“Then Son of man, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first. Listen to them carefully for yourself. Then go to your people in exile and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says!’ Do this whether they listen to you or not.” (Ezekiel 3:10-11, NLT).
In this commissioning of Ezekiel for God’s service, there are two points that are relevant for disciples of Jesus.
“The Lord gave this message to Ezekiel son of Buzi, a priest, beside the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians, and he felt the hand of the Lord take hold of him” (Ezekiel 1:3, NLT).
The word of the Lord first came to Ezekiel while he was living with the Judean exiles in Babylon.
Ezekiel was a priest by descent and, as such, his primary ministry was offering sacrifices in the Temple in Jerusalem. As one of the exiled Jews, Ezekiel was unable to serve as a priest in the usual ways.
“For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus.” (2 Timothy 1:9, NLT).
When God saved you, He didn’t do it because you deserved it but because your salvation was always His plan. God’s purpose for His creation has always been determined and redemption is the way He mediates His plan.
“Who can command things to happen without the Lord’s permission? Does not the Most High send both calamity and good? Then why should we, mere humans, complain when we are punished for our sins? Instead, let us test and examine our ways. Let us turn back to the Lord. Let us lift our hearts and hands to God in heaven and say, We have sinned and rebelled, and you have not forgiven us” (Lamentations 3:37-42, NLT).
The book of Lamentations is attributed to the prophet Jeremiah. The context for the book is the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC.
“When the king heard what was written in the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes in despair” (2 Kings 22:11, NLT).
Have you ever tried to assemble something without reading the instructions? Maybe you started putting it together and one part was backwards or upside down and it prevented you from assembling the rest of the parts. Or maybe you assembled it all and had parts left over and it didn’t work right.
“Instruct them to do what is good, to be rich in goods works, to be generous, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good reserve for the age to come so that they may take hold of life that is real” (1 Timothy 6:18-19, HCSB).
In Part 1 of this meditation Paul instructed Timothy to train himself in godliness in this present life in order to prepare for eternal life. In Part 2 Paul told Timothy to fight for his faith and start living the lifestyle of eternal life in the present.
In these verses Paul alludes to Jesus’ admonition from the Sermon on the Mount to store up treasures in heaven: “Don’t collect for yourselves treasures on earth… But collect for yourselves treasures in heaven… For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).
“But you, man of God, run from these things, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight for the faith; take hold of eternal life that you were called to and have made a good confession about in the presence of many witnesses” (1 Timothy 6:11-12, HCSB).
In Part 1 of this meditation Paul instructed Timothy to use this present life as an opportunity to prepare for eternity with God by becoming more like God. To accomplish this, Paul told Timothy to train himself in godliness through disciplined, rigorous practice in personal devotion and service to God.
Now Paul tells Timothy that he should fight for the faith and take hold of eternal life!
“Train yourself in godliness for the training of the body has a limited benefit, but godliness is beneficial in every way, since it holds promise for the present life and for the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:7-8, HCSB).
In this verse the Apostle Paul is explaining to his protege, Timothy, that we live our present life in preparation for eternity. Paul says that we should live our lives in anticipation of eternal life!
“And I have been chosen as a preacher and apostle to teach the Gentiles this message about faith and truth. I’m not exaggerating—just telling the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:7, NLT).
The Apostle Paul was certain about his calling from God and the message he was supposed to teach and preach.
Paul understood that all his efforts were a part of God’s plans and purposes and so he did it because God called him.
“God our Savior…wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and humanity, Christ Jesus, Himself human, who gave Himself–a ransom for all, a testimony at the proper time.” (1 Timothy 2:3-6, NLT).
If you are one of those laconic people who likes things stated simply, concisely, and succinctly, then you definitely like this summation of the gospel written by the Apostle Paul in his first letter to Timothy.
Steve's Bible Meditations 