-
Christian Devotional – May 4, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 20:44–You will know that I am the Lord, when I deal with you for my name’s sake and not according to your evil ways and your corrupt practices, you people of Israel, declares the Sovereign Lord. TRUTH: What a beautiful verse! Even though the people had done evil and been disobedient to God, God promises to deal with them according to His Name and not according to the evil they had done. God is perfectly justified to destroy us in judgment because of our sins and wrongs, yet He chooses instead to provide an alternative that is only through His mercy and grace. This alternative shows the power…
-
Christian Devotional – May 3, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 19:1–Take up a lament concerning the princes of Israel. TRUTH: Do we rejoice or lament when people are brought down under the judgment of God? Ezekiel goes on in this chapter to describe the destruction of the kings of Israel, and even though they were evil, God gives this lament for the people to mourn their judgment. We are not to rejoice in the judgment of people who have acted wrong. We are to mourn their disobedience and failure to repent. Do we have a heart to mourn these who have refused to repent and turn to God? RESPONSE: Father, I want to have a heart like Yours to…
-
Christian Devotional – May 2, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 18:21–But if a wicked person turns away from all the sins they have committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, that person will surely live, they will not die. TRUTH: No one is too far gone into sin that they can’t decide to repent and turn and follow God. God spends this whole chapter explaining that people are responsible for their own sin, not the sin of their father or anyone else. Do we believe that God can truly forgive anyone? Have we asked for and received that forgiveness for ourselves? We are to be the message of hope to the world…
-
Christian Devotional – May 1, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 17:24–All the trees of the forest will know that I the Lord bring down the tall tree and make the low tree grow tall. I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish. “I the Lord have spoken and I will do it.” TRUTH: The Lord is the one who brings about prosperity. He is the one who controls the outcome of all that we do. Do we trust in our own strength or are we trusting in Him? Since He is in control of the outcomes, we are to trust in Him and follow Him and allow Him to do what He feels is…
-
Christian Devotional – April 30, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 16:60–Yet I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you. TRUTH: God does not forget His promises to us. He sees what we do and knows our thoughts, and He loves us anyway and claims us as His own. He paid the price for our wrongs and we are only to accept His gift to receive that forgiveness. Still, since He established the covenant, He is the one to follow through and keep it. The Lord remembers us and will always come through for us in everything that He has promised. RESPONSE: Father,…
-
Christian Devotional – April 29, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 15:8–I will make the land desolate because they have been unfaithful, declares the Lord. TRUTH: Ezekiel tells the people that when they are disobedient to God, they are utterly useless and good for nothing. As a result, God will judge and everything that they have will be destroyed and left desolate. When we are disobedient, our lives are left desolate and barren. We need to repent and return to God in order for Him to cleanse us and bring about new life in our life. RESPONSE: Father, You are the only one who takes the lifelessness of my life and creates new life. I will surrender my life…
-
Christian Devotional – April 28, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 14:5–I will do this to recapture the hearts of the people of Israel, who have all deserted me for their idols. TRUTH: God does not sit idly by when His people run after other things. God seeks to do whatever is needed to recapture the hearts of His people. Have we strayed from Him? He is working to bring us back to Him. We must recognize His efforts and turn back to Him. RESPONSE: Father, I love how You chase after me when I stray. Thank You for Your love and for seeking me and looking to reclaim my love and devotion. I will give You my heart…
-
Christian Devotional – April 27, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 13:10a–Because they lead my people astray saying, “Peace,” when there is no peace. TRUTH: The Lord is condeming the false prophets who have been spreading lies among the people of Israel. They have told the people that everything is fine and there are no issues or problem, when in fact the people have been disobedient to God. Are we honest with people about what God says or do we just tell them what they want to hear? RESPONSE: Father, I want to deliver Your word and message to the people You send me to. I want to speak only the words that You have for me, so that…
-
Christian Devotional – April 26, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 12:2–Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people. They have eyes to see but do not see and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious people. TRUTH: What does it mean to be rebellious? Being rebellious means you know what it is that you should be doing but you choose not to do it. The people saw and heard what they should be doing to follow God, but they chose to do something different. Are we seeing and hearing God’s plan for us? Do we obey it or choose to ignore it in rebellion to Him? RESPONSE: Father, You have given…
-
Christian Devotional – April 25, 2013
VERSE: Ezekiel 11:19–I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. TRUTH: The Lord, speaking to Ezekiel, tells him that even with the judgment that He is bringing on Israel, God will not completely destroy them. God will restore the remnant of people who turn back to Him. God then states in this verse that He will give them a new heart. He will take the old, hard heart and replace it with a new, soft heart that is capable of being moved and prompted by the Spirit of…