GOD PROMISES OUR RESTORATION
Ezekiel 36:22-32
INTRODUCTION
It had been 800 years since God gave Israel
His commandments. Because
were taken captive by the Babylonians. Jerusalem
was destroyed and the
temple was burned to the ground. Even though they were in sin, God offered
hope for their restoration. Ezekiel and Daniel were the
prophets during
the Babylonian exile.
GOD PUNISHES US FOR HIS GLORY
V:22 "Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'This is
what the Sovereign Lord says: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that
I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have
profaned among the nations where you have gone. "
A. We lose blessing when we are disobedient to God's
commands. Psalms 89:31
1. God should not
have to do what He has commanded us to do.
2. We ought to
bless God before others.
3. We should be
the ones who tell others about God.
4. We should be
the living role models for God.
B. According to the text, Israel
willfully disrespected God before other nations.
1. The Hebrew word
for "profaned" is chalal which means to wound, dissolve,
break your
word, wedge or opening.
2. Before going
into the promise land, Israel
promised to keep God's commands.
3. Israel
wounded God with their constant disobedience.
C. Because Israel wouldn't praise the Lord, He took action
to show His power
glory and authority
to foreign nations.
1. Israel
broke the covenant with God by worshipping idol God. Lev
19:4
2. In effect, Israel
chose worthless idols over the true living God.
3. We should be
careful to bless the Lord at all times.
THOSE WHO REJECT GOD WILL COME TO KNOW HIM
23 I will show the holiness of my great name, which has been
profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the
nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I show
myself holy through you before their eyes.
A. It is our job to proclaim our testimony that our God is
the Sovereign Lord.
1. Houston
suffered some terrible losses as a result of Hurricane Harvey.
2. The lost of
life was minimal.
3. In any given
week more people die at the hands of murderers and accidents than
died during the storm.
B. While homes were lost, there was an out pouring of love
from neighbors and
strangers to
help those affected.
1. The God we
serve protected us and provided for us during the storm.
2. That is our
testimony to the world.
3. The world
should not have to come to a conclusion about God, because His
praise ought
to come from us.
4. The world
should hear it from us first that God is Sovereign.
C. Because we want reverence God, we cause Him to put us through
trials and
tribulation to bring us to proclaim His holiness.
1. Because Israel
would not acknowledge God, they suffered 70 years of
captivity.
2. God sent the
king of Babylonian to destroy Jerusalem . 2 Kings 24:2
3. God caused a later
king to release Israel
from captivity.
GOD PROMISES OUR RESTORATION
V:24 "'For I will take you out of the nations; I will
gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land.
25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be
clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. "
A. In these verses we have both near term prophecies and
long term prophecies.
1. Through the
prophet Daniel and his friends, King Nebuchadnezzar and King
Darius came to know Daniel's God as the true living
God.
2. God showed His
power and authority when Daniel was saved in the lion's
den. Daniel 6:25
3. God also showed
His power when Daniel's three friends were saved in the fiery
furnace
(Daniel 3:29 ).
B. Israel
would not get a clean heart until after the death of Jesus on the cross some
600 years later.
1. After 70 years
of captivity, God caused Daruis, the
King of Persia to release
2. God can cause
our enemies to do us harm.
3. God can also
cause our enemies to bless us.
4. God can turn
your enemies to your friends.
GOD WILL TRANSFORM HIS ELECT
V:26. I will give you
a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of
stone and give you a heart of flesh.
27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my
decrees and be careful to keep my laws. "
A. God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son
that whoever believes
in Him shall not
perish, but have eternal life.
1. This is the
prophecy of the age of Grace.
2. This is also the
prophecy of the fulfillment of the Law through Jesus.
3. It is faith in
Jesus that gives us a new heart.
4. We are cleansed
by the Word of God.
5. Upon confession
of our faith in Jesus we receive the indwelling of the Holy
Spirit.
B. It is the power of the Holy Spirit that enables us to
keep God's commands.
1. It is the Work
of the Holy Spirit gives us an understanding of God's
Word.
2. It is the work
of the Holy Spirit that convicts us of God Word.
3. It is the power
of the Holy Spirit that brings about a change in us.
GOD KEEPS HIS PROMISES REGARDLESS OF OUR SINFULNESS
V:28. You will live
in the land I gave your forefathers; you will be my people, and I will be your
God.
29 I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will call
for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you."
A. God reminded Israel
of the promise that He made with Abraham.
1. He reminded Israel
that they would return to the land that He promised Abraham.
2. Notice there
are 12 "I wills" in this text.
3. God's Will,
will be accomplished without our input.
4. God's "I
wills" is a covenant He made with Himself.
B. Because we are so stubborn, God has to make a change in
us.
1. He set aside a
place for us.
2. He is the
provider of our salvation.
3. He is the
provider of all our material needs.
4. He will clean
us up through the baptism of His Word.
5. He is our protector.
6. He is our God.
7. We are His
people.
GOD'S RESTORATION INCLUDES OUR PROPERITY
V:30. " I will increase the fruit of the trees and the
crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the
nations because of famine. "
A. God is the authority over nature.
1. God controls
the seasons for our benefits.
2. God will insure
that the works of our hands are profitable.
Eph 2:10
3. God will insure
that we stand out among nations.
B. We put a stop to God's blessing when we are disobedient.
1. Some of our
suffering is needless.
2. God has given us
a way to a comfort living though our relevance of Him
GOD WILL CAUSE A REPENTANT HEART IN US
V:31. " Then you will remember your evil ways and
wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your sins and detestable
practices. "
A. Once God has made a change in us , we will be reminded of
our sinful past.
1. Our hearts will
be convicted by the power of the Holy Spirit that lives
within us.
2. When we
consider how good God has been to us in spite of our sinful
behavior, we
will be grieved.
B. God identifies our
past behavior that grieves Him.
1. Evil ways
2. Wicked deeds
3. Detestable
practices.
4. Through the
power of the Holy Spirit, our behavior can be change.
WHAT GOD DOES FOR US INCLUDES BLESSINGS FOR THE
FUTURE
V:32. " I want you to know that I am not doing this for
your sake, declares the Sovereign Lord. Be ashamed and disgraced for your
conduct, O house of Israel !
"
A. God has not blessed us based on our merit.
1. God blessed us
that He might be glorified.
2. We do not
deserve God's love, forgiveness, grace or mercy.
3. Everything in
creation was brought into existence for God's Glory.
B. We were chosen by God to give Him glory.
1. We constantly
receive His grace and mercy without merit.
2. When we
consider all that God does for us, we ought to be ashamed
of our attitude
toward the Holy God.
THANK GOD FOR HIS GRACE
AND MERCY
Rev M. Mitchell
Asst Pastor Of Greater Macedonia Baptist Church
For more lessons follow me on
facebook or visit my blogs
goodnewsrevmitc.blogspot.com
and www.revmmitchell.com
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