As Christians, we’ve all had the conversation with other Christians. It is the “my Church is better than your Church” conversation. Now, we would never say that, but it begins as, “This weekend was incredible at my Church. Pastor Soandso said…”. At which point, your friend says, “Well, my Church was even more incredible…”. The fact is, we are all one Church and that is why I was so excited when I found out about the One Prayer series.
Now that we are half way through the One Prayer series, I thought it might be finally time to write about it. Actually, I knew this series was coming a month before it did and I wanted to blog about it then, but teachiing and summer got a hold of me and I was unable to. It is incredible to participate in this with Palm Valley Church, along with so many other churches around the world. I can’t explain it as well as Craig Groeschel:
All of which leads me to this: In my Daily Read a couple of days ago, I came upon Acts 10 and 11, where Peter is summoned to Caesarea where the Holy Spirit comes upon the Gentiles, whom the Jews believe should not be a part of this new church. When Peter arrives back in Jerusalem, he’s getting the business from the Jewish believers and he responds with the best comeback ever:
“And since God gave these Gentiles the same gift he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to stand in God’s way?” Acts 11:17 (NLT)
Yep, we’re all in this together folks. This series and movement is incredible. Building churches in other nations, uniting established churches around the world and learning from other great teachers from around the country. Now this is God-sized vision and it is fun to be along for it all. It is awesome to, as the One Prayer website explains it, “Refocus our understanding of the Church as a body of believers instead of a physical location.”
This is it for this book! You know, it really moves along once you get in the habit of doing the reading. We have now gone for our first month and it is great! Thanks to all who are joining in. If you haven’t started, jump in tomorrow with Daniel.
Previously in the Daily Read, Ezekiel has had his vision of the new Temple and now the Lord stops by the vision to tell him to go back to Israel and let the people know about it. If they are ashamed for their sins, then he can go on to tell them the exact specifications of the build. The Lord also lets Ezekiel know who should run the place and how the land should be subdivided for it and the other residents of Israel. God also specifies how the offerings should go (bulls, goats and rams, interesting combination) to cleanse the Temple.
Finally, one thing that I found fascinating was that the Lord appeared in the East Gateway. He goes on to say this should now be forever closed, as it is where he appeared in the vision. I don’t know why this stuck out to me, but it is a tribute to His Power. Let’s keep it going, just one more reading in this book. Read on…
Previously in the Daily Read, Ezekiel gets a vision and a tour of the new Temple in Jerusalem. And it is detailed. From the gateways to the courtyards, to the Holy Place to the Most Holy Place and Priest Rooms, we get a measured look into the new Temple that will be built to the Lord’s specifications. While it is a very analytical passage to read, it does create up visions of grandeur.
An interesting decorating not, engraved on the columns and walls of this new Temple are palm trees. The logo of Palm Valley Church are, oh yeah, palm trees. It would be interesting to see as we build a church building if that could somehow be put into the new facility, as homage to this passage of Ezekiel.
Finally, we are just two days away from the book of Daniel! While not always the easiest read, it has seemed to move by pretty quickly. For those of you might be checking the site and have not joined in, you might want to join in. Read on!!!
Previously in the Daily Read, we finally have a bunch of hope in a big way. First, the Lord shows Ezekiel his power by turning a valley full of dry bones into living breathing people. Then he sends a message to Gog to invade Israel. But, this is to boost the confidence of the people of Israel by having him defeat Gog’s armies. What better way to demonstrate his power to the people who have been down for some time. Just trust in Him and love Him and you can be powerful That’s the lesson here. Finally, we will finish with this verse that shows His love:
And I will never again turn my back on them, for I will pour out my Spirit upon them, says the Sovereign Lord. Ezekiel 39:29
Before a recap of our reading, we must take a moment to pray for the significance of this day in our country’s history. While we have been reading about the destruction of Jerusalem that lasted many years, there was one day of destruction in New York City and Washington D.C. on this date that would cause years of tragedy. Let us pray for the families of the people who were brought to their eternal life with the Lord on this date five years ago. Let us pray for all of them and aid in their healing on this date, as I am sure that it more difficult than most.
Now, previously in the Daily Read, it began with Ezekiel being officially declared a watchman of Jerusalem. While the Lord had already sent the message that Ezekiel needed to warn the wicked of the impending doom and if he didn’t, he would be the one that suffered for their sins, he was reminded again of this fact.
Ezekiel then goes on to tell the leaders of Israel that they are Shepard’s that have led their flock astray. They were so busy getting fat and happy that they disregarded their responsibilities. And God explains that he is not happy to do this, but to punish them for what they have done. We must remember as parents, our children must be disciplined to do the right thing, no matter how hard it might be. God had to do it to an entire nation to prove to the world that he was Lord. We only have to teach our children right and wrong, so it’s not that difficult.
We wrapped up with a message of hope for Jerusalem. If they have been wicked with sin, but repent, life will be good back in the home land. If they good, but begin to sin, not so good. Pretty easy stuff. But, the Lord promises that he will build back the nation, not because the people deserve it, but to show the world that He is holy and just. The people of Israel will repent and know that He is God and they will be able to live a better life. If we know that today, we will live a better life. All in all, a pretty good read. Keep it up! Thanks.
Previously in the Daily Read, we conclude the parade of destruction with a lengthy passage regarding the fall of Egypt. Israel had always turned to the mighty nation, only after Babylon, when they found themselves in trouble. Pharaoh of Egypt had really gotten full of himself and I think we have read enough to know that when these kings began thinking they were god-like, the Lord usually brought them down a notch. In this reading, God uses the example of Assyria to demonstrate how he can bring down a great country and its king:
Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because it became proud and arrogant, and because it set itself so high above the others, reaching for the clouds, I handed it over to a mighty nation that destroyed it as its wickedness deserved. I myself discarded it. Ezekiel 31:10-11
Yet another example of thinking that you are in charge when you really are not. He is. While we have been reading of this destruction for some time, we are reaching the point of Jerusalem’s restoration. Hang in there. Remember, the good news is on the way. Read on…
Previously in the Daily Read, the fall of Jerusalem has come and its neighboring nations have had a good laugh at their expense, but God is not going to let that go unpunished. He sends messages to Ezekiel to let Ammon, Moab, Edom, Phillistia and especially Tyre that they will be brought down. Interestingly, I remember writing this from Jeremiah. Two different prophets, same story. I still find that fascinating.
Moving on, Tyre gets the bulk of the passage and it truly proves a point. The king and all the people of Tyre have taken credit for their success and its beauty. We know it is by the glory of God that we have these things, but like many people, even still today, they believe it is by their own power. The king, in fact, thinks he is god-like. But, we know where the true power comes from and Tyre learns that hard lesson in this reading. Read on…
Oh man, I think that this is the first time I have fallen down on this! It’s the busy season and after a soccer match, practice and coach’s training, I got home and fell asleep on the couch before posting. Sorry Randy, I know you like to read in the morning. Anyway, recap coming shortly. Read on…
Alright, it’s 10 PM and I am back to do what I need to do. I read the passage and now it is time for:
Previously in the Daily Read, the final rally cry has come from God. This is it. Jerusalem will meet their fate. The Lord is really ticked, comparing the cities in Judea to adulterous sisters. The sins are too great and the time has come. It’s taken a while in this book, but it is here. The read ends with the death of Ezekiel’s wife (which is interesting that she hadn’t been mentioned before) and even at this time, the Lord is teaching a lesson. He tells Ezekiel not to mourn or take food from sympathetic friends. He is off to Babylon and he will be able to speak once he gets the news of Jerusalem’s destruction. I think that this is really metaphor for him being allowed to mourn. But it’s here. It will be interesting to see how his description of the fall goes.
Previously in the Daily Read, more destruction. God told Ezekiel to let the people of Israel know that he was bringing down the hammer, or in this case, the sword. Again, leaders from Jerusalem came asking questions and again, the Lord told them to bug off. They and their ancestors had ignored him for far too long and it was too late. He even had Ezekiel put up signposts for the Babylonian army to tell the which way to go and told the Ammonites that they were in for it as well.
Randy had made a comment that this was all depressing. And I don’t disagree. We have started with probably the worst books that anybody could start out with. But, I am excited because I know that this is leading to the books with the birth of Jesus Christ, who will forgive everyone for their sins. I think that it would be a bummer to have to read through the entire Old Testament before getting to that! Is my glass half full?
Another thought that occurred to me today was the irony in the scientists that don’t buy the Creation theory, because the Lord was using great scientific theory at this time. Follow me for a minute. Observe how he has had multiple prophets account for this time. For instance, when we did science projects in school, would the teachers have gone with one experiment to prove a theory? Absolutely not! The same goes for this era in Israel. Had the Lord left it to one prophet, these people and all of history would have dismissed it as a madman’s ramblings. But instead, He had a number of the major prophets account for this period to prove that he meant business. That is solid theory and proof that the Lord is on top of things.
So while I agree that it seems as though we are reading a rerun of the same episode, remember that it is for good reason and that the Good News is just around the corner. Thanks and read on…
Previously in the Daily Read, in Chapter God has Ezekiel tell the riddle of the 2 eagles who drop the seeds for vines, one in fertile ground and one in the middle of a crowd with bad soil. The vine in the fertile ground near a river gets greedy and reaches for the water when it doesn’t need it. The other grows and becomes strong to do the work of God. The fertile, Jerusalem, blows away and is easily rid of. The other, Babylon, takes it place.
There is hope in Chapter 18 as the Lord says that children will not suffer for the sins of their parents. This was a common thought, but God clears up by saying if you sin and don’t repent, you will pay. But, even if you have sinned and change your ways, you will be saved. It’s as easy as that. Summed up:
And suppose he is grants loans without interest, stays away from injustice, is honest and fair when judging others, and faithfully obeys my laws and regulations. Anyone who does these things is just and will surely live, says the Sovereign Lord. Ezekiel 18:8-9
Finally, in Chapter 19, Ezekiel writes a fine, poetic funeral song for Israel’s Kings. It is a great summary to the reading we have done and puts all of the chapters that we have read together in a nice parable. Thanks for stopping by. Read on…
