Ezekiel 2:1-10

God calls Ezekiel to be a prophet to the nation of Israel.  He has had a vision of who God is and now He is instructed as to what God wants Him to do.  Ezekiel is in the proper position when he is called; on his face in worship.  God’s Spirit enters him and stands him on his feet so he can go and do what God wants Him to do.  Too often we try to do God’s work in our own strength without worship and without the Spirit.  On the other hand, we have a tendency to get comfortable in our places of worship and do not obey the Spirits call to go and preach the Word.  Both extremes are wrong.  True worship will result in obedience to the Spirits call to go and do the work of the ministry.  There are two qualities that are vital to the work of the ministry and God lets Ezekiel know from the beginning what is expected of Him.

COMMUNICATION: The function of a prophet is simply to communicate the Word of God to people.  God let Ezekiel know that the people to whom he was being sent were a rebellious and stubborn people.  Generation after generation of Israel has refused to hear and obey the Word of God.  God warns Ezekiel that this generation will be much the same.  Nevertheless, Ezekiel is called to accurately communicate to the people exactly what the Lord has said.  It is not our job to make the people obey God’s Word, only God’s Spirit can bring about that transformation in the hearts of men.  Our job is to go to men and clearly proclaim the Word of God whether they what to hear it or not.


COURAGE: The reality is that most of the people to whom we speak God’s Word do not want to hear it.  God warns Ezekiel that his words will be met with harsh looks, threats and great discomfort from persecution.  God’s Word to Ezekiel is the same as it has always been to all of His servants: “fear not.”  Too often those who are called to preach the Word of God fail to do so because of the fear of men.  Everyone likes to be liked.  We are very much aware of the fact that the Gospel is an offensive message because it calls people to turn from the sin which they love and warns them of the judgment of God which they hate.  The natural response of sinful men to the Word of God is denial and to attack the messenger.  God warns Ezekiel to be courageous and speak the Word of God no matter what the consequences may be.  We cannot control the responses of men to our message but we can control our fears and chose to obey God even in the midst of great oppostition. 

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