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Gleanings From The Word

Tag: Ezekiel

  • God’s Promises – The Holy Spirit

    the BIg Book of God's Promises

    We have all made promises, some we have kept and others we have broken, for reasons, good, bad, and unknown. The Lord made many promises throughout the Scriptures, and God’s promises are never broken.

    We all know people whose promises are not dependable. Their word is less than trustworthy, and you can almost count on them not keeping it. The Scriptures are full of verses affirming the trustworthiness of God’s Promises. Here are a few: Hebrews 10:23, 2 Corinthians 1:20, Titus 1:2, Joshua 21:45.

    Numerous places in the Old Testament God promised to pour out his Holy Spirit:

    And it will be afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy; Your old men will dream dreams; Your young men will see visions. Even on the male slaves and female slaves I will in those days pour out My Spirit. Joel 2:28-29

    Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to do Ezekiel 36:26–27

    That particular promise was made in many places and affirmed by Jesus. We see it fulfilled in Acts.

    And when the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues like fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. Acts 2:1-4

    That fulfillment of God’s Promise is critical for believers today. Every one of us has the Holy Spirit.

    He intercedes for us. He empowers us. He illuminates Scripture for us.

    The Holy Spirit seals us in our salvation with a seal that no one and nothing can break. Once He seals us, we belong forever to the Lord. He gifts and equips us for life and ministry.

    God promised to pour out His Helper, the Spirit, and He has done just that for our benefit and His glory. 

    My friends that is worth celebrating.

    Praise God for His faithfulness.

    Be blessed
    Kevin

    A campfire devotional. Infrared light and faith

    Read the Word – A devotional on it’s importance

  • The Sentinel

    The Sentinel

    The price of being a watchman for God

    Set apart from the others, a tree stands atop the hill behind our  home. It’s been battered and broken but refuses to give in and keeps growing. It reminds me of a sentinel at watch.

    A sentinel (sentry, watchman) watches, warns, and keeps out unwanted visitors.

    It can be a lonely role. I remember holding sentinel posts over the runways at an airbase when I was in the Canadian Armed Forces. 

    I usually got that role during “exercises,” where readiness was tested through simulated war conditions.

    Some officer in a control center dictated the play, writing off various areas as losses to the enemy. During one exercise, my area was written off as lost early and promptly forgotten. Since I was guarding well away from the central part of the base and not in communication with others, no one told me my role was done, so I continued to stand guard.

    I was cold, wet, and hungry, but held my post. It wasn’t until the exercise was completed and I didn’t return to my normal duty station that anyone noticed I was missing. After some searching, they realized I was still out in the middle of nowhere beyond the airstrips and came to get me.

    In Ezekiel 33, we read of Ezekiel being appointed the watchman over Israel.

    The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, speak to your people and say to them, If I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from among them, and make him their watchman, and if he sees the sword coming upon the land and blows the trumpet and warns the people, then if anyone who hears the sound of the trumpet does not take warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet and did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But if he had taken warning, he would have saved his life. But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, so that the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any one of them, that person is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand. “So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, O wicked one, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked person shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, that person shall die in his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul. Ezekiel 33:1-9 ESV

    Ezekiel was to warn people of God’s wrath and tell them to turn back. He was not responsible for the results, but he was called to give a warning.

    Similarly, we are to warn people of the dangers of sin and hell and tell them of the hope in Christ. They are accountable for their actions.

    It isn’t an easy task. Like sentries, our warnings can be ignored, and we can stand alone against the crowd, but we are still called to proclaim the truth.

    We are called to truth proclamation in words, deeds, and how you live your life. If you and I don’t tell them, who will?

    Be blessed

    Hallelu Yah / Praise God 

    Kevin

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