reputation, which the people of Israel blackened in every country they entered.
God was not finished with Israel. They were being punished for their unrepentant heart at the time, but a day was coming that they would be restored. Chapter 37 is a famous passage of Scripture for people who teach and preach the Word of God. This portion of Scripture gives great hope to anyone who thinks they are dead in the water. Ezekiel is sent to preach in a valley of dry bones.
Ezekiel 37:4 (MSG)
4 He said to me, "Prophesy over these bones: 'Dry bones, listen to the Message of God!' "
By the way dry bones are a tough audience. The bones came together as seen in these verses,
Ezekiel 37:7-8 (MSG)
7 I prophesied just as I'd been commanded. As I prophesied, there was a sound and, oh, rustling! The bones moved and came together, bone to bone.
8 I kept watching. Sinews formed, then muscles on the bones, then skin stretched over them. But they had no breath in them.
They had no life in them and that is something else God has to do.
Ezekiel 37:10 (MSG)
10 So I prophesied, just as he commanded me. The breath entered them and they came alive! They stood up on their feet, a huge army.
You have noticed that the prophet is speaking to dead people. Dead people cannot do anything to bring themselves back to life. This is all a work of God. This is a good image of how God spoke to us and brought us back to life spiritually. God touched us and brought us back to Himself through His Son Jesus Christ.

In the book of Acts a riot breaks out because of what Paul had been preaching.
Acts 19:23 (MSG)
23 But before he got away, a huge ruckus occurred over what was now being referred to as "the Way."
The people who were followers of Christ had been called people of the Way. The Way people claimed that there was only one God. In Ephesus they had silversmiths who mad a living making hand made gods. The making of these gods was a big source of revenue for the Ephesians. These people help start a riot in the city because they saw the Way people as threat to their source of income. Many times people don’t believe in Christ not because they believe it isn’t true but because it would change their lifestyle!