TODAY’S DAILY READING: Ezekiel 29-30 & Revelation 9
Old Testament: Ezekiel 29- Crutches

Ezekiel 29:6-7
“Then all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the Lord, because they have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel. When they took hold of you with the hand, you broke and tore all their shoulders; when they leaned on you,you broke and made all their backs quiver.”

One of the common criticisms of Christianity asserts it is a crutch for weak people. I would disagree with that accusation based upon its premise. You see, anyone making that statement is failing to see that we, as humans, are all weak and in …Read More

Ezekiel 30- It’s Coming, Are You Ready?

Ezekiel 30:2-3
“Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God:’ “Wail, Woe to the day!” For the day is near, Even the day of the Lord is near; It will be a day of clouds, the time of the Gentiles.”

Ezekiel paints a very dark picture of what is coming… Read More

 

New Testament: Revelation 9- When The Trumpet Sounds

Revelation 9 records the fifth and sixth blast of the angelic trumpets. With each blast, another calamity is poured out upon a Christ-rejecting world. While each of these is intriguing in themselves, two things stand out to me as I read through them.

First, it strikes me, the judgment of God does not come in a… Read More

 

TODAY’S DAILY READING: Ezekiel 27-28 & Revelation 8
Old Testament: Ezekiel 28- Israel

Ezekiel 28:25
“Thus says the Lord God: ‘When I have gathered the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they are scattered, and am hallowed in them in the sight of the Gentiles, then they will dwell in their own land which I gave to My servant.’”

Without a doubt, the Bible is the most extraordinary book you will ever read. It is filled with fascinating stories designed not only to encourage moral…Read More

 

New Testament: Revelation 8- Silence In Heaven

Revelation 8:1
“When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.”

Revelation 8 paints a sober picture and before the events unfold, Heaven goes silent for half an hour. These events are a series of judgments that are unleashed upon the earth. While it, no doubt, grieves the heart of God to judge the sinful men He sent His own Son to save, these judgments are released as the prayers of God’s people arise like incense before the throne of God.

Revelation 8:3-4 “Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel’s hand.”…Read More

TODAY’S DAILY READING: Ezekiel 25-26 & Revelation 7
Old Testament: Ezekiel 25- Feeling Special 

Ezekiel 25:8
“Thus says the Lord God: ‘Because Moab and Seir say, “Look! The house of Judah is like all the nations…”‘“

Moab and Israel had a long and sorted history, dating back to Israel’s journey to Canaan. It was the king of Moab who hired the prophet Balaam to curse the people of God. Unable to curse those whom God had blessed, Balaam resorted to counseling Moab on how to put a stumbling block in the way of the people of God. They sent many of the…Read More

Ezekiel 26- Prophecy

Ezekiel 26:3
“Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea causes its waves to come up.’”

Predictive prophecy is one of the greatest evidences of the inspiration of Scripture. Peter explained, it was like a light shining in…Read More

New Testament: Revelation 7- Sealed and Sent

Revelation 7:3
“Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.”

Revelation 7 begins with four angels holding the winds of judgment in their hands, waiting to be released upon a Christ-rejecting world. Fortunately, before they are allowed to begin, another angel is released from heaven to seal those who belong to God. We are not told exactly what this seal looks like, but we know that it is a mark that God places upon the forehead of these believers. It indicates that they belong to Him. There is a…Read More

TODAY’S DAILY READING: Ezekiel 23-24 & Revelation 6
Old Testament: Ezekiel 23- Our Influence

Ezekiel 23:37
“For they have committed adultery with their idols, and even sacrificed their sons whom they bore to Me, passing them through the fire, to devour them.”

Ezekiel points out that the sins of the parents resulted in the sacrifice of the children. When they stopped following the Lord. …Read More

Ezekiel 24- Perspective

Ezekiel 24:18
“So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died; and the next morning I did as I was commanded.”

It is very common for tragedy to become an excuse to misbehave. We complain, doubt, or even sin, believing we are justified in doing so because of the difficulties we are enduring. Perhaps it would do us good to examine the actions of Ezekiel, when he faced… Read More
New Testament: Revelation 6- Hiding From Him

Revelation 6:16
“Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!”

Chapters 6-19 in the book of Revelation, describe the period known as the Tribulation… Read More

TODAY’S DAILY READING: Ezekiel 21-22 & Revelation 5
Old Testament: Ezekiel 21- For Or Against

Ezekiel 21:3
“Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I am against you, and I will draw My sword out of its sheath and cut off both righteous and wicked from you.’”

Paul penned some of the most encouraging words ever written when he wrote,

Romans 8:31 “What then… Read More

Ezekiel 22- Stand In The Gap

Ezekiel 22:30
“So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.”

Israel, in Ezekiel’s day, was a mess. The people had long ago left the Word of God and… Read More

New Testament: Revelation 5-  Title Deed

Revelation 5:5
“But one of the elders said to me, ‘Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.’”

Revelation 4 and 5 takes us on a heavenly tour, and with an all access pass, we are brought into the throne room of Jehovah God. There, we are privileged to observe as … Read More

TODAY’S DAILY READING: Ezekiel 19-20 & Revelation 4

New Testament: Revelation 4- Heaven’s Door

Revelation 4:1
“After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, ‘Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.’”

John looked into the future of mankind and saw the day when the heavens will open, not to speak, but to call home all who have trusted in Christ for salvation. Paul explained that the dead in Christ would rise first, and we who are alive and remain will be caught up together in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). What a day that will be, when we are no longer looking through a glass dimly, but we are face to face with Christ (I Corinthians 13:12) steeped in His glory.

John gives us a glimpse of what we have to look forward to. He writes of a radiant throne, encircled by a rainbow, and surrounded by elders. In front of the throne, a sea like glass… Read More

Ezekiel 20:18
“But I said to their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols.

The Bible warns of the sins of the fathers being visited upon the children to the third and fourth generations. This does not mean that if my dad commits a crime I am liable, but that the behaviors of the parents are often repeated in the lives of their children. If you grew up in an environment where discipline was meted out with outbursts of anger then you are likely to discipline your children in like fashion. Statistically speaking children of alcoholic parents are more likely to abuse substances, not only for genetic reasons but because they have learned to use drugs or alcohol as a coping mechanism. In the same way children of divorced parents are more likely to use divorce as a means to correct their marriage problems than those who have grown up with parents who chose to love each other, remain married and work through the difficult times.

Growing up without a godly example will certainly make navigating through life more difficult then it needs to be. As a result Ezekiel warns the people not to follow the example of their fathers. Because of the bond children have with their parents this is a vey difficult command to obey, and in some cases the older we get the harder it becomes. We can even feel as though going against the ways of our parents is somehow a violation against them. Nevertheless if we are going to break the legacy of bad decisions and actions that have been passed down from one generation to the next we have to be the one who decides that we are going to obey God even above the pattern set by our parents. For your sake and the sake of the generations that will follow you it is time to determine that above all else you will live to please the Lord and this will be reflected in your home.

Pastor Jim

 

TODAY’S DAILY READING: Ezekiel 17-18 & Revelation 3
Old Testament: Ezekiel 17- I’ll Take The Low Place
Ezekiel 17:24
“And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the Lord, have brought down the high tree and exalted the low tree, dried up the green tree and made the dry tree flourish; I, the Lord, have spoken and have done it.”

The Bible is filled with seemingly paradoxical statements. Here God promises to bring the low… Read More

Ezekiel 18- The Blame Game

Ezekiel 18:14
“If, however, he begets a son who sees all the sins which his father has done, and considers but does not do likewise, he shall surely live.”

It seems we have become a generation who blames our faults on others. No one wants to take responsibility for their own actions. Attitudes of the heart, as well as sinful behavior, are often blamed on our upbringing or our genetics. As much as this may seem like a modern problem, Ezekiel reveals this is actually a… Read More

New Testament: Revelation 3- Amen

Revelation 3:14
“These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God”

What a beautiful and insightful way Jesus describes Himself to the church. He tells us three things about Himself.

First, He is the Amen. In the…Read More

TODAY’S DAILY READING: Ezekiel 15-16 & Revelation 2
Old Testament: Ezekiel 15- I Heard It Through The Grape Vine

Ezekiel 15:2
“Son of man, how is the wood of the vine better than any other wood, the vine branch which is among the trees of the forest?”

Recently, my wife and I went shopping for wood flooring. We were actually quite surprised by the number of choices available to us. We found cherry, oak, pine, bamboo and a plethora of other woods from which to choose. Upon reflection, however, I did not notice any grapevine flooring. As I recall, …Read More

Ezekiel 16- It’s Everlasting
Ezekiel 16:6
“Nevertheless I will remember My covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.”

Ezekiel has gone to great lengths to explain the judgment Judah is under, because they had forsaken God and… Read More

New Testament: Revelation 2- First Love
Revelation 2:4-5
“Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.”

In a very poetic fashion,…Read More

TODAY’S DAILY READING: Ezekiel 13-14 & Revelation 1
Old Testament: Ezekiel 13- Words

Ezekiel 13:2
“Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who prophesy, and say to those who prophesy out of their own heart, ‘ Hear the word of the Lord!’”

The world never has a shortage of people who claim to have the answer to spiritual questions. It seems almost everyone has an opinion regarding the…Read More

Ezekiel 14- He Wants Your Heart
Ezekiel 14:5
“. . . that I may seize the house of Israel by their heart, because they are all estranged from Me by their idols.”

The people in Ezekiel’s day were facing the same struggles we face today, they were… Read More

New Testament: Revelation 1- The Key
Revelation 1:18
“I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.”

The final book of the Bible is aptly called Revelation, for it is a compilation of things that were revealed to John while banished to the Island of Patmos. In… Read More