Freedom For Today

Ezekiel 24:15-17 – “Then this message came to me from the Lord: ‘Son of man, with one blow I will take away your dearest treasure. Yet you must not show any sorrow at her death. Do not weep; let there be no tears. Groan silently, but let there be no wailing at her grave. Do not uncover your head or take off your sandals. Do not perform the usual rituals of mourning or accept any food brought to you by consoling friends.'”

Read the full chapter here.

Losses are painful and difficult. If you have ever gone through a time of grieving, you know that it is unpredictable, sad, and hard. Imagine Ezekiel’s life as a prophet — the death of his wife serves as a live demonstration for the people of Israel about how to respond to the destruction God is going to bring. Ezekiel must act out what God desires for Israel: show no pain or sorrow, do not cry, and don’t even take food from your friends. That’s a tough calling from God.

Ezekiel is faithful and obedient. He challenges me to think more deeply about the gift of prophecy and how hard life can be when God has given you a prophetic gift. The point here is that God’s destruction doesn’t deserve tears. When evil is destroyed in your life, you don’t need to cry over your losses.

Here’s your freedom for today:

When God sets you free, never look back.

Ezekiel’s wife’s death is not the point of today’s chapter. That is simply a metaphor for the losses the people of Israel are about to face. Although destruction is hard to take, it is the first step to freedom. Removing evil from your life can be painful — you need to give up the things that harm you. But when you experience these losses, don’t cry! It’s the best thing that ever happened to you. I’ve known women who have sat with me and deleted drug dealers’ phone numbers from their phones or blocked the number of a guy that was no good for them. There is a sweet relief in these moments, and it’s no time for tears except tears of joy. What losses do you need to experience today in order to be set free?

Ezekiel 23:1 – “This message came to me from the Lord: ‘Son of man, once there were two sisters who were daughters of the same mother…'”

Read the full chapter here.

God has some R-rated metaphors in the Bible, and this chapter is one of them. I highlighted the first verse for two reasons. First, so that we could note the phrasing, “once there were two sisters…,” showing that it is allegorical literature (a metaphor as opposed to a historically true story). Second, all the other verses are inappropriate.

This complex story of two sisters who prostituted themselves represents two cities in the two kingdoms of Israel (Samaria in Israel and Jerusalem in the kingdom of Judah). Israel had divided into northern and southern kingdoms. As we know, they have stopped following God and have traded him for other religions found in the nearby nations.

Here’s your freedom for today:

You don’t have to sell your soul for a good time.

It might be a bit much to read this chapter, but ultimately we find ourselves in a very similar place. As Americans, we don’t even understand all the ways we have sold our souls for convenience, money, or power. Our economy was built on the oppression of slavery, and we continue to buy mass quantities of products built overseas by extremely poor and underpaid workers. That’s only one example. I am challenged to consider the ways in which I have turned from the heart of God for what seems like “no big deal” because everyone around me is doing the same thing. Not many people think about oppression when they buy a cell phone, laptop, or pair of shoes. What worldly systems are tempting you to sell your soul?

Ezekiel 22:30 – “I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one.”

Read the full chapter here.

Have you ever looked at all the evil in the world and wondered why God doesn’t do something about it? From what we read in today’s chapter, he’s working on it. The phrase “Son of Man” refers to a coming Messiah, who we now understand is Jesus. Many times the prophets foretold destruction that would happen on two levels — one in a shorter time frame and one at the end of the world. In the end, God’s destruction of evil and all who engage in it will stop all the suffering.

Today’s highlighted verse gives us an image and phrase you might have seen or heard before: “stand in the gap.” God sees that his people have known how to live rightly in the past and they are not so far gone that there is nothing left to rebuild. But there is a portion of the wall destroyed. God only needs ONE person to stand in that gap in the wall in order to protect the people from destruction. Just one.

Here’s your freedom for today:

Your life can make an eternal difference.

If God were looking for someone to stand in the gap and protect his people, could you be that one? Does your life reflect God’s truth and his ways? Is your heart yearning after him? Do live with eternal purpose in mind? You could be used to protect God’s people by blocking destruction in their lives. How do you do that? Leadership. Right living. Allowing Jesus to be the everything that you live for. Be an influencer — live a life that is worth emulating. Stand as a spiritual shield for those who need it. You can make an eternal difference.

Ezekiel 21:5 – “Everyone in the world will know that I am the Lord. My sword is in my hand, and it will not return to its sheath until its work is finished.”

Read the full chapter here.

Today’s focus is on God’s coming judgment, with some of the same phrases repeated more than once as he speaks to different people groups. Israelites, Babylonians, and Ammonites alike will not be exempt from God’s judgment. Verse 5 jumped out at me: “until its work is finished.” What is the work of God’s sword?

When we think of God’s judgment, we often judge it (ironically). How could a loving God kill and destroy people? This question applies to a passage like this as well as to a belief in an eternal hell. But the work of God’s sword is to cut apart the good from the evil in this world he created. If you are on the receiving end of evil (abuse, oppression, all the -isms, etc.), you would probably be fairly upset if God did nothing about the harm that has come to you.

Here’s your freedom for today:

God’s judgment opposes evil, not good.

God is restoring the world, not harming it. Destruction is productive when you are removing harm (like cancer, weeds, or garbage). Imagine if we never got rid of our trash. We just had to live in it week after week with no way to remove it. Now imagine if your neighbors continually brought trash over to your house, dumped it on you, and there was still no way for you to remove it. God’s judgment would remove the trash and bring justice against the harmful neighbor. He’s on your side if you are on the side of goodness. The problem is that none of us are inherently good — we all sin and participate in evil whether we set out to or not. Earthly systems are built upon harm. If you oppose evil in yourself and in society, you are on the side of God’s judgment. Jesus gave us the only way out. The job of the church is to pull as many people as possible away from evil before the judgment of God is brought to bear.

Ezekiel 20:1-3 – “On August 14, during the seventh year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, some of the leaders of Israel came to request a message from the Lord. They sat down in front of me to wait for his reply. Then this message came to me from the Lord: ‘Son of man, tell the leaders of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: How dare you come to ask me for a message? As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, I will tell you nothing!’”

Read the full chapter here.

Today’s chapter is all about who is God and who is not. When a king asks for an audience, he gets it. Except when that king is making demands of God. You can’t just try to summon God as if he is a servant to you. Other way around. God makes sure he is clear exactly who’s in charge.

While we may not blatantly demand an audience with God in the same way, I think we often forget who is serving whom. How much of your prayer life centers on God making your life more convenient? While he is interested in every detail of our lives, he’s not our vending machine, secretary, or genie in a bottle.

Here’s your freedom for today:

You are most free when you are properly aligned with God.

Have you ever noticed life is pretty tough? It’s hard! We want things we can’t have, we hurt in ways we wish we didn’t, and we are far more powerless than we like to admit. There’s a reason you are not God. It’s too much for you. It is freeing to align yourself properly underneath God. Surrender your life in all its aspects to him. Allow him to lead you. Pray about what he wants you to do rather than what you want him to do for you. Just sit in his presence. Let him take care of you.