Thursday, September 9, 2021

Ezekiel 44 Devotions by Stephen Taylor

Ezekiel 44:15,16

“But the Levitical priests, who are descendants of Zadok and who guarded my sanctuary when the Israelites went astray from me, are to come near to minister before me; they are to stand before me to offer sacrifices of fat and blood, declares the Sovereign LORD. They alone are to enter my sanctuary; they alone are to come near my table to minister before me and serve me as guards.” 

 

The Lord rewards the reverent faithfulness and obedience of His people! There are two groups of priests in this chapter of the Bible, one that strayed and one that stayed. They both get to serve the Lord, but it is the ones who stay faithful to Him that get to come in closer!

 

We see here that our faithfulness, our obedience, and our reverence for Him are rewarded by a closer relationship to Him. You might say, “Well, it’s too late for me. I have already strayed and went my own way.” Well, don’t worry because God had a plan for that, and His name is Jesus! Because of Jesus, we too can start fresh and new with the Lord and serve Him in a close and intimate way. We no longer have to be on the outside looking in but can be on the inside living, serving, and worshiping in His Presence.

 

Jesus is the Light in the darkness, the Hope for the desperate, the Strength in our weakness, the only Life for this dead and dying world. Our King, our Messiah, our Friend. The only Door of reconciliation and redemption was blown open that day on the Cross. Have you walked through it? Told others about it? Lived life in reverence and honor of it? Thank You, Papa, thank You, Jesus, thank You, Holy Spirit for saving a wretch like me and never leaving my side!

 

2 Corinthians 5:18-21 - All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are, therefore, Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.

 

 

Ezekiel 44:19

“And when they go out into the outer courtyard, into the outer courtyard to the people, they shall take off their garments in which they have been ministering and lay them in the holy chambers; then they shall put on other garments, so that they will not transfer holiness to the people with their garments.”

This is part of a vision God gave Ezekiel about the restoration of Israel, speaking specifically of the priesthood that would be restored. What the Holy Spirit brought to my attention this morning is how the holiness of God transferred from God to the priest, and then the priest could transfer it to those around him. Do we know that as we spend more intimate time with God, we become more like Him? And the more we become like Him, the more we share Him with those around us. He literally rubs off on those around us, sometimes without us even knowing it.

I truly believe that I am a product of God’s powerful grace and mercy, but also a product of the prayers and faith of those around me. Not that they have magical or mystical powers but they serve and pray to the all-powerful and only Living God.

Each one of us has been given a mission field; for some, it is near; for others, it is, far but to God, they are all meaningful and important. So we must ask ourselves, who or what are we spending most of our free time with? Is it the world or the Word? We aren’t to be shut-ins that never see the light of day, but we can’t be so immersed in the world that we lose our way. This calls for balance, surrender, and self-control.

What if the change you wanted to see in those around you started with you? I’m not saying that you will change everyone’s life you come into contact with, but there will be seeds planted and fruit grown by those who faithfully follow and serve Christ daily. What, or better yet Who, are you sowing into those closest to you? Please help us, Lord!

Proverbs 13:20- Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.

1 Corinthians 15:33- Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”

If bad company corrupts, what could righteous company produce? God bless! I love you all, but His love is our only saving grace! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

 

 

 

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