Southern Cross Presbyterian Church

Obadiah and Isaiah 40:1-41:29

Sorry for the late entry – had a bit of man flu this morning.

Not really sure what all of today’s reading is all about. However in the midst of judgment it seemed to be pointing out just how good the real God is. I found the following verses refreshing.

²⁸ Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.

²⁹ He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

³⁰ Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;

³¹ but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

Ezekiel 25 – 27

God has just finished speaking of  his wrath that will be poured out upon Israel and Judah. Now He turns to all the other nations… Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyre…

Why is God against all the other nations? Because those nations took advantage of God’s people when they were vulnerable…

- Ammon: “Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet, rejoicing with all the malice of your heart against the land of Israel…” (25:2)

- Moab: “Because Moab and Seir said ‘Look, the house of Judah has become like all the other nations,’ ” (25:8)

- Edom: “Because Edom took revenge on the house of Judah and became guilty by doing so…” (25:12)

- Philistia: ” Because the Philistines acted in vengeance and took revenge with malice in their hearts, and with ancient hostility sought to destroy Judah…” (25:15)

- Tyre: “…because Tyre has said of Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gate to the nations is broken, and its doors have swung open to me; now she lies in ruins I will prosper,’…” (26:2)

The nations will see God’s wrath being poured out and know that He is the one and only true God… We’ve read earlier in Ezekiel that God doesn’t taken pleasure in the death of people but he is just and sin needs to be dealt with, particularly sin and destruction against God’s chosen nation, Israel.

I am not sure what to make of chapter 27 – except that it was a great nation in the world’s eyes, with great wealth and position but before the Holy, Righteous, Sovereign God, Tyre is laid bare, nothing of worth left. It provides a great contrast between God and the nations that appear to have all the power and glory. It is only in God that true power is found and we were made to worship God alone, not the nations that he created and gave power and wealth to…

Ezk 20:1-21:32

A History of rebellion

Ezekiel reflects on Israels past and let’s just say it’s a bit like a nightmare.  Time and time again we hear of Israels rebellion from desert wanderings through to life in the promise land.

The sadness of Israels life is captured in a line not unlike one we heard in the book of 1 Samuel:

‘You say, “We want to be like the nations, like the peoples of the world, who serve wood and stone.” But what you have in mind will never happen. Ezekiel 20:32

Yet Israel was never meant to be like the nations.  They were to be a Holy nation, set apart living with God as their King.  However the opposite had taken place. So judgement would take place.

Israel would now be scattered amongst the nations.

But one day God would gather his people (Ezk 20:39-44) and would show himself Holy to the nations:

⁹But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light”1 Peter2:9

Ezekiel 10:1-13:23

The book of Ezekiel is described as; the death and resurrection of Israel.

These sections begin to reveal how this is a really helpful description of the book.

Amazingly we see in chapter 9 the Lord who had resided at the heart of Israel, who was at the centre of community life in the temple, departs:

¹⁸ Then the glory of the LORD departed from over the threshold of the temple and stopped above the cherubim. ¹⁹ While I watched, the cherubim spread their wings and rose from the ground, and as they went, the wheels went with them. They stopped at the entrance to the east gate of the LORD’s house, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them.

This was a massive act. God who was to dwell amongst his people, departing, unable to reside any more with a hard hearted people. A people committed to rebellion.

The nation of Israel would be no longer. This would be its death sentence.

Yet signs of life appear:

¹⁷ “Therefore say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will gather you from the nations and bring you back from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you back the land of Israel again.’

¹⁸ “They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols. ¹⁹ I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. ²⁰ Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.

The Lord would be the one who could restore this disaster. Yet he knew it wasn’t that the people would need to return to the land, for restoration. For true restoration and true hope for the people of God, God would bring change to the real problem; their hearts.

He would undertake heart surgery on them. He would put a new spirit in them.

The people would one day return to Jerusalem and restore the temple, but the Lord would not return.

But one day he would, through his new meeting place with man, Jesus Christ.  By trust in him we are given a new heart and a new spirit, God living in human hearts.

¹⁶Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? 1 Cor 3:16