September 6, 2012

"A Watchman for the House of Israel" (9/6)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Ezekiel 32-34.

“Now as for you, son of man, I have appointed you a watchman for the house of Israel; so you will hear a message from My mouth and give them warning from Me. When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require from your hand. But if you on your part warn a wicked man to turn from his way and he does not turn from his way, he will die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your life” (Ezekiel 33:7-9).

A watchman’s job was simple: warn the people when danger threatened in order to give them time to prepare for the threat. Ezekiel’s job as “a watchman for the house of Israel” was similar. He was to warn them of divine punishment that was coming because of their sins. The hope was that the warning would lead them to prepare for the “threat” by putting away their sins and turning back to the Lord.

There are at least two lessons we can take from this:
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August 31, 2012

Gospel Preaching and Ice Cream Parties

Recently, a local church here in Bowling Green held a weekend gospel meeting. The announcement that appeared on the front page of their website inviting people to attend also contained an invitation to an “Ice Cream Meet n’ Eat” that would be held at the home of one of the members.

Incorporating this invitation into the announcement on the church’s website for the gospel meeting makes it easy for one to get the impression that this ice cream party was an official event sponsored and paid for by the church. The fact that it was located at a member’s house would not necessarily indicate that the church was uninvolved. A church might decide to host a social event at such a location in order to provide a more casual environment or because they church does not (yet) have a fellowship hall or similar facility in which to host the event on-site. Denominations host social events on their property and off-site all of the time. People are accustomed to these things happening. So even though social events have no place in the work of the church (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:22, 34), many people would not think twice about it.

Though I do not know this for a fact, I assume that this particular ice cream party was paid for by individual members and not by the congregation (even though the announcement somehow ended up on the church’s website embedded within the invitation to the gospel meeting). However, this does beg the question: Is it appropriate to use social events (like ice cream parties) as a means of enticing people to come listen to the gospel?
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August 27, 2012

Whether They Listen or Not (8/27)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Ezekiel 1-4.

During the Babylonian captivity, Ezekiel was among the captives when God called him to prophesy. But He warned Ezekiel that this would not be an easy task.

“Then He said to me, ‘Son of man, I am sending you to the sons of Israel, to a rebellious people who have rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. I am sending you to them who are stubborn and obstinate children, and you shall say to them, “Thus says the Lord God.” As for them, whether they listen or not—for they are a rebellious house—they will know that a prophet has been among them’” (Ezekiel 2:3-5).

The reason why the people were suffering at this time was because they had been stubborn and rebellious against God. Being taken captive to Babylon did not change their attitude. Yet God sent Ezekiel to them anyway.
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August 25, 2012

False and Misleading Oracles (8/25)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Lamentations 1:1-3:36.

The book of Lamentations is a lament over the state of God’s people. They had rejected God for so long and departed so far from Him that His patience had run out and He was punishing them for their sins. But how could these people – who should have known better – fall so far? One major factor was the false prophets among them.

“Your prophets have seen for you false and foolish visions; and they have not exposed your iniquity so as to restore you from captivity, but they have seen for you false and misleading oracles” (Lamentation 2:14).

There were two fundamental problems with the message of these false prophets:
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August 19, 2012

"They Continually Mocked the Messengers of God" (8/19)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from 2 Kings 24-25; 2 Chronicles 36.

God’s judgment of the people of Judah happened in stages at the hands of the Babylonians. But even after it started, He still loved the people and sent messengers to them so that they would listen and repent.

“The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent word to them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place; but they continually mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people, until there was no remedy. Therefore He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or infirm; He gave them all into his hand” (2 Chronicles 36:15-17).

Despite the fact that judgment was already happening against them, the people still refused to listen to the prophets. But more than just closing their ears for lack of interest, they actively mocked, despised, and scoffed at the message and the messengers of God.

God’s patience has a limit. In this case, the people who refused to listen were taken off into captivity. Though we do not stand to face a Babylonian captivity, we will still be judged and punished if we mock those who teach the truth and reject the word of God.

Once God’s patience runs out, we will have no hope; we will be destroyed. We must take advantage of our time now, when God still extends His patience and mercy toward us, so that we might correct anything that might be amiss in our lives and conform to His will.

Tomorrow’s reading: Habakkuk 1-3

[I’m using the Chronological reading plan on the Bible Gateway website if you’d like to follow along, too.]

Daily Notes & Observations contains all 365 articles from this series and is available in paperback from Gospel Armory.

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August 18, 2012

"This Man is Not Seeking the Well-Being of This People" (8/18)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Jeremiah 28-40; Psalm 74, 79.

Jeremiah’s message was one that was filled with warnings of destruction. As we might expect, his “negative” message was generally not well-received. The attitude of his opponents is very similar to the attitude of those today who oppose the truth.

“‘Thus says the Lord, “This city will certainly be given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon and he will capture it.”‘ Then the officials said to the king, ‘Now let this man be put to death, inasmuch as he is discouraging the men of war who are left in this city and all the people, by speaking such words to them; for this man is not seeking the well-being of the people but rather their harm’” (Jeremiah 38:3-4).

Jeremiah’s message, though unpopular and uncomfortable, was one that the people desperately needed to hear. The ones who would heed his words and obey them would deliver themselves (Jeremiah 38:2). For those who rejected him, there would be punishment. But the officials did not like Jeremiah’s message and tried to turn the king against him by making two accusations:
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August 14, 2012

"Do Not Omit a Word!" (8/14)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Jeremiah 26-29.

“In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Stand in the court of the Lord’s house, and speak to all the cities of Judah who have come to worship in the Lord’s house all the words that I have commanded you to speak to them. Do not omit a word! Perhaps they will listen and everyone will turn from his evil way, that I may repent of the calamity which I am planning to do to them because of the evil of their deeds”‘” (Jeremiah 26:1-3).

As Jeremiah was proclaiming the message from the Lord, he was expected to proclaim all of it. Even withholding the slightest amount was not permissible. He was not to omit even a word. God revealed His message for a reason – He wanted the people to hear it, turn from their sins, and avoid the coming judgment.
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