At the end of seven days the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn from their wickedness or from their evil ways, they will die for their sin; but you will have saved yourself. “Again, when a righteous person turns from their righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before them, they will die. Since you did not warn them, they will die for their sin. The righteous things that person did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the righteous person not to sin and they do not sin, they will surely live because they took warning, and you will have saved yourself.” (Ezekiel 3:16-21 NIV)

This seems so harsh to Ezekiel. He is called to warn those who are obstinate and stubborn, a rebellious house, people who are ready to silence him. Why does the Sovereign Lord bother to send one prophet after another to his rebellious people? He loves her. In chapter 16, we see Jerusalem as God sees — His beloved that He has lovingly rescued from abandonment. And yet, despite the love lavished upon her, she has forsaken her Beloved and gone after the idolatrous world who shamefully abuse her. Jerusalem has become the adulterous wife.

In these chapters, we catch a glimpse of how it is that at the close of this Age, the Church is the Bride of Christ, the Holy City, the New Jerusalem. Though it is up to each of us individually to respond to God’s call and heed His warnings in the Scriptures, we will miss the point if our eyes are merely on ourselves and our responsibilities. How can we please God except that we appreciate that He is waiting for His Bride. He has given Himself for her, not merely that you and I are saved from our sins, but that we are redeemed for our part in the Bride of Christ. It is so much bigger than ourselves, we must get past focusing on our own salvation.

So, we need to turn from our evil ways, be faithful to sound the warning, and much more, let the Spirit work on us that the Bride may be prepared for our Lord and King. Do we love Him?

The times are alarming. The warnings severe. But the tenderness for Jerusalem is seen in His word. Only God’s beloved corporately can satisfy God’s heart or continue to grieve His heart.

Was strengthened and convicted by the Word the Lord spoke to us at the weekend conference regarding Hannah. Many verses in 1 Samuel chapter 1 came alive with new meaning to me. Sincerely appreciate the Lord speaking through Bro. Peter. One of these verses has been resonating in me and spoke to my heart. Verse 18. After Hannah had poured out her soul in prayer to the Lord, petitioned for a son to give back to the Lord, followed Eli’s answer to her in the affirmative: “And she said, ‘Let your maidservant find favor in your sight.’ So the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.”

Anyone there at the conference on Friday night heard the scenes described of Elkanah’s household. Bitterness and misery from every angle. A man and two wives is not the design of God, and whenever we find ourselves outside of God’s design in any way, invariably, bitterness and misery follows. But we find in verse 18, provoked and miserable Hannah a changed woman. She appears to be full of faith, trusting the Lord that not only was her petition heard by God, but that Eli’s confirming word was enough. She went her way able to eat and with a changed countenance. We should all be like Hannah, that after pouring our souls out to God, be able to go our way no longer sad.

I was considering the many people who had a personal encounter with the Lord Jesus in the Scriptures and how they departed from his presence. Do they all go their way no longer sad like Hannah? Well, the Bible mentions someone who left sad. The rich young ruler. In Matthew 19:22, it says that he went away sad. We are familiar with his story. He came to seek the Lord for eternal life. When the Lord at first told him that he needed to keep the commandments, he very confidently replied that he’s kept the commandments from his youth. Perhaps, some of us who grew up in Christian homes and have been good boys and girls might be in the same position as this rich young ruler. But he wondered if it was enough. Well, the Lord cared for this young man and gave him the opportunity to follow Him. “Sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven, and come, follow Me.” Truly, the offer of a lifetime to be the Lord’s disciple, but not only did he not stay with the Lord, he went away grieved, because he owned a lot of property.

Well, we have been told that the Lord Jesus wanted this rich young ruler to acknowledge that what the Lord asked of him was impossible to him. Certainly, Jesus did not need his money, but here was the opportunity for the rich young ruler to confess his inability and to lay hold of Christ’s overcoming ability. The Lord could do this in him, but he was not willing to do this and he was not willing to be made willing. He considered his wealth more dear than eternal life (who is eternal life?) and did not give the Lord the opportunity to work the willingness out in him.

For the rich young ruler, it was his wealth; for us, perhaps it is something else. Is there something specific that has such a hold on us that we are willing to give up eternal life in order to keep this thing? In this defining moment of the young ruler’s life, there were only two outcomes possible. One, let Christ be Master and yield to the the Lord his love of money and thereby master over his love of money. Two, be His own Master, don’t yield to the Lord and thereby become the slave to his love of money. Let Christ be master or let the love of money be master. We are told by the Lord, we cannot serve two masters. Even a proper young man who kept all the commandments stumbled over just one thing.

Perhaps we don’t have his problem. Money is often the culprit but it doesn’t have to be. What is God pointing out in your life? In my life? A sinful desire? A not-sinful desire? Perhaps everything else in your life is great, everyone thinks that you are such a good young man or woman, but there is something you hold dear, and perhaps you hold more dear than even the Lord. And as much as you have tried to overcome it yourself, there is no denying it.

Remember Hannah. Like we heard, she could have allowed the desire for a child (not sinful, very legitimate) be master over her. She was nearly defined by her desperation for a son. But as she prayed, she was granted revelation and a changed heart before the fulfillment of her petition. The revelation was that the Lord needed this baby, and her needs were wondrously linked up with the Lord’s needs. And THIS baby that she desperately wanted should be given back to God for God’s need. Wow, God’s revelation and His enabling all at the same time. The Lord granted her the willingness to give up what she wanted more than anything else in the world. Impossible? This child was surely more dear to her than Iife itself. So, in her surrendering of Samuel, even before Samuel was born, God granted her to enjoy peace, joy, faith, overcoming power. Many babies were born at that time of the Judges, even to Elkanah, but God gave Samuel to Hannah. Whatever we would hold more dear than the Lord Himself becomes our master, becomes our identity. Just like the rich young ruler, all of our otherwise good behavior will not even things out. He could not follow both Christ AND his love of money, and so he left the Lord with his wealth intact — but grieved. At least he did not deceive himself that he could have both. And yet when Hannah left the temple after giving up her yet-to-be-born son to the Lord all the days of his life, she chose God’s needs above her own desperate needs and walked away no longer sad. To the world, the logical expected end of the encounters of Hannah and the rich young ruler ought to have been reversed. Does not the wisdom of this world tell us that we would be so happy if we only get what we want and live our lives according to our desires. Be you.The Lord did not force the rich young ruler to give up his riches and follow Him. The Lord allowed him to choose to leave unchanged — and miserable. God respects our will. How could this be so? Yet it is so. Whoever seeks to keep his life shall lose it, whoever loses his life shall preserve it. (Luke 17:33) Divine logic. And God’s enemy is a liar and the father of lies.

How blinded we have been, shut in with what concerns us,

  while God’s house lieth waste, Lord break through overturn us.