Article for June 16, 2024
Ezekiel 17:22 22Thus says the Lord God: “I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and will set it out. I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I myself will plant it on a high and lofty mountain.
This would be the stem of Jesse, the offspring of David, Jesus Christ. The cedar is Israel, the topmost twigs are from the line of Jesse, and the tender one is Jesus Christ. Jesus will be the king of the Jews those whom God the Father chose from of old. It will be Jesus who takes the throne, and He will rule us to life.
Ezekiel 17:23 23On the mountain height of Israel will I plant it, that it may bear branches and produce fruit and become a noble cedar. And under it will dwell every kind of bird; in the shade of its branches birds of every sort will nest.
Jesus will lead the people of God. As Jesus grows, He will branch out. First through His Apostles, and then through His disciples. And as the branches grow the fruit of the spirit will reach out and produce the fruit of salvation. And Jesus will provide the shelter for all nations to live under, and we will build our shelters under the protection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Ezekiel 17:24 24And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the Lord; I bring low the high tree, and make high the low tree, dry up the green tree, and make the dry tree flourish. I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it.”
Remember, Jesus is the true Lord. The haughty will be brought down, and the humble Jesus will exalt. Those who think they are richer for what they own will lose all and those who are poor for what they have, Jesus will give them an abundance. And Jesus will do it!
2 Corinthians 5:1–3 1We know that if the tent, which is our earthly home, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, 3if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked.
We are naked in that we are exposed as sinners walking around in the flesh. We are none complete for we have not yet obtained our heavenly clothing, the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
Our groaning is brought on by our sin. Though most want to blame others for their iniquities, suffering, strife, and conflicts, we have no one to blame except ourselves. We make the choice to sin, not someone else.
We choose what will make us angry and how we will handle what comes our way. Maybe you might disagree with this statement. However, we either have control of our feelings or we choose to give control of our feelings to others. Either way we should all yearn to be clothed in the righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ. This clothing blots out our sinful nature and makes us appear righteous to our God.
2 Corinthians 5:4–5 4For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
It is normal to moan and groan when you are suffering. Whether we are suffering from an illness, injury, or the consequences of our sins we will moan and groan. Some more loudly than others, and some will show anger, crying, and even blaming others to try to ease or justify their pains.
What I like about these verses is that they show us a remedy for our sinfulness by being clothed in Christs righteousness as Christ is the life. Like a magic cloak our sinful nature will be swallowed up and not be a nature of ours ever again. However, this is what we wait for as we continue to fight the good fight and run the good race.
2 Corinthians 5:6–9 6So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, 7for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.
We should always look toward our savior and regain our courage to continue walking on the path set by our Lord Jesus Christ to follow. Fight the good fight and run the god race, but always keep your eyes on Jesus as He shows us the way. Be of good courage because Jesus will catch us when we fall or go astray. Remember Jesus is the good shepherd and will always bring us back to the ninety-nine.
2 Corinthians 5:10–11 10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. 11Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience.
Jesus expects us to have honestly examined ourselves and know we did not earn our way into heaven or eternal life. When asked why you should go to heaven, we should know the answer is Jesus. Jesus died on the cross for our sins so we can have entry into heaven and eternal life.
We should believe that Jesus is our salvation. Our conscience will tell us we did not earn or that we deserve to be allowed to live forever. So, we should remember that Jesus crucified guarantees our way to everlasting life.
2 Corinthians 5:14–15,17 14For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
So let the Holy Spirit, lead you to live for Jesus as He died for you. We are a new creation; we are the true children of God. And God is our true heavenly Father who loves us to life.
Amen.
Written by Pastor Curtis May
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