Ezekiel Chapter 24:15-27

“MINISTRY BY EXAMPLE”

God, who is the source of all truth, has enabled mankind to discover so much knowledge over the centuries of human existence on the planet Earth. Living in the fallen world, where the human race finds itself, demands that people give attention to gaining information and applying it to their lives. This speaks to general data as well as specific truths, for specific situations.

Let me give you one example. As part of specific truths that pertain to the experience of life, one of the key realities, necessary for folk to understand, is the process of dealing with death: one’s own demise or the passing of a loved one. In recent years it has been called “THE GRIEF PROCESS”. Way too many people never learn how to handle grief. Perhaps they refuse to give themselves to the intensive discipline of gaining the victory over losing one they hold dear. Though it takes time, effort and commitment to go through the extensive duration of sorrow, many people get mired in one of the stages of grief and never finish their work of recovery. God, the Father, who experienced the loss of His own Son, knows how excruciating loss is to His creation. Yet, He expects them to understand that “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people…” (Hebrews 9:27-28a)

We have already discovered that God’s ways are not our ways. We have seen that in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and now Ezekiel. These common, ordinary believers in God are called by their Maker to experience a life of ministry. Even so, that life of ministry is quite different than they expected as they grew up. Jeremiah expected to be a priest but instead ended up a prophet. Isaiah came face-to-face with the holiness of God and lived to tell about it. Ezekiel is, also called by God to go through a crucible of life. Each of these three went through unbelievable ordeals. Everyone who claims the name of the Lord should anticipate going through fire and times of stretching in life. AND the only way to make it through such an experience is “living by faith” and NOT “sight”. In today’s scripture we find God clearly calling Ezekiel to undergo the severest test of obedience and loyalty an individual can face. But remember, this is God’s Word! And the great Creator of the Universe; who loves people with unconditional love (even redeeming them through the loss of His own Son), says something staggering to this mere person He has placed in ministry. In verse 16 He tells Ezekiel, “Son of man, with one blow I am about to take away from you the delight of your eyes.” Ezekiel gets this message from the Lord in the morning, he shares it with the Israelite exiles in Babylon in the afternoon, and that evening, his wife dies!

It is pretty easy to put together the cause and effect scenario isn’t it? Then God adds to this divine action an explanation of the purpose behind being so harsh in the life of His man. Throughout the pages of the book of Ezekiel God places this man open and vulnerable in front of the people of Israel (TO TEACH THEM A LESSON). This time Ezekiel is commanded by God to react differently than how people were to mourn the death of loved ones. Contrary to going through the grief process in a normal, healthy way, God asks Ezekiel to, “”Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban fastened and your sandals on your feet; do not cover the lower part of your face or eat customary food of mourners.” (Verse 17) He is to be an example: a teaching lesson for what they will soon experience. Let me explain.

The people Ezekiel was prophesying to were captives in Babylon. This captivity was one preceding the major captivity that would occur in a few years. These first captives were going to hear from their homeland of a horrible devastation the residents of Jerusalem were going to undergo at the hands of the Babylonian army. Things were going to get so desperate that those inside the city would eat their children to stay alive. Children, grandchildren and family of the Israelites in Babylon would lose the dearest people of their lives over the next few years. They would be appalled at the news they would be receiving.

This situation was the end result of Jeremiah’s ignored message, given just a bit before Ezekiel rises to center stage as a prophet. God had asked Jeremiah to tell the people that He (God) was going to discipline them for their disobedience. They were to accept captivity under Babylon as God’s plan for them. Rather than fight the Babylonians they were to go along with God and willingly head to Babylon. There they were to buy houses and raise their families because (as we know from Biblical history) it would be 70 years before any returned to their homeland. If they didn’t go willingly, they would be besieged, many would lose their lives and Jerusalem would be conquered and ruined so not one stone was on top of another. The choice of Jerusalem’s ruin and the loss of life depended on their humility to accept God’s punishment, rather than fight it. We know the history lesson! Jeremiah was even arrested as a spy of Babylon and the politicians in Jerusalem would not surrender. Ezekiel already understands that since Judah was currently allied with Egypt against Babylon, the entire homeland would be devastated. It was the final act of the Hebrew willful disobedience. They rejected God’s way and determined to live life in their own strength.

God used the situation of Ezekiel’s loss of his wife to show His people that when they lost those close to THEIR hearts He would not tolerate their normal activity of grieving. This was because they were the ones who could have avoided such slaughter. Instead they decided to STILL disobey God. The ruin was their fault. God told Ezekiel to say, “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to desecrate my sanctuary—the stronghold in which you take pride, the delight of your eyes, the object of your affection. The sons and daughters you left behind will fall by the sword. And you will do as I have done. You will not cover the lower part of your face or eat the customary food of mourners. You will keep your turbans on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep but will waste away because of your sins and groan among yourselves. Ezekiel will be a sign to you; you will do just as he has done. When this happens you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord!” (Verses 21-24)

I know that I saturate you with the historical perspective of the events of the Bible. But we must understand the context in which this message is given. This brings us back to the attitudes and thoughts of God’s people in response to Him and His way of doing things. Like it or not, God is in control of history, the coming and going of nations and the events in our lives. Through adversity and times of stretch God matures us. BUT, He is not only working on us. He is attempting to get His message across to those around His people at the same time. Let’s put it in perspective!

America is a nation founded on Biblical principles. The USA has been an anchor of stability in the midst of huge international chaos, down through the years. The standards of this civilization founded on the Word of God have stood the test of time. God has blessed this land for its adherence to God’s will and program. Or at least it started out that way. These days, things are different! The great majority of citizens in this great nation give no credibility to God’s absolute truth. The bulk of Americans give lip service to the God of the Bible. He is “the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8) according to scripture. Yet, so few take any time to consider what God has to say about life. Americans are taken in by running their own lives, their own way, for their own purposes. They believe it’s their right and no one will take that away from them! After all, they have their rights! Add to that that God’s way of viewing things; from the taking of human lives before birth to the vast libertarian practice of doing things denounced in the Bible has set this nation up for another judgment from God.

Christians, living in this land, undoubtedly are concerned over the cultural signs of America’s ignoring of biblical perspective. They see this scorn of God’s viewpoint in the words of many politicians, in the outlook of our news media and in public opinion. The Christian community, itself, shows signs of a likeminded approach to life. Many believers in God have the same fierce independence that plagues the majority of Americans. God fits into their lives when it’s convenient. When faced with the need to conform one’s way of living to God’s will, (especially when it does not square with a believer’s desires), many Christians pick and choose when to obey and when not to obey God! This sounds like the situation of the captive Israelites in Ezekiel’s time. I guess God’s people haven’t learned anything about a lifestyle of faith STILL! If you think God was ticked at the people in Ezekiel’s time, (for their ignoring God throughout Israeli history), imagine His anger at professing Christians now, 21 centuries following the arrival of the living Redeemer, Jesus Christ. As recently as the writing of the New Testament we were reminded by God, the Holy Spirit, “I urge you, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will! (Romans 12: 1-2)

How are you and I doing as we live in front of an unbelieving, selfish world of humanity? They often openly ridicule and disdain the idea of an all-powerful authoritative God. Are we allowing God to break us open in front of them so He can give them a stern warning? Are we His mouthpiece, speaking to our friends and acquaintances of the times in ways that (at the least) cause them to have to think in spiritual terms?

And then, are we willing for Him to open us up through the ordeal of pain in order to enable them to see our faith? Even through our times of grief, will we go through it if it costs us that extreme measure of vulnerability? Urgent days are yet ahead for us, as God’s people. May He find us faithful!