Jesus taught that all scripture testifies about him so that in him we might have life (John 5v39-40). King David taught that it is only by living according to God's word that we're kept on the right path (Psalm 119v9). What then could be better than reading the entire Bible? Click the menu to read about the program, choose a month or Bible book - or just work through the blog posts day by day.
BEGIN WITH PRAYER
"Lord open my eyes and my heart."
Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world.
Wisdom to chew on
Understanding to grow in
To be a prophet was wa hard calling, Not only did you have to declare what people didn't want to hear, and so face their hostility. At times the LORD asked his proohets to act out their prophecies at the greatest cost. Here, Ezekiel must lose his wife and not mourn her, to bring home that Judah is about to lose the temple that they love and delight in. Because they so adore it, God's instruction not to mourn is probably a way of stressing that it's their fault that it has been lost, by provoking God's wrath. But that doesn't mean it is acceptable for other nations to rejoice. The LORD condemns Ammon and Moab for doing so, and Edom and Philistia for seeking to benefit from the situation by kicking Judah when she is down, and so taking vengeance for past tensions. We are not forbidden from mourning the decline of the church because of its unfaithfulness. But these prophecies are a reminder that it is in some sense getting what it deserves, and that the Lord remains against those in our culture who delight in that, or seek to contribute to it. As you read note the different parties the LORD is against.
Ezekiel 24-25
Ezekiel 24-25
Finish this reading by pausing to ask yourself:
1) What’s the main thing it teaches me about God or his purposes in Christ? Then praise him for this.
2) What’s the main thing it teaches me about his will for me or the world? Then pray that home.
Devotion to offer up
You could read this aloud and perhaps as a springboard to further prayer.