28“And you will live in Israel, the land I gave your ancestors long ago. You will be my people, and I will be your God. 29I will cleanse you of your filthy behavior. I will give you good crops of grain, and I will send no more famines on the land. 30I will give you great harvests from your fruit trees and fields, and never again will the surrounding nations be able to scoff at your land for its famines. 31Then you will remember your past sins and despise yourselves for all the detestable things you did. 32But remember, says the Sovereign Lord, I am not doing this because you deserve it. O my people of Israel, you should be utterly ashamed of all you have done! 33“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I cleanse you from your sins, I will repopulate your cities, and the ruins will be rebuilt. 34The fields that used to lie empty and desolate in plain view of everyone will again be farmed. 35And when I bring you back, people will say, ‘This former wasteland is now like the Garden of Eden! The abandoned and ruined cities now have strong walls and are filled with people!’ 36Then the surrounding nations that survive will know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt the ruins and replanted the wasteland. For I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do what I say. 37“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am ready to hear Israel’s prayers and to increase their numbers like a flock. 38They will be as numerous as the sacred flocks that fill Jerusalem’s streets at the time of her festivals. The ruined cities will be crowded with people once more, and everyone will know that I am the Lord.” (Ezekiel 36:28-38 NLT)
The story that Ezekiel tells and the truths that he prophesies are the cornerstone of the Old Testament – as they are the cornerstone of the Gospel message. God will redeem those who turn toward Him, repent, and put their faith in His Holy will. This cycle repeats itself for the Hebrews time and again. Have you ever taken pause to wonder why? What it sit that is so tempting that the people of God – His CHOSEN people – turn away from Him over and over? They spit out the Truth and ingest lies and in so doing turn their backs to God and their hearts toward Satan. Why? The answer is clear from the above text… prosperity. It is not during the times of great destitution and need that people – the ancient Hebrews or the modern day Americans – question God or His provision. It is during times of great prosperity. It is when people think that they have all that they need and that they got it all for themselves that we forsake out creator, redeemer and provider. What is truly interesting is that it is God Himself who creates the prosperity for the Hebrews. Why would He do this KNOWING their (our) weaknesses and KNOWING that they (we) will, sooner or later, turn their (our) backs on Him and return to our spiteful, wicked ways? Hmmmm – why indeed?
The story that Ezekiel tells and the truths that he prophesies are the cornerstone of the Old Testament – as they are the cornerstone of the Gospel message. God will redeem those who turn toward Him, repent, and put their faith in His Holy will. This cycle repeats itself for the Hebrews time and again. Have you ever taken pause to wonder why? What it sit that is so tempting that the people of God – His CHOSEN people – turn away from Him over and over? They spit out the Truth and ingest lies and in so doing turn their backs to God and their hearts toward Satan. Why? The answer is clear from the above text… prosperity. It is not during the times of great destitution and need that people – the ancient Hebrews or the modern day Americans – question God or His provision. It is during times of great prosperity. It is when people think that they have all that they need and that they got it all for themselves that we forsake out creator, redeemer and provider. What is truly interesting is that it is God Himself who creates the prosperity for the Hebrews. Why would He do this KNOWING their (our) weaknesses and KNOWING that they (we) will, sooner or later, turn their (our) backs on Him and return to our spiteful, wicked ways? Hmmmm – why indeed?
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