Ezekiel 20:1-49

God’s character is always consistent.  He responds to men according to their deeds and their willingness to take Him at His Word.  God will not stand passively by as men rebel against Him.  However, God is also gracious and merciful so it is consistent with His character to forgive those who recognize their sin and turn to Him in repentance.  This is the way that God has dealt with mankind from the very beginning and it is how God will continue to deal with man throughout history.  As we evaluate our relationship with the Lord, we must do so from this perspective. We must examine our own hearts and determine if we are coming before Him as rebellious or repentant.  He will respond to us in a way that is consistent with His character.

GOD REJECTS THE REBELLIOUS: The elders of Israel came to inquire of the Lord through Ezekiel.  The elders recognized that they were in trouble and the Babylonian army was about to dominate them.  In this crucial moment the elders come to Ezekiel to try to find out what is going to happen.  The truth is that they have been repeatedly told exactly what is going to happen but they have not believed the Word of the Lord up until this point.  Ezekiel responds to this inquiry by simply telling them that God would not respond to them because of their rebellion against His Law.  God reminds them of how they had been rescued from Egypt and given clean instructions on how to worship God alone and avoid idolatry at all cost.  Unfortunately, the people rebelled against God’s Word and returned to the worship of the idols of Egypt.  God judged this generation and they all died in the desert.  The next generation did not do much better as they too rebelled against God and began to worship the idols of the people who they conquered when they entered The Promised Land.  This trend of rebellion had continued right up to the days of Ezekiel and now the elders want to come and find out what will happen to them.  God tells Ezekiel not to even entertain their question.  God is not going to answer the questions of those who have lived in rebellion of Him and His Word.  These men were simply out to satisfy their curiosity and then try to enter into some sort of a debate with Ezekiel.  God does not want to engage in idle speculation.  He rejects those who rebel against Him.

GOD RESTORES THE REPENTANT: There is one attitude that God is looking for in the lives of His people: repentance.  When men truly turn from the sin to trust Him; He responds by restoring them and forgiving them.  God promised to judge the nation of Israel by sending the people into captivity amongst the nations of the world.  God did this in order to gain the attention of His people so they would see the seriousness of their rebellion and know that God would not be mocked or share His worship with idols made of sticks and stones.  He was determined to bring the people to a place where they would turn from their sin so that He could forgive and restore them.  God’s discipline is not motivated out of spite or revenge; it is motivated out of love and is a demonstration of grace.  The captivity was designed by God to gain the people’s attention so they would recognize their own idolatry and turn from their sin to trust the Word of God.  His desire is to restore the people to Himself and He will accomplish that through His judgment.  He would finally gain the nation’s attention and they, in due time, would turn back to Him and repent of their idolatry and worship Him alone.  This is God’s promise and plan for Israel, but it is also His plan for every one of us.  He longs to restore us to Himself through our repentance of sin and faith in the work of Christ on the cross.  This is how God promises to deal with all who will turn from their sin to trust the Lord.