Bible Study: The Presence of God

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Today is Friday September 03, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Ezekiel, chapters 10-13. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this link onto your browser: http://www.imfollowingjesus.com/bible-september-3

Today's Message: The Presence of God
There is no better feeling than to feel the presence of God, to see His blessings unfold right before your eyes and to know that God is alive and well and with you. Praise God! No matter what we are going through He is always there to guide us and give us peace and comfort. Sadly, most often, we can forget that the presence of God is with us and end up waiting until something is going wrong before we seek His help again. However, God is always always there, faithful, and just for us to call on Him. Praise God! If there is one thing that I have learned over the past couple of years it is this, the more trials I face the more blessed I am. Praise God! Each and every trial we face helps us to grow closer to God and more faithful to Him, encouraging us to praise Him even when things are going well. Not everyone enjoys the presence of God, you must have Christ in you if you want God's presence. It is only in by accepting, believing and confessing to Him from the bottom of our hearts that we receive the presence of God in our lives., also known as the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost. “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” -I Corinthians 2:12,13. The Holy Spirit indwells and teaches us how to live the way God intended for us to live. Although the Holy Spirit indwells in every believer there are times when He appears dormant. This usually happens for one of two reasons, either there is sin in our lives or we are being tested of our faithfulness to God. Either way, it is a good thing to remember that God is watching, waiting, and listening for us to make the first move.

Since God created the earth He only allowed certain people to be able to talk to Him one on one, usually a priest or prophet would be called to preach, teach, and minister to the people. Before Jesus came, God use to dwell over the Temple in Jerusalem, when a person wanted to get right with God he would bring an offering (animal sacrifice) give it to the priest and the priest would offer up the sacrifice to God on His behalf. The burnt offering would bring up a sweet smell that pleased God, allowing one to be reconciled with Him. However, during the destruction of Jerusalem and while the House of Judah was in captivity I imagine not much of an offering was being given to God, on top of that He had to witness one abomination after another, even in the Temple. He had enough, it was time to remove His presence from the Temple. “Now the cherubims stood on the right side of the house, when the man went in; and the cloud filled the inner court. Then the glory of the LORD went up from the cherub, and stood over the threshold of the house; and the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of the LORD's glory....Then the glory of the LORD departed from off the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubims. And the cherubims lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight: when they went out, the wheels also were beside them, and every one stood at the door of the east gate of the LORD's house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.” - Ezekiel 10:3,4,18,19. Brokenhearted, His presence hesitatingly departed from the city and went to the Mount of Olives, lingering there for a while as though waiting to see if Israel would repent and return to Him. Today, God's dwelling is no longer in a building, but in each and every person who accepts Christ as their Savior.

When we receive Christ as our Savior we receive not only eternal life, but a new spirit, the spirit of the living God. “Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come. Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel. And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence. And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.” - Ezekiel 11:16-20. Those who do not know Christ will face His wrath, but those who do will be saved and one day all those whom have chose Christ will meet and live together happily, in the promised land, just as God intended for us to live.

Ezekiel had observed the leaders of Jerusalem who appeared to be the chosen ones and the favored people, blessed and called to remain in charge while so many others had been killed or taken captive. In reality, it was those captive in Babylon who learned, through suffering, to repent of their pagan idolatry and trust in the One True God of Israel. “For I am the LORD: I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall come to pass; it shall be no more prolonged: for in your days, O rebellious house, will I say the word, and will perform it, saith the Lord GOD. Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying. Son of man, behold, they of the house of Israel say, The vision that he seeth is for many days to come, and he prophesieth of the times that are far off. Therefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; There shall none of my words be prolonged any more, but the word which I have spoken shall be done, saith the Lord GOD.” - Ezekiel 12:25-28. We cannot change our heart, but we can choose to repent of our sins and receive Jesus as Lord and Savior of our lives. God is warning every one of us, He is not backing down any longer, God gives us the power of choice, but it is the choice we make that will determine our future.

Be careful, there are going to be many false prophets trying to convince believers and the lost that what they believe is false. Through Ezekiel God warns us of this, “Likewise, thou son of man, set thy face against the daughters of thy people, which prophesy out of their own heart; and prophesy thou against them, And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you? And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies?Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against your pillows, wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly, and I will tear them from your arms, and will let the souls go, even the souls that ye hunt to make them fly. Your kerchiefs also will I tear, and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand to be hunted; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.” -Ezekiel 13:17-21. The only way to know if someone is telling the truth is by reading God's Word. If what a person says lines up with God's Word than you shall know, and I mean every Word of God, not just a few. We can not stop God's judgment, but we can seek His protection through it, He will not let any of His people perish.

Although God can hear and see everything that we are thinking and doing He still wants to show His presence among His people when they are living righteously, but when His people live in sin He will remove Himself from their sight. Think about it. Since God dwells in every believer that means any sin we commit we are defiling the Temple that God dwells in, therefore, you can imagine God's anger and sadness with those who refuse to acknowledge Him. Those who live is sin will, in a sense, lose the presence of God for a time, He will not continue to help anyone who chooses to live their own sinful way. However, He will help them if they seek forgiveness and His help. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” - I John 1:9. Praise God! Let God's presence be known in you. He is there. For two weeks I have been without a computer, although I could not type up a devotion I never stopped praying and reading, doing the same things I would normally do before. I tried everything to get the computer to work, then yesterday while I was praying I said to God, “thank you for testing my faith, although I did not have to write a devotion I still got up, prayed, and read my Bible as though I was.” Later that day, I turned on the computer, clicked F10 like I had been doing for the past two weeks with no results, withing 20 minutes the computer was fixed and it is like new. That is the power of the living God! I am back online because of Him, Praise God!

Enjoy the rest of your day/night and week.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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