Salute the Casket and Do Not Weep
Greetings in the Lord!
Today's word comes from Ezekiel 24. There are 2 stories written about in that chapter, first the word to all of Judah and Israel about their lewdness (idolatry and corrupt living)--the Lord had been trying to show them the error of their ways so that they would repent and be made clean but they would have none of it. No matter the hardship the Lord allowed against them, nothing would change their hearts to live according to His words. Therefore the Lord was going to bring His wrath upon them and take away the "delight of their eyes": the temple.
"Now your impurity is lewdness. Because I tried to cleanse you but you would not be cleansed from your impurity, you will not be clean again until My wrath against you has subsided." Ezekiel 24:13.
The second part of chapter 24 is a story about Ezekiel being told that the Lord was going to allow his wife to die and that he was not to grieve over her publicly. Instead, he was to weep privately thereby being a "sign" or living example to Israel of how they would soon weep and grieve privately over the loss of their "delight"--the temple, because of their own sin of lewdness and idolatry. The Lord was going to allow the temple to be destroyed and His people to be taken into exile because of their own rebelliousness towards God and sinful living. Of course God also has a plan of redemption for the repentant remnant of Israel, but first all of Israel and Jerusalem will endure His cleansing wrath.
So we can learn from today's word that in this season of purification and spiritual renewal, there will be many in the Body of Christ that will not be able to publicly grieve over their losses, losses caused by their own sin and rebelliousness. These were wrong choices and bad habits we cultivated that catered to our flesh--and which ultimately led us from God and His ways. The Lord is going to severe some deep soul ties to things that we should not be bound to...and it will cause us pain. The answer: endure in silence before God. Let Him do the work.
How many times have we held a vice grip on those things: relationships, personal habits, dangerous emotions, pursuit of unholy endeavors, lust, greed, arrogant thinking, and so on that the Lord has told us to let go of? I don't believe it is a coincidence that God uses the loss of a loved one to illustrate the point He was making to Israel either, as only that type of personal loss can cut so deeply to our cores.
Ezekiel was a sign to Israel. Even now, many prominent church leaders are going through this process of private grieving, for the Lord is severing unholy ties in their lives and uprooting their wrong behaviors and choices. They are enduring the process and grieving in private--so be it. I expect that this season will be a cleansing wave for many marriages in the Body of Christ as well, as sexual sins in particular will be targeted for severing by the Lord. Unholy sexual relationships, addictions, and obsessive attractions will be cut off and uprooted this season and the truly repentant will be restored after their time of private mourning and cleansing with God. So be it. It sounds like a good thing on the surface, to be cleansed in this way, but realize that the pain Ezekiel went through over the loss of his wife was intense...maybe just as intense and strong as the love he had for her. At any rate, let this word be an encouragement to those that are going through this process that the Lord is doing a perfect work in us and that His desire is to set us free from unholy attachments. He wants our hearts fully devoted to Him. He will not share time with another "lover" in our life, for he is a jealous God who has a good plan for our lives.
~Be blessed and be a blessing.
Today's word comes from Ezekiel 24. There are 2 stories written about in that chapter, first the word to all of Judah and Israel about their lewdness (idolatry and corrupt living)--the Lord had been trying to show them the error of their ways so that they would repent and be made clean but they would have none of it. No matter the hardship the Lord allowed against them, nothing would change their hearts to live according to His words. Therefore the Lord was going to bring His wrath upon them and take away the "delight of their eyes": the temple.
"Now your impurity is lewdness. Because I tried to cleanse you but you would not be cleansed from your impurity, you will not be clean again until My wrath against you has subsided." Ezekiel 24:13.
The second part of chapter 24 is a story about Ezekiel being told that the Lord was going to allow his wife to die and that he was not to grieve over her publicly. Instead, he was to weep privately thereby being a "sign" or living example to Israel of how they would soon weep and grieve privately over the loss of their "delight"--the temple, because of their own sin of lewdness and idolatry. The Lord was going to allow the temple to be destroyed and His people to be taken into exile because of their own rebelliousness towards God and sinful living. Of course God also has a plan of redemption for the repentant remnant of Israel, but first all of Israel and Jerusalem will endure His cleansing wrath.
So we can learn from today's word that in this season of purification and spiritual renewal, there will be many in the Body of Christ that will not be able to publicly grieve over their losses, losses caused by their own sin and rebelliousness. These were wrong choices and bad habits we cultivated that catered to our flesh--and which ultimately led us from God and His ways. The Lord is going to severe some deep soul ties to things that we should not be bound to...and it will cause us pain. The answer: endure in silence before God. Let Him do the work.
How many times have we held a vice grip on those things: relationships, personal habits, dangerous emotions, pursuit of unholy endeavors, lust, greed, arrogant thinking, and so on that the Lord has told us to let go of? I don't believe it is a coincidence that God uses the loss of a loved one to illustrate the point He was making to Israel either, as only that type of personal loss can cut so deeply to our cores.
Ezekiel was a sign to Israel. Even now, many prominent church leaders are going through this process of private grieving, for the Lord is severing unholy ties in their lives and uprooting their wrong behaviors and choices. They are enduring the process and grieving in private--so be it. I expect that this season will be a cleansing wave for many marriages in the Body of Christ as well, as sexual sins in particular will be targeted for severing by the Lord. Unholy sexual relationships, addictions, and obsessive attractions will be cut off and uprooted this season and the truly repentant will be restored after their time of private mourning and cleansing with God. So be it. It sounds like a good thing on the surface, to be cleansed in this way, but realize that the pain Ezekiel went through over the loss of his wife was intense...maybe just as intense and strong as the love he had for her. At any rate, let this word be an encouragement to those that are going through this process that the Lord is doing a perfect work in us and that His desire is to set us free from unholy attachments. He wants our hearts fully devoted to Him. He will not share time with another "lover" in our life, for he is a jealous God who has a good plan for our lives.
~Be blessed and be a blessing.
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