My husband asked that I fill in for him today and I was more
than happy to do so being as he so faithfully writes to you all every week. I
would like to simply share with you some of my thoughts for this week.
One of the things I love most about the Bible is that you can
read many passages, many different times, and yet that tenth time that you read
through it, one particular verse will stand up on a soap box and wave its arms
frantically and jump out to you on the page. I suppose you could call it a revelation
of sorts, or an aha! moment. This happened to me recently upon reading in
twenty-first chapter of Ezekiel. The whole chapter is really enthralling in a
horrifying way. It starts off with a rhetorical question that states, “thou son
of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city?” and then begins to
describe in great detail a city full of sin and iniquity. It is a city with
idols, that defies God, that despises holy things, that mocks the Sabbath, that
is full of sexual iniquity, even the priests have violated the law of God and
turned from him. Sadly, as I was reading this, it did not appear to far away
from today’s day and time. Many people say that people today are worse than
they’ve ever been, but Solomon said that there is nothing new under the sun,
and I tend to agree with him…and the bible.
As the chapter progresses we begin to see the wrath of God as he
begins to describe what he will do with the unrighteous and the sinners….his
indignation is referred too many times. We so often preach the grace of God and
I am thankful for that. I’m thankful we preach it because it is true. I’m
thankful we preach it because it is everlasting, and it is unending. However,
the judgment of God is just as real and just as quick and just as overwhelming.
God’s grace is greater, but his judgment is very real to those who will not
listen.
It was the thirtieth
verse that chose to stand out to me. It is at the end of the chapter. Easy to
miss if you are not paying attention.
“And
I sought for a man among them that should make up the hedge, and stand in the
gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.”
Lord help us. Lord
help me. Are you standing in the gap today? Are you standing in the gap that is
left empty? Are you shining so bright, that the Lord sees you in that gap and
ceases his judgment on those around you? Are you affecting the people around
you so much that the Lord’s judgment on them is changed? Are you affecting them
so much that they are led to Christ? Am I? Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t about
you, it’s about becoming the hands and feet of Christ. He is asking us to make
up the hedge, to become the hedge of protection around those who come in
contact with us. He’s asking us to stand in the gap, to make up for what is
lacking, by bringing others to Christ.
I want to stand in the
gap.
I want to make up the
hedge.
When the Lord seeks
for someone, I want him to find me. I want to answer his call to arms.
How about you?
