Read:
Ezekiel 2:1-10
Reflect:
“Son of man, don’t be afraid of the people or what they say.” Ezekiel 2:6, NLT
The rise and fall of human leaders and nations are in the hands of God. Donald Trump and his followers thought he was God’s instrument to make America great again. However, I believe God was using Trump to make God great again in America – just as God told Pharaoh, “I have appointed you for the very purpose of displaying my power in you and to spread my fame throughout the earth.”1
The downfall of other leaders like Boris Johnson and Liz Truss in the United Kingdom and of Dr Mahathir Mohamed in the recent Malaysian general elections are but reminders that God rules human kingdoms and makes leaders out of losers.2 We have the inspiring example of the late Queen Elizabeth II. She was faithful in her calling to be queen of the United Kingdom and became the monarch with the longest reign of more than 70 years in history. She saw the monarchy not as a privilege but her mission in life to live out her faith in Jesus Christ.
The role of a prophet of God is to proclaim the sovereignty of God. It is not to foretell or predict the future but to declare the will of God to the nations. Jonah was called by God to declare to the Ninevites that in forty days, Nineveh will be destroyed. Even though they were non believers, the people of Nineveh believed Jonah and expressed their repentance through fasting.
Jonah’s words from God were life changing. The Ninevites fasted to show their sorrow from the greatest to the least. Even the king of Nineveh sent a decree to command everyone to pray earnestly to God. In response to the godly desires in their hearts, God demonstrated His amazing compassionate love by sparing the Ninevites.3
In sharp contrast, Ezekiel was given the task of giving messages of funeral songs, words of sorrow, and pronouncements of doom to the rebellious Jews. He was told that the Jews will not listen to him because of their stubborn hearts and Ezekiel heard the voice of God encouraging him:
“Son of man, don’t be afraid of the people or what they say.”4
Jonah’s message of God’s judgment was to demonstrate God’s compassion while Ezekiel’s messages of doom were to expose the stony and rebellious hearts of the Jews. God’s judgment reveals the spiritual condition of our hearts.5 John the Baptist preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.6 After John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee and preached that “the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the gospel.”7
Jesus came to show humankind how much God loves us8 and that God does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.9 God does not want the wicked to die but to turn from their ways and live.10 But without repentance, God’s Word cannot change our heart – it will only harden our heart. With repentance, God’s Word will lead us to turn away from living futile lives without God and to turn to God and live a life of coram deo – living before the face of God.
God’s Word is life changing only when we acknowledge our need for God’s grace through repentance. In repentance we offer our broken and divided hearts to Christ and cultivate the habit of pouring our hearts into the Word of God. As we ponder and practice the life giving words of God the heart of God is poured out into our lives by the Holy Spirit and life becomes a dance of love. When God’s Word is a lamp for our feet and a light for our paths, we will shine like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people:11
Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path
I will not forget
Your love for me and yet
My heart forever is wandering
Jesus be my guide
And hold me to your side
I will love you to the end.12
Respond:
Lord, grant me the courage to proclaim the truth of the kingdom of heaven in my life.
Reframe:
- Why is repentance necessary for us to live a spiritual life?
- Why do we need courage to share the message of repentance?
- How can I live a life of repentance?
Song of Praise:
Thy Word
SDG
Notes:
- Romans 9:17 NLT
- Daniel 4:17, MSG
- Jonah 3:1-10, NLT
- Ezekiel 2:1-9, NLT
- John 3:19-20, NLT
- Mark 1:4, NET
- Mark 1:15, NET
- John 3:16, NKVJ
- 2 Peter 3:9, NLT
- Ezekiel 33:11, NLT
- Philippians 2:15, NLT
- Thy Word by Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith
Reflections On Following Christ 