Recognize God at Work!

Ezekiel 6

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Saturday, June 8.

As a teacher and communicator, I don’t like being misunderstood. It’s especially difficult when malicious motives are imputed upon me by others. As a pastor, my heart’s desire is to equip, encourage, and empower people in their Christian lives, but like a medical doctor, there are times when I must say difficult things to truly help a person. The longer I’m in my current ministry context in New Castle, Indiana, nearly fifteen years now, the harder it is to be misunderstood. Moreso, after thousands of years of salvific history, imagine how much worse it must be for God when He is misunderstood by His people. This is why God utilized the recognition formula – “then they/you will know that I am Yahweh” – eighty-seven times, seventy-two of which are in Ezekiel, and four of those usages are found in Ezekiel 6:7, 10, 13, and 14:

The slain will fall among you, and you will know that I am the Lord. … Then they will know that I am the Lord; I have not said in vain that I would inflict this disaster on them. … Then you will know that I am the Lord, when their slain are among their idols around their altars, … So throughout all their habitations I will stretch out My hand against them and make the land more desolate and waste than the wilderness toward Diblah; thus they will know that I am the Lord.

God stated the “recognition formula” because He was intentionally acting to prove His power to His people and the surrounding nations. We find this in the exodus story (Exodus 14:18; 16:12), as well as in the times of Isaiah, such as 1 Kings 20:13 and Isaiah 49:26. No one likes to be misunderstood, and that includes God so pay attention to His work in your life.  

Seize the moment and be still, knowing that He is God and He will be exalted in and through your life to the ends of the Earth (Psalm 46:10; Acts 1:7-8).

God bless you!

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YOUTUBE:

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