NT: “My brothers and sisters, do not show favoritism as you hold on to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. For if someone comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and a poor person dressed in filthy clothes also comes in, if you look with favor on the one wearing the fine clothes and say, “Sit here in a good place,” and yet you say to the poor person, “Stand over there,” or “Sit here on the floor by my footstool,” haven’t you made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Didn’t God choose the poor in this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? …Speak and act as those who are to be judged by the law of freedom. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has not shown mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can such faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothes and lacks daily food and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, stay warm, and be well fed,” but you don’t give them what the body needs, what good is it? In the same way faith, if it does not have works, is dead by itself.” (‭‭James‬ ‭2:1-5, 12-17‬ ‭CSB)

The mature believer in Christ does more than just talk about his faith, he lives his faith. We ultimately behave according to our beliefs. If we say we believe one thing, but behave in another way, we don’t actually believe what we preach and have deceived ourselves into thinking that we are something that we are not. They way we treat people reveals what we truly believe about God and if we truly believe His word, will and ways are true and righteous.

With God, socioeconomic status, race, gender, mental acuity, earning ability, talent level, and the like have no bearing on a person’s value. Christ did not sacrifice his life only for the Jew… only for the rich or only for the poor… only for men…only for the talented. Christ offered His life for all, and anyone who places their faith on His life, death, resurrection and ascension are redeemed, grafted into God’s family, and made joint-heirs with Jesus. If we truly believe that, then we will behave accordingly. If we truly believe that, we won’t show favoritism. If we truly believe that, then classism, sexism, racism, etc. should all be absent from our lives.

God is righteous and just in all His ways, but He is also merciful, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love (Psalm 145:8). If we believe that to be true, and we claim to be followers of God’s word, will and ways; we won’t just talk about compassion or wish for compassion – we will be compassionate and act compassionately. We show our faith – what we truly believe – not by what we say or write, but what we actually do. Living and active faith moves one to act and do. Without action that aligns with faith, what one calls faith is just mere agreement or mental ascent – it is not life-changing faith.

Psalms: “I love the Lord because he has heard my appeal for mercy. Because he has turned his ear to me, I will call out to him as long as I live. The ropes of death were wrapped around me, and the torments of Sheol overcame me; I encountered trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Lord, save me!” The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is compassionate.” (‭‭Psalms‬ ‭116:1-5‬ ‭CSB)

Psalm 116 is a Passover psalm typically recited or sung at the end of the Passover meal. Matthew 26:30 and Mark 14:26 tell us that after the Passover meal, Jesus and His disciples sang a hymn before they went to the Mount of Olives and the Garden of Gethsemane. It is very likely that this was the hymn that they sang. The disciples had no idea what was going to happen that night, but Jesus did. Imagine how profound it was for Jesus as He sang these words, knowing that He was about to both experience the words of this psalm and become the ultimate fulfillment of this psalm. God the Father is merciful and compassionate. He desires to save. Jesus believed that fully and acted accordingly. His faith wasn’t just talk. Jesus walked it out, knowing that God would save Him by both gracing Him for the trial ahead and raising Him from the dead to live for eternity. Jesus also knew that He was the promised salvation and the expression of God’s compassion to the world. So He knowingly went to the garden and allowed the ropes of death and the torments of Sheol to wrap around Him and overcome Him for our sakes. For those who truly have faith in Christ, should we be less willing to have our faith move us to action as we trust fully in the Lord?

Prayer: Lord, I thank You that Your word about Yourself is true, and your word, will, and ways are good, pure, holy and righteous. I believe that, and I place my faith on that. Help my faith in You and Your word, will and ways to truly transform me and move me to act according to what I believe. Help me to not just be a hearer, but a doer – motivated by living and active faith in You. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

OT: “The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by his Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. He led me all around them. There were a great many of them on the surface of the valley, and they were very dry. Then he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I replied, “Lord God, only you know.” He said to me, “Prophesy concerning these bones and say to them: Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Lord God says to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you will live. I will put tendons on you, make flesh grow on you, and cover you with skin. I will put breath in you so that you come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.” So I prophesied as I had been commanded. While I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. As I looked, tendons appeared on them, flesh grew, and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man. Say to it: This is what the Lord God says: Breath, come from the four winds and breathe into these slain so that they may live!” So I prophesied as he commanded me; the breath entered them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, a vast army. Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Look how they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.’ Therefore, prophesy and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them, my people, and lead you into the land of Israel. You will know that I am the Lord, my people, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you, and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I am the Lord. I have spoken, and I will do it. This is the declaration of the Lord.’”” (‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭37:1-14‬ ‭CSB)

In a vision, the Lord took Ezekiel to a valley full of dried bones and doubled-down on His promise that He would prove His existence and His Lordship, not through His destructive power, but His power to bring forth life. In the beginning, God established His Godship by creating the heavens and the earth from nothing – and then brought a dark, desolate and chaotic earth back to life with the power and authority of His word (Genesis 1:1-3). When there was a question about who had the authority to serve as priest before God, God caused Aaron’s years-dead and completely dried-out staff to bloom and produce mature fruit (Numbers 17:8). When the people of Israel had given up all hope and claimed that God’s promises for them were completely dead, God said, “I have the power to bring dead things back to life, and I will prove Myself to You by fulfilling My every word.”

The valley that the Lord brought Ezekiel to in the vision must have been overwhelming to Ezekiel. I imagine that the valley was the site of a great battle where an entire army was massacred by the enemy. Years had gone by since the battle, and all that remained were the dried-out white-washed-by-the-sun bones of the warriors. Despite the overwhelming site, Ezekiel still had the faith and presence of mind to not rule out and absolute creative miracle. When God asked him if he thought those bones could live again, Ezekiel wisely said, “Lord, You know.” Nothing is impossible if God says it is possible, and nothing is over until God says it is over. It was the word of God that brought forth light and life at creation, and the word of God would bring the valley to life as well. God told Ezekiel to speak to the bones and command them to hear the word of the Lord. Ezekiel heard and heeded the word of the Lord and spoke with the authority of God’s word – and as Ezekiel spoke out God’s powerful and authoritative word, God created something out of nothing and the dead, dried bones were reconstituted into a massive living and breathing army, able to accomplish God’s purposes on the earth.

NT: “My dear brothers and sisters, understand this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for human anger does not accomplish God’s righteousness. Therefore, ridding yourselves of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent, humbly receive the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like someone looking at his own face in a mirror. For he looks at himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of person he was. But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer who works — this person will be blessed in what he does. If anyone thinks he is religious without controlling his tongue, his religion is useless and he deceives himself. Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (‭‭James‬ ‭1:19-27‬ ‭CSB)

The reason why Ezekiel’s words were so authoritative, powerful and effective was because Ezekiel’s words were God’s words and not his own. Ezekiel heard God’s word, heeded God’s word, and then heralded God’s word. We must receive and submit to God’s word, apply it to our lives and allow it to have its effect on us before we start running our mouths. Instead of being quick to speak our mind, spout our opinions, or brag about how religious we are, James tells us that need to be quick to hear, listen, receive, apply and obey the word of the Lord instead. Getting angry and mouthing off does not accomplish God’s righteousness. Ridding yourself of the vitriol, profanity and evil of the world by allowing God’s word to have its needed effect on your life accomplishes righteousness in you – which equips you to then accomplish God’s righteousness in the world. Bragging about how religious or virtuous you are accomplishes nothing good. Religion has actually become a negative word in recent years, primarily because of people who claim to be religious but don’t truly act according to the character of God. Religion actually means putting into practice the things that you believe. Pure and undefiled religion involves actually doing the things that are on God’s heart to do. God’s words are the words of life – and they will bring life to us and enable us to bring life to others if we not only hear them, but apply them and do them in faith.

Prayer: Lord, I thank You for the life-giving power of Your word. My words only have life when they are in line with and echo Your word. Help me to be quick to hear and heed and slow to spout off, without first allowing Your word to create life in me and rinse me of all evil and lifelessness. May the words that I speak and write be an overflow of the life of Christ at work in me, and not empty words of my own opinions and self-righteous imaginations. Empower my words with life as I submit to Your words in faith. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

OT: ““Therefore, say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord God says: It is not for your sake that I will act, house of Israel, but for my holy name, which you profaned among the nations where you went. I will honor the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations — the name you have profaned among them. The nations will know that I am the Lord  — this is the declaration of the Lord God  — when I demonstrate my holiness through you in their sight. “‘For I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries, and will bring you into your own land. I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will place my Spirit within you and cause you to follow my statutes and carefully observe my ordinances. You will live in the land that I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God.” (‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭36:22-28‬ ‭CSB)

Over the years, the nation of Israel turned away from trusting the Lord God to trusting in just about everything but God. They placed their trust in idols, they placed their trust in other nations. Their rejection of God defiled the land and profaned the name of the Lord. As a result, God brought judgement on the nation and the people of Israel were carried off into exile. Even in exile, the people of Israel did not turn from their sin and continued to profane God’s name in the nations where they were held captive. The Hebrew word for profane means to dishonor, treat as common, defile and desecrate. Israel’s call was to honor the name of the Lord throughout the earth and bring the nations to Him. They were doing the exact opposite. Despite Israel’s failure and seeming inability to honor God, God would see to it that His name be honored among the nations.

Usually, when someone wants glory, they earn it through defeating those who demean them… by showing their overwhelming destructive power. Even now, nations hold military parades to boast of their power to destroy and annihilate anyone who stands in their way. God, however, said that He would bring honor to His name, not by destroying, but by showing mercy and grace – not by annihilating, but by redeeming and restoring. God would bring glory to His name and display His holiness to the nations by bringing a desecrated, defiled, and otherwise dead people back to life. He would completely cleanse them, give them a new heart and spirit, fill them with His life, and give them the ability to follow His statutes, observe His ordinances and live the life He had called them to live. Then, as His redeemed people lived impossible lives of holiness by His grace, He would be glorified and honored throughout the world.

NT: “Blessed is the one who endures trials, because when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. No one undergoing a trial should say, “I am being tempted by God,” since God is not tempted by evil, and he himself doesn’t tempt anyone. But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desire. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death. Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. By his own choice, he gave us birth by the word of truth so that we would be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.” (‭‭James‬ ‭1:12-18‬ ‭CSB)

The crown of life is given to those who come to faith in Christ and remain faithful to Christ until the end. Along the way, there will be trials that will test your faith and tempt you to trust anyone and anything but God. It is those who endure in faith that will be blessed. That being said, it is important to understand that God is not trying to cause people to fall out of faith. God is not the one sending temptations. God desires to keep us in Him and see us remain faithful to the end. The enemy of our soul is the one who wants to see us fail. He is the one who places temptations in our way. The devil knows our weaknesses and does all to draw us away by our desires – away from trust and obedience in God and into sin, which eventually leads to death. God is not the author of temptation. God is the source of grace. God is not the lord of darkness. God is the Father of Lights. God does not create evil. God only gives what is good. As the source of all good things, it was God who gave us new birth… who gave us salvation and redemption from sin… who made a way for us to be made righteous through faith in His Son… who graces us with every good spiritual gift so that we can withstand every temptation and endure every trial to the end. Our failures do not bring God glory. It is as we walk in the salvation that He provided and in the grace that He supplies by faith that His name is glorified in the earth. Let us then fully receive all that He has for us and submit to His ways which lead us out of temptation and into life.

Psalms: “Not to us, Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory because of your faithful love, because of your truth. Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?” Our God is in heaven and does whatever he pleases. Their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. They have mouths but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. They have ears but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell. They have hands but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk. They cannot make a sound with their throats. Those who make them are just like them, as are all who trust in them. Israel, trust in the Lord! He is their help and shield. House of Aaron, trust in the Lord! He is their help and shield.” (‭‭Psalms‬ ‭115:1-10‬ ‭CSB)

As we refuse to place our trust in idols (whatever or whomever those idols may be) and place the fullness of our trust in the Lord God and His Son Jesus Christ, we bring honor and glory to His name among all the nations of the earth. Why should the unbelieving peoples of the world doubt the existence of God due to our lack of faith? Instead, let us as the redeemed people of God, place the fullness of our faith in Him and cause His name to be glorified throughout the world once again.

Prayer: Lord, I thank You that You bring glory to Your name, not through destruction, but through everlasting life and light. Thank You that every good and perfect gift comes from You and is available in You by faith. Help me to walk, not in my own way and according to my desires, but in the fullness of the grace and life You provide to me, that above all, Your name would be glorified and praised. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

NT: “Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing. Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God — who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly — and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith without doubting. For the doubter is like the surging sea, driven and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord, being double-minded and unstable in all his ways.” (‭‭James‬ ‭1:2-8‬ ‭CSB)

Tradition holds that the book of James was written by James the brother of Jesus. James was apparently an unbeliever during Jesus’ years of ministry, but most likely became a believer after Christ appeared to him post-resurrection. He then became a leader in the church and was a key member of the Jerusalem council as recorded in Acts 15. The epistle of James is a very practical letter calling believers to have a walk of life that demonstrates their profession of faith. It is not enough to say you have faith. The mature believer in Christ needs to apply that faith to every area of their life and live in an ethical and intentional way that demonstrates practically the faith they claim to have.

Early in the life of the church, strong persecution came to those Jewish Christians that were living in Jerusalem and Judea. That persecution caused those Jewish Christians to be disbursed throughout the region, and eventually the known world, taking the gospel of the kingdom with them. This epistle is written to Jewish Christians of the diaspora who were likely experiencing trials and persecution in the parts of the world where they settled. James’ first direction of how to practically apply faith to life was regarding the trials and persecution they were facing. James challenged those believers to not run away from trials in fear, but to embrace those trials in faith. Instead of moaning and complaining about the trials, consider them great joy – not because the trials are enjoyable, but because of what those trials produce in your life when you embrace them in faith. Trials and persecution test your faith to see if you truly believe what you say you believe. The testing of faith produces endurance, steadfastness, perseverance and constancy. The end product of increased endurance is completeness, wholeness and maturity of faith and walk.

James went on to say that if, in the midst of the persecution and trials, you need wisdom in order to persevere and overcome, then ask God for it. That is another practical application of faith. I have known of many people who say they believe that God will give them wisdom, but they never act on that belief and actually ask God in faith. God has abundant wisdom to share and will give it willingly and liberally, provided we ask for it in faith without doubting. The word doubting has to do with having divided loyalties or wrestling within yourself. If we truly apply our faith to our need for wisdom, and ask God out of the settled confidence that comes from believing His word, then He will generously and unreservedly give us the wisdom that we need in the moment. However, if our faith is just talk and not genuine – if we are divided within ourselves whether God is true to His word, and we struggle to ask with doubt – it is doubtful that we will receive what only faith can open the door to. For faith to be effective in our lives, it needs to be active, applied and acted upon.

Proverbs: “Don’t gloat when your enemy falls, and don’t let your heart rejoice when he stumbles, or the Lord will see, be displeased, and turn his wrath away from him. Don’t be agitated by evildoers, and don’t envy the wicked. For the evil have no future; the lamp of the wicked will be put out.” (‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭24:17-20‬ ‭CSB)

While we are to consider our trials a great joy, we are not to rejoice in the demise of our enemies. It seems in recent days – at least here in the United States, with our highly divided political climate – that these words of wisdom have fallen on deaf ears.  God does not delight in the demise of people – even those who stand against Him, and neither should we. Though justice is deserved, it should never be a joyous thing. It is definitely good to be thankful and to give God praise for His justice, but to celebrate the fall of someone, even your enemies, is not godly. God calls us to love and forgive our enemies and leave the justice and retribution to Him… and when wickedness receives it’s due, we thank and praise God for his justice while, at the same time, we grieve the loss of a human soul to our ultimate enemy.

Prayer: Lord, though trials are never pleasant, I thank You for what you are able to accomplish through them as I live out my life in active, living faith. Help me to confidently put my faith in You and align my actions with that faith, so that I may experience all the benefits and blessings You want to work in me and through me. And help me to truly love and forgive those who stand and scheme against me as I actively place my faith in You. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

OT: ““Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy, and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says to the shepherds: Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who have been feeding themselves! Shouldn’t the shepherds feed their flock? You eat the fat, wear the wool, and butcher the fattened animals, but you do not tend the flock. You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bandaged the injured, brought back the strays, or sought the lost. Instead, you have ruled them with violence and cruelty. They were scattered for lack of a shepherd; they became food for all the wild animals when they were scattered. My flock went astray on all the mountains and every high hill. My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and there was no one searching or seeking for them. “‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord. As I live — this is the declaration of the Lord God  — because my flock, lacking a shepherd, has become prey and food for every wild animal, and because my shepherds do not search for my flock, and because the shepherds feed themselves rather than my flock, therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord! “‘This is what the Lord God says: Look, I am against the shepherds. I will demand my flock from them and prevent them from shepherding the flock. The shepherds will no longer feed themselves, for I will rescue my flock from their mouths so that they will not be food for them… I will save my flock. They will no longer be prey, and I will judge between one sheep and another. I will establish over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will shepherd them. He will tend them himself and will be their shepherd. I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David will be a prince among them. I, the Lord, have spoken.” (‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭34:2-10, 22-24‬ ‭CSB)

The shepherds of Israel that Ezekiel spoke to were not the literal shepherds in the land, but were the kings and leaders of Israel. The flock that Ezekiel referred to was Israel. The Lord God had charges against the leaders of Israel and He used Ezekiel to address them. The responsibility of shepherds is to care for, protect, lead and feed the flock they oversee. The leaders of Israel had completely failed in their responsibility. Instead of caring for their flock, they were abusing and exploiting it. They were, in a figurative sense, milking the sheep for food and drink, fleecing the sheep for wool clothing, and butchering the sheep for meat, but were doing noting to care for and protect the sheep. Where good shepherds lead their flock to green pastures and still waters, the leaders of Israel led their flock away from the life-giving sustenance of trust in the Lord and led them to worship lifeless idols. Where good shepherds are to tend to the sick and mend the wounds of the injured, the leaders of Israel butted the weak and needy out of the flock and left them for dead. Because of their complete lack of leadership, the flock of Israel was scattered throughout the nations of the world without any shepherd to guide them back to safety.

In response to the leaders’ abuse, exploitation, and complete dereliction of duties, the Lord said the He was against the shepherds – and that He Himself would rescue His flock and establish a Good Shepherd over them. In John 10:11-17, Jesus, the Son of David, declared that He was the Good Shepherd. He cares for the sheep and laid His life down for their sakes. Not only is He the Good Shepherd of the flock of Israel, He said that He also had other sheep (Gentile believers) from another pen that He would bring together into one flock under His Lordship and the Godship of the Father. Christ has laid down His life for the sheep and has saved them from the hand of the enemy who seeks to steal, kill and destroy. He has provided, through His death and resurrection, a way to life in abundance. Now, in this age, The Good Shepherd is gathering His flock and calling to all who will hear and listen to His voice and heed His call.

NT: “Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account, so that they can do this with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you. Now may the God of peace, who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus — the great Shepherd of the sheep  — through the blood of the everlasting covenant, equip you with everything good to do his will, working in us what is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” (‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13:17, 20-21‬ ‭CSB)

While there are plenty of examples of bad leaders in the world, and unfortunately, in the church, there are also plenty of good leaders who (like Jesus) lay their lives down for their flock. Christ is, as the Lord spoke through Ezekiel, the One Shepherd of His flock. However, He has appointed under-shepherds to provide the leadership, care and feeding of His flock here on earth. Before Jesus ascended into heaven to rule with the Father, He charged Peter to shepherd and feed His flock (John 21:15-17). In Ephesians 4:11-13, Paul explained that Christ has appointed some to be apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to equip the saints and build up the body of Christ. There are good leaders in the church who are submitted to the One Great Shepherd as they lead under His authority. We are charged to submit to them (just as we submit to Christ) so that they are able to care for us on behalf of Christ. And Christ Himself holds them directly accountable for how they handle their positions of leadership and authority. As we come under and submit to Christ’s structure of care and leadership, ultimately coming under and submitting to Him, we position ourselves to be equipped with everything we need to do His will and work in a way that is pleasing to Him.

Psalms: “Hallelujah! Give praise, servants of the Lord; praise the name of the Lord. Let the name of the Lord be blessed both now and forever. From the rising of the sun to its setting, let the name of the Lord be praised.” (‭‭Psalms‬ ‭113:1-3‬ ‭CSB)

Hallelujah!! Praise the Lord!! Our God and our Lord Jesus Christ are worthy of our praise and honor. For all that He has done for us and the goodness that He constantly shows us, may we praise His name at sunup, sundown, and every time in between – now and forever. Hallelujah!! Praise the Lord!!

Prayer: Lord, I thank You that You are my Good and Great Shepherd. I thank You that You see to it that I am cared for, protected, fed and lead. I thank You for the godly leaders that You have placed me under, that have done much to grow me into a mature disciple. I thank You, that if I inadvertently come under bad leadership, You will still lead, protect, feed and care for me. At whatever level You call me to shepherd others, help me to shepherd them as You shepherd me. And help me, as I submit to You in faith, to also submit to those You have placed over me as we are all equipped to do Your will and see Your kingdom come. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

OT: ““As for you, son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. When you hear a word from my mouth, give them a warning from me. If I say to the wicked, ‘Wicked one, you will surely die,’ but you do not speak out to warn him about his way, that wicked person will die for his iniquity, yet I will hold you responsible for his blood. But if you warn a wicked person to turn from his way and he doesn’t turn from it, he will die for his iniquity, but you will have rescued yourself… Tell them, ‘As I live — this is the declaration of the Lord God  — I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked person should turn from his way and live. Repent, repent of your evil ways! Why will you die, house of Israel?’ “Now, son of man, say to your people, ‘The righteousness of the righteous person will not save him on the day of his transgression; neither will the wickedness of the wicked person cause him to stumble on the day he turns from his wickedness. The righteous person won’t be able to survive by his righteousness on the day he sins. When I tell the righteous person that he will surely live, but he trusts in his righteousness and acts unjustly, then none of his righteousness will be remembered, and he will die because of the injustice he has committed. “‘So when I tell the wicked person, “You will surely die,” but he repents of his sin and does what is just and right —  he returns collateral, makes restitution for what he has stolen, and walks in the statutes of life without committing injustice — he will certainly live; he will not die. None of the sins he committed will be held against him. He has done what is just and right; he will certainly live… “As for you, son of man, your people are talking about you near the city walls and in the doorways of their houses. One person speaks to another, each saying to his brother, ‘Come and hear what the message is that comes from the Lord!’ So my people come to you in crowds, sit in front of you, and hear your words, but they don’t obey them. Their mouths go on passionately, but their hearts pursue dishonest profit. Yes, to them you are like a singer of passionate songs who has a beautiful voice and plays skillfully on an instrument. They hear your words, but they don’t obey them. Yet when all this comes true  — and it definitely will — then they will know that a prophet has been among them.”” (‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭33:7-9, 11-16, 30-33‬ ‭CSB)

God called Ezekiel to be a watchman for the nation of Israel. The job of the watchman was to sit atop the wall surrounding the city and keep watch for approaching enemies. If the watchman saw an enemy approaching, it was his responsibility to warn the city of the impending danger. The watchman’s job was to sound the warning so that those in the city could escape. He wasn’t responsible for actually saving the people – just warning them. That was God’s expectation of Ezekiel – sounding the warning of impending judgement so that all could hear and respond. Ezekiel wasn’t responsible for the response to his warning. He was only responsible to faithfully give it. If Ezekiel was faithful to warn the people, and the people ignored his warning, Ezekiel was not held responsible. However, if Ezekiel did not diligently warn the people of God’s coming judgement, the people’s demise would be on his head.

What was the message that Ezekiel was to deliver? In short, his message was repent and be saved. God takes no pleasure in seeing people meet their just demise. It is God’s desire that people repent from their wickedness so that God can show them mercy and grant them salvation. Ezekiel’s message to the people was that righteous works were not enough. They needed to truly repent and return fully to God. We have a tendency to treat salvation like a pair of scales. On one side of the scales are our righteous works, and on the other side of the scales are our sinful deeds. We think that as long as the righteous side of the scales is heavier than the sinful side, we will be saved. That is our idea of fairness, but that is not how holiness and righteousness before God works. Any unconfessed and unrepented of sin stains our life and disqualifies us from righteousness and holiness. We can’t trust our righteous works to save us. We must repent from all sin and turn to God. When we do that, God is faithful and just to forgive our sin and make us righteous through faith.

That is the message that Ezekiel faithfully gave to the people of Israel… and he drew a crowd as he proclaimed God’s word. But the people came to be entertained instead of convicted. Ezekiel was faithful in his role as watchman, but the people ignored his warning. Because of that, God’s judgement came and the nation met its demise. Ezekiel was not held responsible for the lack of response, only that he clearly communicated the message.

In a way, Christ has called His disciples to be watchmen. We are called to clearly communicate the gospel of the kingdom – that forgiveness and salvation, righteousness and reconciliation can be found through faith in Jesus Christ. We aren’t the ones that do the saving – we are the ones that do the warning and the proclaiming. We aren’t held responsible for people’s response to the gospel. We are held responsible for proclaiming and demonstrating the message of the gospel, clearly so that all can understand. Are we, like Ezekiel, being faithful watchmen despite the response?

Psalms: “Light shines in the darkness for the upright. He is gracious, compassionate, and righteous. Good will come to the one who lends generously and conducts his business fairly. He will never be shaken. The righteous one will be remembered forever. He will not fear bad news; his heart is confident, trusting in the Lord. His heart is assured; he will not fear. In the end he will look in triumph on his foes.” (‭‭Psalms‬ ‭112:4-8‬ ‭CSB)

We know through the scriptures that righteousness is granted by faith – namely faith in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The message of Jesus and the message of the apostles was repent and believe. Sin comes out of a life through a repentant heart by way of the mouth as we confess and repent. It is the goodness of God that leads us to repentance and it is by faith in the word of God that we know of God’s goodness. When we place our faith fully on Christ and repent from our sin, God by His Holy Spirit declares us righteous and makes us new and holy creatures. We are also reconciled to God and our life-giving relationship with Him is restored. It is as righteous, reconciled and fully restored people that we can walk in the confidence described by the psalmist. Had the Jewish people responded to Ezekiel’s warnings and repented of their wicked ways, they would have been saved and their peace and assurance in the Lord would have been restored. For those who have not responded to the gospel, will you keep ignoring the word of the Lord, or will you repent and believe. For those who have responded and become followers of Christ, are you faithfully proclaiming the good news and bringing light to those in darkness?

Prayer: Lord, I thank You for Your mercy and grace – that by Your mercy and grace, You forgave all my unrighteousness and made me righteous as I repented and placed my faith in You. Help me now to be a faithful bearer of Your good news. Help me to not become discouraged by people’s lack of response but to be faithful to proclaim the good news of the kingdom to those who haven’t heard, and to teach the ways of the kingdom to those who want to know more. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

NT: “See to it that you do not reject the one who speaks. For if they did not escape when they rejected him who warned them on earth, even less will we if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven. His voice shook the earth at that time, but now he has promised, Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens. This expression, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of what can be shaken  — that is, created things — so that what is not shaken might remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful. By it, we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.” (‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12:25-29‬ ‭CSB)

When God descended onto Mount Sinai, His glory consumed the entire mountain, His voice reverberated across the sky like thunder, and Mount Sinai quaked to its core with the weight of God’s glory and the power of His words. Understandably, the people were awestruck and scared to death. Yet, despite the awe and terror they experienced that day, eventually they ignored and rejected God’s words. Because of that, God eventually brought His judgement on those people and the nation. If God brought judgement to those who ignored the words that came from Mount Sinai and broke His first covenant, How much more will He bring judgement on those who ignore the words that proceed from the heavenly Mount Zion and become unfaithful to the covenant sealed in His Son’s blood?

Just as Mount Sinai quaked under the weight and power of God’s glory, eventually everything that is not of God will be shaken and destroyed – to the point that all that remains are things that are of God’s unshakable kingdom. The stuff of earth will eventually pass away or be consumed by God’s consuming fire of glory. That is why Jesus taught us to store up riches in heaven and not be consumed with the riches of this earth (Matthew 6:19-21). That is also why Paul taught (in 1 Corinthians 3:11-15) to build your life on Christ and solid doctrine, and to build on that foundation with things that will not get incinerated in the fire. When we heed God’s word, follow His ways, and submit to His will in faith, our lives will be built on and with kingdom things and will withstand the shaking and the fire. When we choose to ignore God’s word, follow our way or the ways of the world, and pursue our own will, we will have a life founded on and made up of the shakable and corrupted stuff of earth… and at the end of our life, we will be empty-handed and wanting. As Rich Mullins alluded to in his song, “If I Stand,” don’t allow the stuff of earth to compete for the allegiance owed only to the Giver of all good things. Give yourself fully to the things of God and of His Christ and become unshakable.

Psalms: “Hallelujah! Happy is the person who fears the Lord, taking great delight in his commands. His descendants will be powerful in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever.” (‭‭Psalms‬ ‭112:1-3‬ ‭CSB)

Psalm 111 and 112 are both acrostic poems that extol the benefits of heeding God’s word, following His ways, and submitting to His will in faith. That is what it means to fear the Lord – to give honor, respect and reverence to God’s name and His word, will and ways. Those who heed God’s word, follow His ways, submit to His will and honor His covenant will experience the life-giving blessing of the Lord, not just in this life, but forever.

Prayer: Lord, I thank You that Your kingdom is unshakable, and that as I pursue first Your kingdom and Your righteousness, You will make me unshakable in the process. The more I devote myself to kingdom pursuits, the less of a hold the world will have on me. May my life be founded on You. May my riches be primarily heavenly treasures. May my life be built with godly things as I listen to Your word and keep my eyes on You in faith. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

NT: “Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every hindrance and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy that lay before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against himself, so that you won’t grow weary and give up. In struggling against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: My son, do not take the Lord’s discipline lightly or lose heart when you are reproved by him, for the Lord disciplines the one he loves and punishes every son he receives. Endure suffering as discipline: God is dealing with you as sons. For what son is there that a father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline — which all receive  — then you are illegitimate children and not sons… No discipline seems enjoyable at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” (‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12:1-8, 11‬ ‭CSB)

For a 10-year period, I was a very avid runner, until a chronic injury forced me to stop. I was not a sprinter – I was a long-distance runner, logging anywhere from 3 – 21 miles on a run. I even ran a couple of marathons. In one particular race, I was a member of a relay team. The relay race ran from the Southeast border of a county in my area to the Northwest border of the county – a total distance of about 53 miles. I was selected to run the starting leg and the anchor leg of the relay. Early that morning, I ran the first 5 miles of the race, and then spent the rest of that day cheering on the rest of my team, until I had the opportunity to run the final couple of miles to the finish, with all of my teammates running along side me. That is the picture that the writer of Hebrews gives in this well-known passage. Those heroes of the faith that were described in chapter 11 are all people that ran legs in this great relay of redemption. Countless scores of faith-filled believers have finished their leg of the race and have now passed the baton on to us in this generation. As we run, they stand in the heavenly grandstands and cheer us on. Thousands of years of prophetic promise have been placed in our hands and it is time for us to run our leg of the race. Will we finish our leg well, or will we give up and stop running?

What can we do to run our race well? First, we need to shed every hindrance and sin that ensnares us and prevents us from running. The Greek word for ‘hindrance’ refers to bulk, burdens, weight, and encumbrances. Runners, before they run a race, try and shed as much weight as possible. They shed body weight, they wear as little clothing as possible, they wear light-weight shoes… anything that would cause them to expend extra energy and run inefficiently gets left behind. Paul wrote in Philippians 3 that he forgot what was behind and reached forward to what was ahead to pursue as his goal of winning the prize promised by God through Christ. What things are weighing us down and preventing us from moving forward? Sin is not only a weight, but it will also disqualify us from the race. In 1 Corinthians 9, Paul wrote that he disciplined his body and exercised self-control so that he would not be disqualified. The way that we get rid of sin is through confession, repentance and faith in Christ. So… we need to take off our burdens, get rid of our sin… and we need to keep our eyes on Jesus who is the pioneer and perfecter, the founder and completer, and the author and finisher of our faith. He ran the race that we are running, perfectly and successfully. He began shaping us into runners when we came to faith in Him… and He will continue shaping us as we keep our eyes on Him in faith. Finally, we need to embrace discipline and not run away from it.

When my son began high school, he wanted to join the cross country team. Apparently, all those years of seeing me run rubbed off on him. The only problem was, he wasn’t a fast runner. He was very dedicated, but not fast. In fact he was the slowest boy on the team. His freshman year, he ran on the JV team and was not very competitive – but he wanted to be. When all the other runners were finding a way to skimp on the drills, he did everything the coach asked him to do… and he improved. During his Junior year, he got a new coach… and she was tough. She pushed everyone on the team and most of the team members pushed back – but not my son. He embraced the painful discipline and even thanked the coach for pushing him so hard. That year, he made the varsity team and kept improving. By the time he entered his senior year, he was consistently among the top three runners in his school. The Lord disciplines those He loves – not because He hates us or is angry at us, but because He wants to perfect us. If we stay in the race, keep our eyes on Jesus, and embrace the Lord’s discipline, He will perfect our faith and we will cross our finish line well and receive the prize that God has promised us. And one day, at the end of the age, we will run that last leg of the race with Christ – and all those who have gone before us – and celebrate our victory together in a great feast.

Psalms: “Hallelujah! I will praise the Lord with all my heart in the assembly of the upright and in the congregation. The Lord’s works are great, studied by all who delight in them. All that he does is splendid and majestic; his righteousness endures forever. He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered. The Lord is gracious and compassionate.” (‭Psalms‬ ‭111:1-4‬ ‭CSB)

Oh the goodness, faithfulness, righteousness, mercy and grace of the Lord God! The Lord’s works are great… including the work that He does in us if we open ourselves to it. The Lord is worthy of praise. Hallelujah!!

Prayer: Lord, first of all – thank You for the privilege of representing You and Your kingdom as I run this race You have called me to run. I also thank You that I have You as my encouragement, my example, and my perfecter. Give me the grace to stay in the race and not run away from the discipline you have for me, for Your discipline is not to destroy me but to perfect me in Your image. I choose lay aside the weight and sin and ever look to You by faith. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

NT: “And what more can I say? Time is too short for me to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the raging of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, gained strength in weakness, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight. Women received their dead, raised to life again. Other people were tortured, not accepting release, so that they might gain a better resurrection. Others experienced mockings and scourgings, as well as bonds and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawed in two, they died by the sword, they wandered about in sheepskins, in goatskins, destitute, afflicted, and mistreated. The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and on mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. All these were approved through their faith, but they did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, so that they would not be made perfect without us.” (‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭11:32-40‬ ‭CSB)

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines hero as a person who is admired for great or brave acts. Heroism is conduct that is exhibited in fulfilling a high purpose or attaining a noble end. All of the men listed in this list were far from perfect. They all had failings and were flawed, yet for at least one point in their life, to some degree, they had faith in God which inspired and motivated acts of heroism. Throughout the biblical narrative there are countless men and women… normal, sometimes mediocre and very flawed men and women… who were full of faith in the word of God and the God of the word, and set their purposes aside to fulfill the higher purposes of God. By faith they became Heroes. By faith they defeated oppressors. By faith they emboldened armies. By faith the conquered nations. By faith they were unsinged in the fiery furnace. By faith they survived a pit of ravenous lions. By faith, sick people were made whole and dead children were raised to life again. All of those amazing victories were won by faith in the God who can do the impossible.

While we are quick to name victorious warriors and miracle workers heroes, there is another type of hero that often goes unmentioned: those who suffer greatly and die for a higher purpose. Faith doesn’t always guarantee a glorious victory or miraculous outcome here on earth. Many times, the result of faith is grace to endure the most unthinkable horrors with a peace that passes all understanding. Around the world, even to this day, men and women are imprisoned, enslaved, tortured and killed for their faith. Did they miss out on a glorious victory or a miraculous deliverance because of a lack of faith? Hardly. It seems to me that it takes more faith to endure than it does to win a victory or experience a “miracle.” I put miracle in quotes, because many times the greater miracle is the grace to endure persecution and still glorify God. Are those people who suffer and die any less of a hero than those who defeat enemies and are healed from diseases? The Apostle Paul was stoned, beaten, imprisoned and eventually beheaded. Was he lacking in faith? Was he lacking in heroism? Just as those nameless heroes mentioned by the writer of Hebrews, Paul endured and became very much a hero by faith. Tertullian, a second century church father, once said, “the blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church.” People who endure great suffering and willingly lay their lives down for the greater purpose of God’s glory are heroes, and are approved by God through their faith. And though they may not see the complete fulfillment of God’s promises in their lifetime, they will experience fulfillment in eternity.

Prayer: Lord, I thank You that by grace through faith in You, the ordinary can do and become extraordinary. Help me to become, to whatever degree you call me, extraordinary by grace though faith. Help me to not become overwhelmed by what seems insurmountable, but to allow You to be glorified in and through me by faith in You and Your word. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.