Bible Study - Ezekiel 34

Join Darrell Franklin as he shares during our Wednesday Night Light Bible Study.

Transcript

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Welcome to the Summit Church Podcast. Thank you for joining us as we share weekly sermons and teachings from Summit Church in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Our prayer is that today's message encourages your faith and helps you grow in your relationship with Jesus. Check out our website at summitchurchtn.com. Thanks for listening, and we pray this message encourages you today.

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There's a sweet presence of the Holy Spirit in this place. Don't be hasty to leave the presence of the Lord. Lord, we just come to you right now. We're honored, we're privileged, we're blessed, that you are present in a real and palpable way in this room. Lord, we are honored. We do not take for granted, dear God, Lord, that when we lift up our praises and you respond with the sweet presence of Holy Spirit, Lord, we do not take this for granted. Lord, we are honored and privileged and we magnify and glorify your name, dear Jesus. Lord, we honor you in this place. There is nothing, there is nothing on our agenda, Lord. There is nothing on our agenda that takes greater precedence over lifting up and magnifying and blessing and praising the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, the resurrected Savior, the soon coming king. Lord, we magnify you, we glorify you, we honor you, Lord. We honor you in this place right now. We lift you up, we praise your holy, righteous, pure, true name. Lord, we thank you and praise you because you're faithful. We thank you and praise you because you're good. We thank you and praise you because you're righteous. We thank you and praise you because you have intended nothing but good and nothing but grace and nothing but blessing for us. Lord, we honor you in this place. We glorify you, we bless you, and we praise your name. Hallelujah. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Pastor Zach, for being obedient to the Holy Spirit. Praise God. You can be seated if you can. So let's go into Ezekiel chapter 34. And we are getting into kind of the more exciting part of Ezekiel. God's word is always exciting, but it's a little more exciting when it gets into promise rather than in judgment, right? It's a little easier to do. And because we didn't get to record that first session, I'm going to go over a little bit some of the things that we talked about because we're getting into the point where some of the things that we talked about originally really comes back into play. And so some of the principles, and again, I took a long time the first time to cover these. I'm not going to take nearly as long tonight, but I am going to run through them. So when we talk about the kingdom of God, and tonight in Ezekiel 34, we're going to talk about the Davidic kingdom, the kingdom of David that God promises to re-establish in Israel. Right? All kingdom passages in the Bible harmonize and complement each other. So when we talk about Old Testament kingdom passages, they are not replaced by New Testament kingdom passages. They all work in agreement with each other and they all harmonize. Second, the proper approach to understanding the kingdom is through a consistent use of grammatical, historical, and literary interpretation. In other words, what it says clearly, literally, if it can be taken literally or close to literally, that's how we take it first, unless it's in a poem or unless it's in a song or those kind of things, or it's an apocalyptic kind of thing. And so, and it's it's also interpreted by by history and the type of literature it is. We don't believe that there are hidden meanings in text. So we don't think that you have to go to some guru, right? We think with any spirit-filled believer of God can read Ezekiel 34 and get the clear meaning of Ezekiel 34, right? You don't, there's no um uh you don't have to go and pay $34.95 a month to get this special word from somebody, right? It's clear. Uh third, symbols in the kingdom passages have a literal meaning that could be understood through that uh grammatical historical literary interpretation. Um again, we don't make things symbolic unless they are necessarily symbolic. Okay, now obviously there are things in scripture that are symbolic, there are things that are obviously metaphors and allegories and all those kind of things, and they're pretty obviously, but the things that can be understand very literally, we can we take, but that's our first uh uh our first attempt. Uh fourth, the New Testament builds on the contextual meanings of the Old Testament kingdom passages and themes. Again, we don't believe that the New Testament replaces the Old Testament, but that it fulfills the Old Testament. Okay. And so the New Testament does not reinterpret or transcend or subvert the Old Testament. Okay, and and again you hear that a lot um when we we get out into kind of the wider world of this stuff. Um the primary meaning of a specific passage, whether from the Old Testament or New Testament, is found in that passage and not in other passages. So this is really important because when we talk about this, especially Ezekiel 34, people some people will say, Oh, I read this passage in Matthew, and my understanding of Matthew, my understanding of Matthew 24 then changes the meaning of Ezekiel 34, right? And we don't do that. The the again the scripture stands as it is written, and my understanding of another text doesn't change what God said in the original passage. Um the fulfillment of God's prophetic and uh and kingdom purposes occurs in the two comings of Jesus, and God's plan involves both individuals and nations. And the reason why I went through that is because chapter 34 is really where that kicks back into gear. So in Ezekiel 34, we come to a place where in all of Ezekiel, God has been in the the book of Ezekiel pronouncing a judgment on on Israel, pronouncing uh uh judgment on the kingdoms of Israel for warning of the Babylon waves of Babylonian captivity, for warning of the judgments of God. And then about the time the judgments start hitting, he turns and he starts judging other nations because again, once the judgments are hitting, there's there's no point in talking about them anymore. There's no point in warning because the time to repent has run out. And so then he he goes in and into the judgments of other nations, and we talked about and use the judgments of of Egypt as an example. But in in chapter 34, after the judgments, right, and and the theme was you'll see the judgment for sin and you will know that I am God, right? That was the theme in chapter 33. But chapter 34 marks a real dramatic shift in the book of Ezekiel because one of the things that we see in prophetic text, when God is working, there's judgment to try to turn people into from sin, but God's purpose is always redemption, restoration, and hope. God's purpose is always redemption, restoration, and hope. God's purpose is always redemption, restoration, and hope. And so even when God pronounces judgment, when at least in this world, there is always the expectation. So he pronounced judgment on Egypt, but if you read the prophecies, right, in future times, right, God is going to bring Egypt under his wing. Right? He's he's produced so so again the the promise, right? Does anybody know the original promise of Abraham, which two rivers, right, bound that promise? One of them is the river, right, of Babylon. Euphrates, thank you. Um and so the the thing is, and and so God gave them a very expansive territory. And so the reason why he's pronouncing judgment on Egypt is to try to get them to turn. So even the pharaohs, even the idolaters, God was trying to bring them back into the kingdom uh or get them into the kingdom. And so um in 34, Ezekiel 34, God starts to prophesy about that redemption, restoration, hopeful promise. And so, again, um reading out of the Lexum English Bible uh tonight, uh not doing the New Living Translation, sorry. Um, and so um the word of the Lord came to me saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy, and you must say to them, the shepherd, to the shepherds, thus says the Lord Yahweh, Woe to the shepherds of Israel who are feeding themselves. Must not the shepherds feed the flock? The fat you eat, you clothe your and you clothe yourself with a wool, the well-nourished animals you slaughter, but you do not feed the flock. The weak you have not strengthened, and the sick you have not healed, and with respect to the hurt you have not bound them up, and you have not brought back the scattered, and have not sought the lost, but rather you have ruled over them with force and with ruthlessness. And they were scattered without a shepherd, and they were as food for all the animals of the field when they were scattered. My flock went astray. Now I want you to see this, this in verse six, this is where the hope really starts kicking in, because I'm going to read you like I read it. My flock went astray. This is God talking. My flock went astray upon all of the mountains and on every high hill, so upon all the surface of the world my flock were scattered, and there was no one seeking them, and there was no searching for them. Therefore, hear, O shepherds, the word of Yahweh, as I live, declares the Lord Yahweh, surely because my flock have become as f plunder, and my flock has become as food to all the animals of the field, since there was not a shepherd, uh since there was not a shepherd, and since my shepherds have not sought my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and they have not fed my flock. Therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the Lord Yahweh. Thus says the Lord, look, I am against the shepherds, and I will seek my flock from their hand, and I will put an end to them from shepherding flocks, and the shepherds will no longer feed themselves, and I will deliver my flocks from their mouth, so that they will not be as food for them. For thus says the Lord Yahweh in verse eleven Look, I even I will seek my flock, and I will look after them, just like the carrying of a shepherd for his herd on the day when he is the mist on the shed scattered flock, thus I will look after my flock, and I will deliver them from all the places they have been scattered on the day of storm and stress. And so what you see here, now it starts out kind of rough, right? Because again, God is chastising the shepherds that have been over his flock, which are the people of Israel. And a lot of times, right, in the New Testament context, we see shepherds just as pastors. But in the Old Testament context and in the text of the cultures around, you had kings, you had princes, you had priests, you had very many different roles of that they called shepherds and the people that they took care of as sheep. And so in this passage, does it include pastors? Yes. Does it include priests? Yes. But it also includes kings and rulers and governors, anybody that God gives authority to. Now, is there a heightened sense of authority for those who are in the kingdom of God? Obviously. But it's it this passage is applying when it says the shepherds have not taken care of the sheep, right? And I am against them. And so one of the things we talked about with with the watchman is when you're made a watchman and God gives you a word, there's a responsibility to use that appropriately. When God gives you a gift of the Spirit, there's a responsibility to use that appropriately. And so one of the things that this continues in is that when God gives you authority as a shepherd, whether it's a king or a prince or a pastor or one of the fivefold ministry, there is a responsibility that you must care for the flock that God has given you charge over. And one of the th the translations of this verse that says that the shepherds tend only to themselves alone. And so one of the things that we've been talking about is how to spot spot false prophets and false shepherds and those kind of things, because that's kind of a thing in the charismatic movement right now. One of the ring ways that you tell that is when people use their gifts or they are totally self-centered. When they tend to themselves alone and they become a ravening wolf that devours things intended for other people. And so one of the things, right, is that um you see this in this piece, right? So when you take a look at this this passage and you go up into right um verse three, you're clothing yourself with a wool, right? You the well-nourished animals you slaughter, but you do not feed the flock. The weak have not been strengthened, the sick you have not healed. But it says you feed yourself, you clothe yourself, you you eat of the fat of this flock, right? In another translation. If you're a shepherd who's doing your job, is it wrong to clothe yourself with the wool from your flock? No. Right? If you're a shepherd and you're taking care of your animals and you're using them irresponsibly, right, is it is it wrong to eat lamb or mutton? No. And so the the thing is, is the the transgression comes in that the shepherds were not fulfilling their part of the bargain. Right? And so the we we don't want to draw from this that people who are in government or authority or or in ministry should always be poor and should never be fed and should never be clothed. That's not what's what's happening here. Um as one elder said famously, God, you keep them humble and we'll keep them poor. That's sin. Okay. Um and um it wasn't here, by the way. Um, and so the um the the the thing is is that that's not the point of this passage. The point of this passage is that when you get an assignment of authority from God, you have the proactive responsibility. You are required, like a shepherd with sheep, to be the first actor, to initiate and do those things that God requires of his shepherds, which are right, to feed the flock, right, to tend to the weak, right, to heal the sick, right, to bind up the hurt, right, to go after those that are scattered, right? And not to rule over them with force and ruthlessness. Okay, has anybody here ever seen anybody in the house of God rule with force and ruthlessness? Right? And the thing, and you shake your heads, yes, because you know you have. Um, and at least most of you. And and the thing is, is that the have you ever heard somebody say, oh, it's my gifting to be it to be a jerk? Has anybody ever heard somebody say that? I have. Oh, that God's called me to, you know, God's called me to be this, and so, you know, I He He's He's not, I'm I've been liberated from the fruit of the Spirit, right? By my gifting and my calling. It's not what they said, but they basically said, I don't need to be kind or good or gentle because of my anointing and my gifting and in God. And unless your call is to be a crusader, that's probably not the case, okay? And so um, it's definitely not the case. And so one of the ways that you tell, right, who good shepherds are and false shepherds are, is good shepherds A, do not tend to themselves alone. They take care of their flock. And in the human context, their flock takes care of them. That's why it the natural balance of things is, right? The shepherd pours into the flock, and then the flock takes care of the shepherd with what it produces. Okay. So it's a give and take. So if it's a one-way street and either thing, it's out of balance and it's unbiblical. The second thing is that if they do not take care of the sheep proactively, including binding up hurts and trying to bring healing and pursuing those that are scattered, again, there's a limit to that with with humanity, right? If if if a sheep meets you at a gun with a shotgun, you're not required to pursue them anymore. Or at the door with a shotgun, you're not required to pursue them anymore, right? But the the thing is, is that you tend to see those that are genuine shepherds have a heart to gather in, right, the flock and and the sheep. And then um to also make sure that they are not scattered and vulnerable as food for the wild animals and the wolves. And so one of the things that we tend to see um that we see the good people and and people who are not false shepherds, false prophets, they will stand up against the things that are trying to tear down and destroy the people of God. Um, and so the um but the good news in this, right, is that what you see in verses eight through ten is that God says, Because my people have become plunder and because my people have become food, I will take up their case and I will become their shepherd. And so one of the things that we need to understand is that God, when he sees people being oppressed or abused, or or or people not exercising their authority, then he it comes to rise up to act in justice and judgment on our behalf. And so he takes up the case and he says, Well, if if if that person has let you down, then I'll come in and I'll fill that role. So there are some times when when wives are trying to submit to their husbands and husbands aren't leading their families in a godly way, God will come in and fill that role, right? He will come in and start to do that, right, in their in their lives. Uh and again, if we have governments that are being ungodly, right, and unjust, it's God who comes in and sustains us and validates us and all those kind of things when we're under unjust governments. And so God really, and again, if you've been through uh church hurt kind of pieces where church leadership has failed you, and I'm going to tell you all church leaders are human and they all fail at times. I'm not talking about moral failure, I'm talking about just making mistakes. And the thing is, is that God is saying, I will be there to help heal you and lift you up and raise you up when humans fail. That's the promise of this passage. Because again, hopefully you've never encountered the kind of wickedness and idolatry that happened in Israel and Judah, right? Hopefully we you have not walked into your church and there's been like actual literal bell worship going on, right? Or or sacrificing children, you know, to some pagan God. Hopefully you've not seen that. If you have, um uh pastors available on no, I'm joking, uh, and so um, but the thing is, is that the the application of this is right, is that God will take up your case and God will bring it up to bring your you healing and me healing in those situations and us as well. And so the um verse 13. This is where we start getting in into the the promises to the children of Israel, right? To the future promises. So I'm gonna go back and read verse 12. Okay, just like the carrying of a shepherd for his herd on the day when he is in the midst of a scattered flock, thus I will look after my flock, I will deliver them from all the places to which they were scattered on the day of storm and stress, and I will bring them out from the peoples or the nations, and I will gather them from the countries, and I will bring them to their soil, and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the valleys, and all the settlements of the land. I will feed them in good pasture, and their pasture will be on the mountains of the heights of Israel, and they will lie down in good pasture, on lush pasture, they will feed in the mountains of Israel. I myself will feed my flock, and I myself will allow them to lie down, declares the Lord Yahweh. I will seek the lost, I will bring back the scattered, and I will bind up the one hurt, and I will strengthen the sick, and the fat and the strong I will destroy, I will feed her with justice. So this is really the first in this passage where we start talking about God's promise to Israel to bring them back together. They are scattered primarily because their shepherds, their leaders were Idolaters and pagan and rejected the Lord. And they got warning after warning after warning, and God judged the nations. Right? And then even in captivity, Ezekiel kept warning them and warning them and warning them, and they kept rejecting it. And so it brought final judgment. But after final judgment, God said to them, I will bring you back together into this land, right? He named the land of Israel. He named the actual land and said, I will bring you back together. And then I'm going to bless you in this land. I'm going to put you on good pasture. Instead of being scattered about on the high hills, right, where there's not good grass, there's not good forage, there's not good hay, right? I'm going to bring you into the meadows and to the lush grass where you can graze and feed and be at safe and at rest and at peace. We're going to get in a in a later passage. And so the first thing we know this is, right? We've seen this historically, at least the beginning, right, of the in-gathering of the children of Israel in 1948 in the land of Israel. We've seen millions of people come back from the north and the south and the east and the west. We know that's not the full complete fulfillment of Scripture because there are things in this later on in this passage about dwelling and safety and security. And in one translation, it says, you will be terrorized no more. Right? And this translation was written several years ago. And so we can see now, right, that Israelis tonight are hiding in bomb shelters, right? And so we can see the beginning of the in-gathering and that process, but we don't see the completion of that prophecy yet of it's going to be abundant and it's going to be secure, and you're not going to be terrorized, and you're not going to have any more, right, uh, fear of war, you're not going to be plunder for nations and those kinds of things. And so we know that there is a future promise for Israel that's better than where they are today. Okay? Now, there are they better off today than they were, you know, in 1850? Yes. Are they better off today than they were under the Ottoman Turks and under the Romans? Yes. Has the end gathering begun? And possibly has it triggered a at the beginning of the end times clock? Probably. I know there are other people who say definitely. I respect them. But uh the thing is, is that we again, in my mind, I'm wondering, is the end gathering complete to start that clock? Um that's something that good people of good faith debate. Um, but we know that that end-gathering, by the way, that dispensationalists predicted in the 1850s, and people thought we were nuts, because there's no way Israel's ever going to be a country again. There's no way it's ever going to happen. They're scattered across the globe, right? It's owned by the Ottoman Turks, right? And the British hate them and everybody hates them, and they're never going to get their own country. And the dispensationalists were preaching, Israel's going to be a country again, and everybody goes, You're insane. That's never going to happen. And then miraculously, God brought them from the north, south, east, and west and made them a country when everybody else, who was all the scholars, right, brought them together and said, Israel is a nation. And they went, Well, that wasn't supposed to happen. And so the the, you know, can you imagine how much faith it took to believe that Israel would be a nation again when Hitler was putting them into concentration camps? And so the thing is, is that, right, the the definitely Israel coming together in 1948 was a definite prophetic event. I'm I don't want to give that impression. It's just I'm a little doubtful. I have so on on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I'm in one direction, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday I'm in the other direction, and on Sundays I can't decide. Um and so um, and and maybe Ryan can give us more direction on that. But um the uh the um and so the I'm not gonna put you on the spot right now. Um but the the the thing is is that right, it's certainly a dramatic prophetic event that was prophesied in scripture, declared by people who understood the Bible in this way, and everybody else told the people who were back there that they were nuts, it was never gonna happen. And again, they predicted it, and it happened because they read it in the Word of God. And so God is gathering his people, but there are still parts of that promise that are unfulfilled, and so we know that God has a future purpose and plan, right? So you'll notice Israel in the mountains of Israel on the land, right? There's a promise for the land and for Israel. And so I could take you to places in Jeremiah, I could take you to places in Isaiah. Um, sometimes you kind of have to make a choice. Do I give you 4,000 verse references and and clutter it up, or do I just kind of teach it kind of straight? So I'm I'm making that choice tonight. If you need more verse references, right, about God promising Israel the land and having land-specific promises, I've got lots for you. So uh see me afterwards and I'll be happy to do those. Um and so the the thing is going on, verse 17, excuse me, is and you my flock, thus says the Lord Yahweh, look, I am judging between one sheep and another, between the rams and between the he goats. Is it enough not enough for you that you feed on good pasture, and still you must trample the remainder of your pasture with your feet, and clear water you drink, and the left out over water you must make muddy with your feet, and my flock must graze the pasture treaded on by your feet, and you must drink the mud puddle stir, and they must drink the mud puddle stirred up by your feet. Therefore, thus says the Lord Yahweh to them, look, I, even I, will judge between the fat sheep and between the lean sheep, because with your flank and with your shoulder you shoved, and with your horns you pushed out all of the sick animals until you scattered it to the outside, and so I will save my flock, and they will no longer be for plunder, and I will judge between one sheep and another. Okay, and I'm gonna stop there. And so one of the things, right, that we we see in the future, that God's future promise for the children of Israel, is that there are some people who are more successful, some people who are less successful, because that's what you're really talking about. And you talk about rams and he goats, right? Those are the the lords of the pasture, right? Those, if you've ever seen a bull in a pasture, right, that the bull is the king of all that he surveys, right? And so the rams and he-goats and and and goats and sheep are the lords. And so what God was saying, not only do I see the shepherds who have misbehaved, but I have seen people who have prospered under them, who use the position, the authority, the influence, the power, the wealth they have to oppress other people. And by the way, I noticed that too. And so one of the things that he's saying is there's gonna come a future time where I'm gonna judge and I'm gonna even all of that out. So even the great injustices I'm going to judge, but also the lesser uh injustices I'm gonna judge. Okay. So the to in a modern day application, right, where he talks about, oh, you drink the clear water, but you muddy it up when you drink it, or you you eat the food but you foul the feed after you you eat it, right? What he's saying is you can't make it more difficult for the people who come after you just because you got blessed before they did. He's saying, just because, and again, one of the things, one of my cliches is we're, and I'm not saying you, I'm saying we, we get really good at judging people who made it to the altar 30 minutes after we did. Right? Oh, I can't believe they're doing that. Do you realize what you were doing or what I was doing? Five, you know, and and right, and and so the the the thing is, is that we can't in the kingdom of God get to a certain place and pull the ladder up after us. We've got to be excited to make sure that the same blessing and the same grace and the same opportunities that we had, we make sure are available for the people after us. As a matter of fact, it's our job to make it easier for the people who come after us to accept the blessing and the anointing and the grace of God than it was for us. So when we drink of pure water, it's our job to make sure that the next person drinks of equally pure water and it isn't contaminated by our drama. Um and I did say that out loud. Yes. Um, and so the the thing is is is we have, and again, I'm saying we, we as humans have a thing of after we get arrive, after we get hired, after we get saved, after we get the promotion, after we get the right, um, then we tend to relax, and then we don't tend to be careful about the gifts that God has given us to make sure that we use them so that the next person through the door can be blessed in equal or greater ways. And so, you know, the the thing that I am incredibly aware of that the transformation that took place in my life when I came to summit transpired because of the grace and goodness of God. But it also transpired because there were lots of people who co-labored with the Holy Spirit in prayer and obedience and worship and faithfulness before I ever walked through the door. They prepared the atmosphere for my life to be transformed in a single service. So it is my responsibility to God, and it's my responsibility to the people who laid down countless hours of prayer and worship and faithfulness and obedience to make sure to not mess up what they did. Okay, and so God is saying here, Daryl, you're blessed, Daryl, you've been transformed, Daryl, you've been sanctified. Don't muddy the water in that process. Make sure that you leave that clear water and deliver that to as many people as you can. And so the um, and again, because God says, you know, I I judge those things. We don't like to talk about that. But the the thing is, is that because God is on the side of the weak and the lame and the hurting, right? He's on the side of the of the ones on the outside looking in, he's on the one side of the ones who've been scattered. And he's saying, right, if you're blessed and fat and abundant and all that stuff, and you try to keep somebody on the outside looking in, I'm gonna judge you for that. Okay, and so because God's heart is always for the lost sheep, right? Did Jesus reference this when he said, you know, if there's a lost sheep and there's 99, then I will go looking for the one? What was what was he talking about? He was talking about Ezekiel 34. He was talking to people who knew the prophecy and said, My sheep are scattered, and I am here as the Messiah to come and gather the lost sheep of the house of Israel. He was going back to Ezekiel 34 in other passages when he was saying that because he said, I am the Messiah that Ezekiel talked about in 34, because the Lord said, I myself will come and I will gather my lost sheep. So Jesus was talking to people who knew the prophets and saying, That's me. And so the um, and that's the reason why they got really angry, by the way. Um and so um the um let's go on. Um verse 23. And I will set up over them one shepherd, and he will feed them. That is my servant David. He will feed them and he will be for them as a shepherd, and I, Yahweh, I will be for them as God. And my servant David will be a leader in the midst of them. I, Yahweh, I have spoken. You'll notice that God is, and again, these are these are in the form of ancient Middle Eastern oaths. So God is swearing by his own name. He is creating an oath. There's a form in a literary form to this where he is swearing by himself, because God can do that. He is swearing by himself that I am going to do this. So when he says, when it is like, I, Yahweh, I have spoken, right? It is saying, right, again, what would the equivalent of what we would say, so help me God, right? With our hand on the Bible. So, and I will, and again, verse 25, and I will make them a covenant of peace, and I will put an end to wild animals for the land, and they will dwell in the desert safely, and they will sleep in the forest, and I will make them in the area all around my hill, that's Mount Zion, a blessing, and I will let the rain go down at its appointed time, and it will be the rains of blessing. One of the things that we see, I believe it's in Leviticus 26, is there are a series of covenant curses for Israel that God says that if you rebel against me, that I am going to put these curses on you and on the land. And so in this chapter in Ezekiel 34, what you start to see is that God is working to reverse the curses, right, by his own grace and mercy. Because the one thing you'll notice here, uh, yeah, it's Leviticus 26. Uh, one of the things that you'll notice here is that God has stopped asking Israel to repent. He's just now out of his mercy and grace going to start pulling them back in and then loving on them because again, it's the love of God that brings us to repentance. And so it's the love of God that brings us into relationship. So what you see the pattern is in the Old Testament is right, you have the law and then right and and calls to repentance. And did that ever bring Israel into permanent relationship with God as far as being obedient? And the answer is no. But then he sent the Messiah so that he would pursue right, and again, repentance is still part of the program, but he pulls us in and he draws us with his love and his pursuit, and he poured out his love to us, and then we respond not to the law, but to his love and to his mercy and grace in repentance, and he brings us into relationship with him. And so the the thing is that what he's starting to prophesy is going from the law-based of the old covenant to starting to bring the children of Israel in under the Messiah. And so that's when it talks about my servant David, again in prophetic terms, they did not expect the King David to get resurrected from the grave, right? That that was not what their expectation was here. And so, but in the New Testament, where again Jesus is called the Son of David, this is what they were referring to. Again, he is the son of David, I will put David on the throne, and he will be a king to my people, and this is the promise of the Davidic kingdom. Again, Psalm 110. Uh, again, there's there's a there's a again a a hundred references, right, to God saying, I am going to re-establish the Davidic kingdom, the kingdom of David through the Messiah who will be, right, a um a descendant in the line of David and the ultimate representative of the Davidic line. If you wonder why in today's world they want to deny Jesus is a Jew, it is to cut him off from the line of David and to make the Bible a lie. Right? And we're seeing, and some of you aren't seeing it, and if you're not seeing it, praise God. I kind of wish I were in your spot. Uh, but uh we are seeing this huge rise of anti-Semitism, right, all across the political spectrum in the United States right now. Um, you know, there was a synagogue that got bombed and and and it ran a truck into it, and you know, there were people who have real high jobs who were celebrating that, right? They deserved it, the synagogue deserved it. Um, and so the the thing is, is the reason is is the enemy is trying to cut off the understanding of Jesus as the son of David and a Jew. And there, again, there are prominent people who claim to be Christian who say, Oh, I don't see Jesus as a Jew, right? When he went on the cross, he was transferred to not Jewishness. Like I said, I'd rather be in your world than mine when I read that stuff, okay? And these are prominent people, right? And so the the thing is that the reason why they want to cut off because they want to deny the word of God and the prophecy that God is going to put Jesus on that Davidic throne in a future time. Okay. Now he's on the throne at the right hand of the Father now, on the throne of the Messiah, right now. He is ruling now, but the rule over the land is coming in the future because, right? So let's take a look at verse 2025. Uh, I will put an end to wild animals in the land. Do we see that promise fulfilled yet at any point in history? And the answer is no. Do we see that you know the that the children of Israel, that the Israelis can, again, sleeping out in the desert of the forest is basically saying you can go out rough camp by yourself and have no fear of any danger. Right? So the thing is, is that if they're not in bomb shelters right now, they have they they're not free of danger, right? And so the the thing is, is that um God promises in verse 27 um when that he's going to break the yoke, and I will deliver them from the hands of the ones enslaving them. And verse 28, and they will not any longer be plundered to the nations, and the animals of the land will not eat them, and they will dwell in safety, and there will not be anyone frightening them. Okay, and so the the promise for Israel is to raise them up in a land where again the wild animals won't eat them, right? They're living in abundance to the degree, and they don't even have to be afraid. And again, the the thing is that that's going to occur in the future, in the in the millennial reign, right? But the the thing is is that people will say, oh, we're already there. No, there's a there's a destiny and a plan for Israel in Ezekiel that is something we've never seen in the history of the world. Okay, and so, and I will raise for them a garden plot of renown, and they will no longer be victims of famine in the land, and they will not bear any more insult of the nation. So God is going to elevate them to a place where they won't even be insulted or talked bad about, and they will know that I, Yahweh, their God, am with them, and they are my people, the house of Israel, declares the Lord Yahweh, and you are my flock, the flock of my pasture, you are my people, I am your God, declares the Lord Yahweh. And so one of the things that we see is God is saying, I am not only right, going to give you this land, but I am always going to be your God. And so the reality is in Ezekiel 34, is God is saying, Israel, you've rebelled, you've messed up, you've been idolatrous, but I'm faithful to my covenant. I made a promise to Noah, I made a promise to Abraham, I made a promise to David, right? I made these promises, and I'm going to make these, keep these promises for my own name's sake. So when we wonder, okay, God, I've sinned, are you going to forgive me? Yes. Why? Because he's sworn by his own name that if we will humble ourselves and come to him, he will forgive us. If we say, Oh God, I'm imperfect, can you still use me? Yes, God has declared by his own name and his own word that he's chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wisdom of the wise. And so when we really understand that God is so devoted to his covenants that he would plan a future for the children of Israel that's blessed and free and exalted because of the covenant that he made with Abraham. And again, there's more complexity to this, but the thing is. Is that he is so faithful to his covenants, he said, right, I'm gonna bring judgment, I'm gonna refine, I'm gonna bring the Messiah, I'm gonna bring the gospel, there's gonna be a tribulation period, there's gonna be all of these things, but in the end, I'm gonna reserve to myself a people out of the twelve tribes of Israel and restore them to the land because this was always my intention. And you'll notice there's a phrase in there, I will restore you to a garden of renown. Okay. And again, the the thing is it's always God's plan, right? As Ryan talks about. It starts with a tree and a garden, and it ends with a tree in a garden. So again, to bring us back to that state of Eden and to get us to write the the Jesus as the last Adam to reign, as the first Adam should have reigned, right, and the children of Israel to be submitted to that, so that all everything that God intended and everything that God promised is fulfilled 100% in the course of history. And so this is that first promise in Ezekiel, at least in the section that we've studied, of that. And so we see that God is faithful to his covenants and his promises. And the um hope that we can take from that is we see, again, one of the things that I say is that one of the reasons why study in the Old Testament, studying prophecy, is because it helps to really reveal the heart and the character of God the Father. And so when we see this, what do we see in this chapter? We see that God the Father is on the side of his sheep and his people. And when they are oppressed, and when leadership fails them, when government fails them, when when churches fail them, God's on your side. And he takes that personally. And he's gonna be on your side and he's gonna fight for you. And he's gonna come and be proactive in healing you and strengthening you and recovering you and reclaiming you. And what we find out about the character of God the Father is that it doesn't matter how far away we get, he's still gonna look for the lost sheep and keep pulling people back in and giving people every opportunity to come back and live in a blessed and abundant place. And if God can take the children of Israel, who are some of the most ungrateful idolaters in the history of ungrateful, and again, idolatry is worse than immorality, by the way. Uh, it they're both bad, don't get me wrong. Don't go away saying Daryl said it's okay to commit immorality. That's not what I said, okay? Idolatry, though, is worse than immorality. And God said, Still, if you will come to me, right, I have a hopeful and blessed future for you. So, how much more so for people who are trying to serve God and trying to push and trying to do what He He wants you to do? I don't mean push in the sense of achieving, I'm being pushed in the sense of pushing back the world and focusing on God. And so we learn the character of God in these prophecies in that even when people mess up, God has intended a future blessing and a future hope for them. And it and that's the same thing that's true for us. It doesn't matter what we've done, it doesn't matter what we've gone through. God really doesn't, and in one sense, God doesn't care how much you failed yesterday as long as you pursue him today. And so the enemy wants to bring up, oh, this is how you failed, or this is what you did wrong, or this is you know the mistake you made. And God's going, Will you let me love you today? Will you receive me today? All right. Questions? And again, if you ask a question or make a comment, make sure and eat the microphone. Terry.

SPEAKER_00 48:15

I just have a comment. Uh you talked about at the beginning about using the gifts that God has given us. Uh I was at a I belonged to a church in Ohio of 5,000. And um I was walking through the building one day and on a Sunday morning it was service was over with. I was leaving, and it was a lady walking toward me, and I heard God speak to me, something I didn't understand. But I knew God was speaking to me. So I walked up to this lady and I told her, I said, God, I have a word for you from God. And I said, He's saying, Your obedience will be your freedom. I have no idea what that meant at the time. Come to find out her husband was complaining and fussing at her by going to church all the time. And when I told her that, she stood there for a second and she started crying because she knew what it meant. She knew she had to obey her husband and it would be her freedom. So she went home and told her husband he she was gonna obey him, and if he didn't want her to go to church, she wasn't gonna go. She missed two Sundays, and guess who showed up to church with her?

SPEAKER_01 49:30

Praise God.

SPEAKER_00 49:31

He started coming to church, got saved, and even let her we we took a team, went to Belize, and she got the chance to go to Belize with us too. Because he because he believed in her so much and believed in what God had told her that she believed it, and uh it changed her life and his life both.

SPEAKER_02 49:50

Praise God. Praise God.

SPEAKER_01 49:59

There we go.

SPEAKER_03 50:03

Of course, um Jesus came, and it um you already pointed out Ezekiel 34 was he was the um the Lord that was coming to that was against the shepherds, or probably against the Sanhedrin, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and to gather up his own his own sheep and to heal them. Um do you see that as a pattern, you know, since then, since the cross, a pattern that the Lord will do? Um, for instance, uh I think Paul, when he was about ready to be beheaded, the church was pretty much an apostasy. He thought he had basically failed, but we know that after he gave his life, all of a sudden there was uh a church, you know, that that um sprung back up to life again. And during Paul's time, they were they were overrun by false prophets and false apostles, and they were just making merchandise of the people. But lo and behold, it turned around. Same thing maybe in the reformation. You know, again, you had shepherds, you know, they're supposed to be feeding the flock that were the church basically was very heavy-handed and really, you know, really uh soaked them for everything that they had, and it was very oppressive. And then of course you had the reformation. Is this a uh an ongoing pattern? When things get really bad, the Lord does step in. And I have a follow-up question to that.

SPEAKER_02 51:26

I think that tends to be a pattern, especially when we put our faith in God during those times. And so one of the things, and and again, I'm not saying that if people go through abuse or they see somebody stealing money from the church or whatever, they can't say something to the authorities, okay, because the authorities ordained by God. There's there's no uh we don't want to to go that far. Um, but the the thing is, is I think that when people put faith in God, when people don't pursue justice as hard as they they could, that we do see God begin to intervene and and God begin to to create um either uh you know reforming structures and and and bringing people, you know, shedding light on on false prophets and false leaders and that kind of thing. I think that's one thing that God does because I've seen some people get outed in some pretty miraculous ways. And so, um, and but the other thing, sometimes God will say, okay, this is so corrupt, I'm just gonna take all of my people over here, and then we're gonna start something right that's to leave the structure here. Because the one thing is God never needs a structure in that sense. Is it useful? Is it helpful? Right, but the the thing is, is just like in the Reformation, right, there was an attempt at Reformation, the church rejected them, and so God started something different and something new, and then it exploded across the world. And so sometimes I think this is my opinion, sometimes I think that people get it too tied to budgets and buildings. Uh, again, they're necessary, they're good, and and and if we can have them, that's great. But a lot of times people, I've seen people go, oh, I can't leave that church, you know, we've got a too nice of a facility. And I'm like, well, where do you want to go? Oh, I want to go to this little house church, right, where God is moving. I'm like, if you know, uh the again, you've got to leave in the right way, but but the the thing is, is that you know, you can't stay tied to those structures. And so sometimes God causes things like non-denominational churches, right? And so allows that freedom to move. And so I do think that God intervenes and makes a way of escape a lot of times, uh, and I think sometimes he comes in and judges on the behalf of the people.

SPEAKER_03 53:46

So follow-up question is uh based on what we're seeing happening in the church right now in this nation, is that pattern repeating? Is the Lord again judging those shepherds that you know uh basically have done exactly what Ezekiel 34 said, you know, um did not feed them or fed them falsely, uh went ahead and ate everything of their substance and you know, kind of used them and abused them. Um is that uh we are we re-seeing that pattern again? And will it filter down to the lesser um um coming to the average person who was also an obstruction or actually had a hand along with that?

SPEAKER_01 54:28

My my my my comment is I hope so.

SPEAKER_02 54:31

Um and um and and I think one of the things that we can do as as faithful Christians is we can pray for the judgment of the Lord. And the the thing is we have to understand that Ezekiel 34 is right an example of that. He did not judge the shepherds that were doing well, he came in on the side of the people who had been hurt and wounded and crushed and offended and robbed from, and he he came in as a beacon of justice on their behalf. And so the other thing is that the judgment of the Lord is also, every time you see the, you know, you talk about the Bemisek judgment, the Great White Judgment, or especially the judgment of anything with Christians, right, there's rewards there, right? He told the disciple, the disciples, the apostles, right? You're I'm gonna put you on twelve thrones, right? You're gonna judge the children of Israel. So the judgment of the Lord is not only to out those who are doing wrong, but it is to bless and reward those who are doing well. And so when we pray for the judgment of the Lord, we're saying, God bless those people who are faithful to what you're doing. And yes, out those people who are false shepherds and false prophets, because again, if somebody's in error or they're making a mistake or they're having a bad day, that's a different thing. But if somebody is knowingly deceiving people in the name of the Lord, we need to pray that they be revealed. And then pray that God gives them mercy and grace on the backside. Other questions.

unknown 56:12

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 56:13

He gave you a chance.

SPEAKER_01 56:15

Amen.

SPEAKER_03 56:16

So it's just a comment, and I'm learning this, uh, become more aware of this every day. The Lord, he really does see everything, doesn't he? He sees everything. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 56:31

Yes. Pastor.

SPEAKER_05 56:43

I really wanted to give Art a run for his money. Okay. After months of seeing the judgment of God or or the exposure to what's going on in the church, my heart is rejoicing because God gives us opportunity for repentance. Yes. That's a loving God. Yes. It is a loving God. And when when you hear about it, you go, oh, look how far they've fallen. Look at, you know, they're it's destroyed. It's destroyed what was never built on the cornerstone, on the foundation of Jesus Christ. That's why it was destroyed. But it gives them an opportunity to get their life completely right with God. I think that's exciting. I I really do. I I thank God for his wonderful mercy.

SPEAKER_02 57:41

And and we do need as intercessors to pray for them. It's really easy when people are false prophets or give false words and we're hurt by them, right? And and we're damaged by them. It's really easy to want revenge or it's want them to suffer. But it's our job on this side to give them a chance to to repent and a chance to to come to Jesus and find that mercy and grace. Um the the challenge comes when people are unrepentant. And so the the again, we should continue to pray for them, but we should also continue to not receive from that person, right? If they're uh unrepentant, because we've got a couple of folks that have been confronted that are just completely unrepentant. And so if they're completely unrepentant, then that people, you know, i the the the thing is is is the Bible's very clear to set the boundary with those folks and and not to treat them as if, you know, oh, you're my friend, and and you know, and and and so we we see that sometimes in the wider world where people are uh I've heard people say this, oh I can't somebody's a known false prophet, right? But I'm not gonna say anything about it because, like I said a couple weeks ago, they once passed me a biscuit at Cracker Barrel. And um the the the thing is is that we have to have in the house of God, we have to have the ability for people who are unrepentant, false shepherds, and false prophets to say, we're gonna pray for you, we're gonna witness to you, but we're not gonna validate who you are and what you're doing. And so, but then again, we can never let the root of bitterness grow in, right? Don't let the evil on the outside form evil on the inside.