King James Bible Study – “And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” – Mark 8:34
Date: Sunday, September 08, 2019
Chapters: Ezekiel 37-39
Message: Hope And Quietly Wait For Jesus
Hello My Friend,
The most amazing thing about the Bible is that it does not matter what era you came from the same message is still taught. The dispensations of time might have differed on how God dealt with His people over redemption, for example the short lived age of the innocence, where there was no sin, to the age of conscience, where God first dealt with man who now understood that sin required redemption. Today, we are in the millennial dispensation, where we are under the age of grace, and no longer need constant redemption as Jesus made it permanent on the cross. Jew or Gentile, we are all need to hear the same message, salvation is of the LORD. “The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.” – Lamentations 3:24-26.
“to the soul that seeketh him.” I think my favorite chapter in the entire Bible is Ezekiel 37, it gives the perfect description of a soul that does not have the Spirit of God in it, how dry and dead it is. That is until it hears the Gospel of Christ, and the breath of eternal life comes to the soul that believes. And here we it, the valley of the dry bones.
“The hand of the LORD was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.” – Ezekiel 37:1-7,12.
“Son of man, can these bones live?” That is the question that every person needs to answer honestly, those who believe those bones can live will live by faith as they both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD. Those who believe they will not will die as they have no faith, without faith we cannot see God let alone please God. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” – Hebrews 11:1,3,6.
“a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” Jew or Gentile, the same rule applies, we must have faith not only in God, and Jesus, we must also seek Him. What an amazing sight that will be! And there will come a day, when all the graves will open, and every person will stand before Jesus, those who are saved will be resurrected first to get their new, unbroken, sin free, pain free, glorified, immortal body (I Corinthians 15:52-54). Praise God! Through Ezekiel, God reveals something else, the day when all of Israel (both Jew and Gentile believers) will unite as one, ruled under one king.
“Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand. And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all: And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them.” – Ezekiel 37:16,19,21-22,24.
“and for the children of Israel his companions:” How amazing will it be when Jesus, our King returns and gathers every one of His people together and we are no longer called Jews or Christians, but the people of God? “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.” – John 10:16-18.
“because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.” It is with very good reason that we ought to look to Jesus, and proclaim Him as our King, He gave His life for us, and since He is God, only He has the power to give and take life. All these people trying to stop the planet from being destroyed by controlling the population, killing off cows, or shooting chemicals up at the sun in hopes that it will cool down have zero faith in God, and will have a huge awakening. Gog and Magog, these two places are only mentioned in God’s Word twice, and if you are a regular reader you would know they have something to do with the return of Christ and Armageddon, the war that would be the end of the world. Through Ezekiel, God first foretells of Gog, who knew the warnings, but were not prepared.
“And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face. For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground. And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord GOD: every man’s sword shall be against his brother. And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the LORD.” – Ezekiel 38:18-23.
“and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.” When Christ returns He is not going to be the meek and mild man He was the first time, He is coming back with a vengeance and all will know He is the powerful and Almighty God. Many see a reference to the northern European powers headed by Russia in the last days to wage a great war, and this is why. Mesheck (Moscow) and Tubal (Zobolsk) is thought to be clearly identified where the future battle of Armageddon will take place. We do not know when Christ will return, but we can be prepared, and it would be wise that His people be ready for that day. We are to live in a way that glorifies God and brings others to His Son before that day comes. Through Ezekiel, God foretells when all will know who Christ is.
“Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name; After that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid. When I have brought them again from the people, and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations; Then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neither will I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.” – Ezekiel 39:25-29.
“Then shall they know that I am the LORD their God,” This is the time when all the Jews themselves will finally recognize Christ as their King too. Christ had one purpose by coming to earth the first time, and that was to put an end to the death and hell curse that was placed upon all mankind.(Genesis 3:15-16). When Jesus died a sinless death on the cross, He died for all mankind, past, present, and future, the curse would be removed for anyone who believes in and accepts Him. Those who had died before His passion had hope and quietly awaited their salvation too, their faith was counted for their righteousness. “What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all, (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.” – Romans 4:1-3,16-17. Amen!
Jesus Christ Magnified: “And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them.” – Ezekiel 37:24.
Today’s Prayer: God, We are encouraged and comforted by the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, Your Son. It is because of His finished work that we have hope and await quietly of our own resurrection, a day when our bodies will be stripped of the grave clothes of this mortal life, and will be clothed with eternal life. And we will no longer be acquainted with sickness, sorrow, pain, or sin. Amen! What anticipation this builds when we see You face to face in our glorified, eternal bodies. Lord, Keep us faithful and looking unto Jesus until the day of His return, let us not cease from telling others about Him. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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