From: November 1, 2024
“And whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know that a prophet has been among them” (Ezekiel 2:5 ESV).
Ezekiel was thirty years old when God called him to be a prophet. God cautioned him not to base his sense of success on how the people responded, but on whether he was obedient to speak the words God gave him.
We can’t control whether others “hear or refuse to hear,” but we can determine to obey and share God’s Word ourselves. God doesn’t call us to be successful. God calls us to be faithful. As the apostle Paul wrote, “So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth” (1 Cor. 3:7). We’re called to sow the gospel and water it, but only God can make it sprout and grow in people’s hearts.
I remember hearing Bill Bright speaking on witnessing when I was a college student. He said, “Success in witnessing is simply taking the initiative to share Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results to God.”
Like Ezekiel, we have been called to speak whether they hear or refuse to hear. For Christ has commanded us to “go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15).
Yet thankfully, we were not given Ezekiel’s predicament. For God commanded him to speak, forewarning him that Israel would never listen (3:7).
PRAYER: Dear Father, strengthen us by Your Spirit to speak whether people hear or not. We confess that we often struggle with the desire to be people-pleasers rather than pleasing to You. Help us to bear witness of Jesus to everyone, leaving the results up to You. In Jesus’ name, amen.
From: November 1, 2023
“Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled” (Hebrews 3:15 NLT).
This verse is a quotation of Psalm 95:8. It was a reference to Israel’s forty years of wilderness wanderings because of their unbelief. They did not believe God’s promise to give them the Promised Land when ten of the twelve spies brought back a negative report. They rebelled against God and hardened their hearts. So God let them wander in the wilderness until that whole generation died out. Hebrews used this historical reference to remind its readers not to harden their hearts against hearing the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Hearing and listening are not the same. Our ears may hear a sound without tuning in to understand. But listening goes to the heart and produces understanding. This understanding at the heart level makes it possible to respond to God’s voice with faith and obedience. This is why Jesus began so many of His teachings with the saying, “He that has ears to hear, let him hear.”
What causes hard hearts? Hearing God’s voice, yet turning away in unbelief. This continual turning away, instead of turning towards, results in callused hearts and spiritual deafness. And God views it as rebellion and willful unbelief.
How do you answer Christ’s voice today? Do you have a tender heart with spiritual ears to hear?
PRAYER: Dear Father, thank You for the gospel and for giving us ears to hear it. We have received it with faith and joy. Strengthen us and direct us this day by Your Spirit that we might always hear Your voice and obey. In Jesus’ name, amen.
From: November 1, 2022
LET GOD’S WORD SINK DEEPLY INTO YOUR HEART FIRST
When God gave a word to Ezekiel, he was instructed to receive it into his own heart first, before sharing it with other people. This is still the best instruction for those that would share God’s Word with others. First apply it to your own heart and life, before delivering it to others! The one who does this will find their own hearts set aflame before speaking. It also removes much of the risk of seeming hypocritical in application.
After receiving God’s word into his heart, Ezekiel was sent to preach to his people. He was not to concern himself with results. For whether they heard, or refused to hear, he was to preach, “Thus saith the Lord!”
PRAYER: Dear Father, we receive Your Word. Your Word is truth. Sanctify us by Your Word. Fill us with Your Spirit and send us to declare Your Word to others. Help us to focus on obedience to You and not results. For You are the only One who can change human hearts and open human ears. In Jesus’ name, amen.
From: November 1, 2016
they will know that a prophet has been among them” (Ezekiel 2:5 ESV).
Ezekiel was thirty years old when God called him to be a prophet. God cautioned him not to base his sense of success on how the people responded, but on whether he was obedient to speak the Word to them. We can’t control whether others “hear or refuse to hear,” but we can determine to obey and share God’s Word ourselves. God doesn’t call us to be successful. God calls us to be faithful.
From: November 1, 2015
Just as the Israelites wandered the wilderness for 40 years and died because they didn’t believe that God could give them rest in the promised land, so today unbelief keeps people from entering God’s rest. This rest is not a place, but a person, for Christ is God’s sabbath rest. Those who come to Him believing will find rest for their souls. They can stop their wandering and enter in believing.
From: November 1, 2014
When God gave a word to Ezekiel, he was instructed to apply it to his “own heart first,” before sharing it with other people. This is still the best instruction for those that would answer the call to be preachers and teachers of God’s Word. They should always first apply it to their own hearts and lives before delivering it to others. The preacher or teacher who does this will find their hearts set afire for the task. And will remove much of the risk of seeming hypocritical in application. Let the word “sink deep” in you before telling others!
From: November 1, 2013
Hearing and listening are not the same. Our ears may hear a sound without tuning in to understand. But listening goes to the heart and produces understanding. This understanding at the heart level makes it possible to respond to God’s voice. What causes hard hearts? Hearing God’s voice without leaning in to understand and reply with obedience. This continual turning away instead of turning towards results in callused hearts and spiritual deafness.