Monday, September 7, 2015

Follow Christ Not Man

King James Bible Daily Devotion – Learning Scripture One Day At A Time
Date: Monday, September 07, 2015
Chapters: Ezekiel 32-34 http://imfollowingjesus.com/Bible-Reading-250.html
Message Title: Follow Christ Not Man

Hello My Friend,

God loves all the people He creates, and would love nothing more than for every one of them to become His children. Sadly, not every person born will acknowledge or even believe that they need Christ to become a child of God. Perhaps more joyful to seeing person bow their heads and trust His Son as their Saviour is seeing one return to Him, meaning repent of the wild lifestyle they were living, and seek His help to overcome them. “Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” - James 4:9,10.

In order for us to truly understand the need for Christ in our lives, we have to face some suffering, some will come to Him, some will reject Him. Ezekiel had the task of not only tell the surrounding nations that were glorying in their prosperity since Israel was judged, but to also cry for them. He completes His warning to Egypt and those who followed them. “Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt, and cast them down, even her, and the daughters of the famous nations, unto the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down into the pit. There be the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Zidonians, which are gone down with the slain; with their terror they are ashamed of their might; and they lie uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit. Pharaoh shall see them, and shall be comforted over all his multitude, even Pharaoh and all his army slain by the sword, saith the Lord GOD. For I have caused my terror in the land of the living: and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with them that are slain with the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.” - Ezekiel 32:18,30-32.

They lie uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword, the uncircumcised are those who have not received Christ as their Saviour. It doesn't matter what race or religion we are, if we do not know Christ we will be cast down into the pit of hell with the wicked. Even if all we did was follow the religion in hopes of that being our salvation. Only when a person believes in and accepts Christ as the payment for their sin are they clean, they are circumcised from all the filth of sin, and saved from hell. “And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;” - Colossians 2:10-13.

Now, God sets His focus back on Israel, He informs Ezekiel to speak to them concerning something we who are saved should know about, their salvation. Ezekiel was the watchman, the guard appointed to tell them how they can be saved. “So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul. Therefore, O thou son of man, speak unto the house of Israel; Thus ye speak, saying, If our transgressions and our sins be upon us, and we pine away in them, how should we then live? Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel? ” - Ezekiel 33:7-11.

You see, those who got left back in Jerusalem were depending on the Egyptians to rescue them, little did they realize that they were being judged also. We cannot put our trust in man to save us, we must come to Christ, the true Watchman and Shepherd over the His sheep, even those who have gone astray. We do not realize it, but many religions teach that we need Christ four salvation, but that we need to do other things to keep it, this is false religion, and if we follow them, we will suffer. God sent Ezekiel a message to give the shepherds who caused His sheep to scatter and get lost into these false religions.

Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them. For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord GOD.” - Ezekiel 34:2,10-12,31.

Shepherds who watch over Jesus’ sheep, these are pastors and church leaders, and they have a duty to feed His sheep, to care for them, minster to them, and provide the medicine they need to heal them from their sin, which is the Gospel. God will expose the truth of every man of God who reaps all the money, power, and fame of being a shepherd, yet refuses to feed His sheep. He will also bring His sheep back to the truth with some good old fashioned discipline of their own since they followed them in the first place. Ignorance does not save us, only truth can set us free. “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” - John 8:32,33.

When God chastises His people, the world rejoices and thinks it can possess everything they have, but what they fail to realize is that once the house of God gets chastened, He wrath will come to them. God turns His sights on Edom, Mt. Seir, and the destruction it will face. “Because thou hast had a perpetual hatred, and hast shed the blood of the children of Israel by the force of the sword in the time of their calamity, in the time that their iniquity had an end: Therefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will prepare thee unto blood, and blood shall pursue thee: sith thou hast not hated blood, even blood shall pursue thee. Thus will I make mount Seir most desolate, and cut off from it him that passeth out and him that returneth. As thou didst rejoice at the inheritance of the house of Israel, because it was desolate, so will I do unto thee: thou shalt be desolate, O mount Seir, and all Idumea, even all of it: and they shall know that I am the LORD.” - Ezekiel 35:5-7,15.

Those who have a hatred to God and His people must expect eventually to be made a desolation. Those who have lived to shed blood will be given blood to drink, and they will all know who God is. Not one person God created is unknown Him, and refusing to acknowledge Him will only bring destruction upon themselves. In the destruction of the enemies of the church, God make His own glory, and when the fullness of the Jews and Gentiles shall come into His church, all who reject Him shall be destroyed, and they will truly know Christ is the only God. “Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: For there is no respect of persons with God.” - Romans 2:9-11.

Today's Prayer: God, Thank you for loving us so much that You sent Your Son to die for us so that we not only become a creation of Yours, but a child. We are not Your children by any righteousness we have done, but by our being born into Your family through Jesus. Lord, there is no amount of thanks, praise, or glory we can give You to show how grateful we are for what You have done. the only thing we can do is return our love to You by being faithful and living in obedience to Your Word. Give us Your power, strengthen us, grow us, and show us how to live the way You want us to live, not because we have to, but because we are Your kids and we want to show You how much we love You. In Jesus' name. Amen

God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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