- When the people of the land come before the Lord at the appointed feasts, he who enters by the north gate to worship shall go out by the south gate, and he who enters by the south gate shall go out by the north gate: no one shall return by way of the gate by which he entered, but each shall go out straight ahead. Ezekiel46:9 – If you’re like me, you read this verse and said “ok….but why?” Well it was a way for the people to symbolize that when they came to God that they weren’t going to turn their back to Him and return to the old way of life they came from. Rather they would continue straight ahead after Him. This should be our habit as well. That we don’t just revert back to our old ways once church is over. Let’s come to God and keep going after Him. If you’ve turned to follow Jesus you don’t need to make any more turns. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 1110
- At the feasts and the appointed festivals, the grain offering with a young bull shall be an ephah, and with a ram an ephah, and with the lambs as much as one is able to give, together with a hin of oil to an ephah. Ezekiel 46:11 – “As much as one is able to give.” This phrase comes up three times in this chapter and stood out to me compared to the rest of the directions. We see God outlining for the princes their responsibilities when it came to supplying the meats and grains for the sacrifices that went on throughout the year at the temple. Everything was very exact on what to do and when to do it, which made the phrase “as much as one is able” comparatively odd. Rather than a precise direction or an exact amount to give, the Lord gives the prince freedom in the amount here that he gives. In that freedom though there still is a push, a push to give what he can and not just what is easy to let go off. In our story, God is giving us the same direction. Again, we aren’t offering sacrifices to a temple like we see outlined in our passage, but we are called to give back to the Lord. And it shouldn’t be a giving that is easy but a giving that stretches us. A giving of our time that requires calendar changes. A giving of our money that will require a trust in the Lord to provide. A giving of our energy that will require a trust in God to restore. As much as one is able. I think if we were honest, we don’t give like this (I know I for sure don’t always). I know I still have more energy and time to give to what the Lord is doing, but I hold back. Let’s seek to give to the Lord all that we are able to give and trust that God will provide in the newly created spaces of lack. Let’s see how God can provide when His followers truly following His lead. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2387
Daily DEVO 