Welcome!
Date: Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Today: Do not white-wash the cracks!
Passage: Ezekiel 13: 10-12 NIV
10 ” ‘Because they lead my people astray, saying, “Peace,” when there is no peace, and because, when a flimsy wall is built, they cover it with whitewash, 11 therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall. Rain will come in torrents, and I will send hailstones hurtling down, and violent winds will burst forth. 12 When the wall collapses, will people not ask you, “Where is the whitewash you covered it with?”
God is a God of blessing. But more than that, He is a God of truth
God will not deceive us or tempt us. He will not say “Peace” when the sword is coming
God will let His children know about the coming dangers, if they are really close to Him (Jeremiah 33:3)
There are certain times when God will put a heavy burden in our heart
At such times, we need to increase the intensity of our prayer, and even fast
Later, we will come to know why God allowed that “burden”
Here, God is speaking to Ezekiel about the false prophets/preachers
Many of the preachers we see in TV and around us are doing ministry their own way!
Religion is so much commercialized and others are taking advantage of that
If God’s people called by God’s name shall humble themselves and pray, God will forgive and heal the land (2 Chronicles 7:14)
God tells Ezekiel not only about the false prophets and preachers,
But also about those who try to cover up the cracks in the walls, with whitewash
Sometimes, the cracks in the wall could be just superficial; they could be cracks in the paint or the plaster
But often times, they are structural cracks. Those have to be taken care of
Structural cracks can happen when something wrong happens to the foundation
Covering them on the surface will only make things worse; they give you a false sense of security
It is like treating the symptoms of a disease, instead of treating the disease itself
What we see on the outside tells us about what is going on inside
The face of a person is a mirror of their heart
The repair has to be dome to the root cause of the problem, not to the symptoms
Do we have “cracks” in our very life?
If our walls of prayer are weak, if our Bible study is weak, fix them up!
God is a God of repair. The moment he sees something is not right, He wants to fix it immediately (Isaiah 61)
If we see our children/others going in the wrong way, tell them that they are going in the wrong way, prayerfully – speak the truth in love and grace!
That is what we are here for – to turn people away from their wicked ways
When many others are involved in turning people to wickedness, there is so much you and I can do, to turn people away from wickedness
A wound can be dressed in two ways; either it can be properly cleaned or, a band-aid can simply be put on the top of it, without proper cleaning
The second is dangerous; it gives a false sense of security, as the wound gets worse inside
If we deal with chemicals in our work place, it is important to label them right
But it is even worse to label something with the wrong label
Poison has to be labeled as poison
Sin has to be labeled sin; it’s name may not be changed to “weakness” or “biological need” or “what everyone else out there is doing”
Let us come Home (God) as we are, and ask Him to dress our wounds and to take care of the deeper problems within us.
What we need is a total make-over, not just a modification
God bless you and your day
BG
Prayer: Lord, help me to first address the issues in my life and then others, properly. Help me Lord Jesus, to continue your work. Amen