THE CALLING OF A PROPHET

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

He said to me, “Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.” As He spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard Him speaking to me.

He said: “Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against Me to this very day. The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’ And whether they listen or fail to listen—for they are a rebellious people—they will know that a prophet has been among them.”

“And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people. You must speak My words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious people; open your mouth and eat what I give you.”

Ezekiel 2:1-8

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

God needed a messenger to serve as His spokesperson to the Israelites and He decided that the messenger would be the priest Ezekiel. We know this because He tells us Himself as we look at His words here in opening verses of Chapter 2:

He said to me, “Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.” As He spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard Him speaking to me.

He said: “Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against Me to this very day. The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’ And whether they listen or fail to listen—for they are a rebellious people—they will know that a prophet has been among them.”

“And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people. You must speak My words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious people; open your mouth and eat what I give you.”  Ezekiel 2:1-8

You’ll recall from yesterday’s devotion that Ezekiel had first received a vision, a vision that gave him (and us) a glimpse into the throne room of God and the glory within. The scene was so incredible and amazing that Ezekiel fell facedown and it was there, prostrate before the majesty of God, that He heard the Lord speaking to him. As chapter 2 opens, we see what He said to Ezekiel.

First, we see that the Lord commanded Ezekiel to get up and stand on his feet in order to receive what He had to say to him but note that Ezekiel did not raise up on his own power but rather by the power of the Spirit which came into him and raised him to his feet.

Next, we see the Lord appoint Ezekiel, giving him the following task:

“I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against Me to this very day… whether they listen or fail to listen—for they are a rebellious people—they will know that a prophet has been among them.”

The Lord doesn’t leave anything out in ordaining Ezekiel for the work He wanted him to do. He was to go to the Israelites and tell them what God wanted him to tell them. And whether they listened or not, they would know that Ezekiel was not just a priest anymore but also a prophet.

Additionally, the Lord ensured there was full disclosure regarding what He was telling Ezekiel to do. He did not refrain from telling him about the challenge he would face in trying to share God’s messages to the Israelites. They had rebelled against God and so they were surely rebel against anyone who God sent as well. They had an inclination toward being obstinate and stubborn. And God sensed that they would even try and threaten Ezekiel so He prepared His prophet for what might come saying:

“Do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people.”

Yes, Ezekiel was going to face lots of difficulties in carrying out God’s calling. His words would not be welcomed by the rebellious Israelites. But God’s newest prophet did not need to fear because God was with him and for him. God would make sure that Ezekiel would remain safe. All he needed to do was remain obedient to God and that leads to the final takeaway from God’s assignment.

For Ezekiel was not to allow the rebellious nature of the Israelites to infect him and his responsibility to carry out what God commanded. God made sure He told His prophet to refrain from rebelling himself but rather to open his mouth and receive the words God would feed him, words he would turn around and share with those God sent him to.

This sets the stage for the rest of this book and we are just a little over a chapter in.

How will Ezekiel fare in doing what God wanted him to do?

Keep following through the devotions from this book and we’ll find out together but before we close, there are some important application points for us to use as we seek to carry out the Lord’s work in our own lives. They are as follows:

1. When God calls us, He sends His Spirit to us.

It was the first thing that Ezekiel received. It was the first thing the disciples of Jesus received after He departed to equip them for their service. And it’s what we receive too to carry out the Lord’s will and way.

2. God will tell us exactly what He wants us to do and will do it with great detail.

Jesus told His disciples that if they got hauled into court on account of the Gospel, they weren’t to worry about what to say because He would give them the words to say. Today, He not only tells us where to go and what to do once we get there but He prepares us through His word and Spirit to deal with whatever we encounter. Through the ministry experiences of Jesus, we find the way to handle anything God will bring us to.  

3. Don’t expect that it will be easy to carry out God’s work.

God told Ezekiel right up front that he could expect resistance from the Israelites because of their disposition toward stubborn disobedience and reluctance to listen. It was going to be a challenge carrying out the Lord’s demands and today we find it’s no less challenging more than 2,000 years later.

4. God demands our obedience in serving Him.

There is no option to opt out of what the Lord calls us to do. Ezekiel was warned about rebelling against the Lord and that same warning applies to us today. The bottom line is that we are to do what He tells us to do, work with who He tells us to work with, and trust that He is always there with us, helping through it all.

The old saying sums it up best: The Lord will never call you to something He isn’t going to pull you through.” All we need to do is to serve Him with bold confidence and unwavering commitment.

Amen

In Christ,

Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com