- They cast their silver into the streets, and their gold is like an unclean thing. Their silver and gold are not able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the Lord. They cannot satisfy their hunger or fill their stomachs with it. For it was the stumbling block of their iniquity. Ezekiel 7:19 – What caused you to stumble can’t help you get back up. Imagine someone addicted to alcohol finding themselves in a mess because of it and saying, “I’ll just turn to alcohol to get me out of this mess.” We know this isn’t going to help them at all and what the people are doing in our passage won’t either. The silver and gold, and the idols they made out of it, is what got them into this mess and hoping in it wouldn’t get them out of their mess. Sometimes we can do the same, hoping in what got us into our mess to be what gets us out of it. Like our pride or selfishness or bitterness. Those things can make life very messy, but they can’t help us get back up. That’s where God, and only God, comes in. Let’s not lean on the thing that caused us to stumble in the first place to help us get up. Lean on a firm foundation instead. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 1071
- Disaster comes upon disaster; rumor follows rumor. They seek a vision from the prophet, while the law perishes from the priest and counsel from the elders. Ezekiel 7:26 – While we are far from being through with the prophecies from Ezekiel, chapter 7 concludes the first section of prophecies concerning Jerusalem and the people of God’s rebellion against Him. In verse 26 we see a frightening aspect to the doom that was to come…no help from those they typically could find help from. Prophets would be sought out for guidance on what to do but either no prophet could be found or no word of the Lord could be heard by them. The priests would either be gone or unable to properly share the law over God’s people. The wise counsel of the elders that so often would direct and guide would be absent from their ears. They would be in a struggle with no voice to lead, encourage, or help them. While this may seem for some of us today not that big of deal, imagine navigating a hardship and having no voice of help or encouragement within it. Possibly you have been in a season like this before and you remember the loneliness and helplessness of that time. Today let’s lift thanks to the Lord for the abundance of voices we have speaking into our life. Many of us have church families, home families, pastors, Bible teachers, friends, mentors, and loved ones that are able and desire to speak into our lives. This is a blessing that shouldn’t be dismissed. The people of God in Ezekiel 7 were about to realize how deep of a blessing these voices were to have when they suddenly were no longer there for them. See as well how quickly our sin can shut out such helpful voices. Cherish the voices God has put into your story and turn from sin so these voices can remain present and active within your story. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2348
Daily DEVO 