Tag: Holiness

LEPROSY AND UNCLEAN: LEVITICUS 13

by theparacleteshammer, posted in Biblical Studies/Exegesis, Uncategorized

“Unclean” in the Torah…a curious phrase. I am reading abot leprosy in Leviticus 13, and I think about the ways in which this word is use in the text.

We come to this word and we immediately think, “not clean”, or “dirty”, and as a result of that, we might go to “I am not good enough to appear in the presence of the L-rd”, and then leap to “I must not be good enough for the King’s presence.”

However, I do not think this train of thought fully encapsulates what the L-rd is trying to convey here. I do not think that our swiftness to leap to G-d’s rejection of us because of imperfections is really the right way to go about this.

Whenever I read a passage in Scripture as a pastor and a teacher, I start with the premises that G-d is good, G-d is love, RIghteousness and Justice are the foundations of His place of rule, and G-d desires a personal relationship and interaction with each of us.

That informs my reading, especially of things like unclean, which might tempt us to adjudicate G-d as unjust or unfair or somehow not right or mean-spirited. And thus we are left ot a place of futility. I do not think that is a helpful way of looking at Torah, and while Andy Stanley talked about unhitching our faith from the Tanakh/Old Testament….

I think a more appropriate place to go would be to unhitch our faith from sloppy, abridged, or merciless INTERPRETATIONS of the Tanakh/Old Testament that lead us to quickly pass judgment of the L-rd.

I do not believe “unclean” was used here to simply convey “dirty”, or “can’t come into G-d’s presence”, or “not good enough”, leading us to say G-d is mean or what-not.

And lest someone accuse me of attempting to negate the idea that “your sins have seperated you from G-d”, that is not what I am saying here. G-d is holy, but our idea of holiness often looks something like “free from sin”, rather than “weaving together principles to produce change”.

I think that “unclean” frequently refers to the idea of something that violates the singleness of our basic essence. And oftentimes, sickness, disease, and tragedy do not come into our life because we or our parents sinned. Often times, that comes into our life so that G-d may be glorified (Job 1-42; John 9:1-6).

Truly, it sounds like G-d wants to draw near to those who are broken or compomised (Luke 15:20), or unclean. So, our better solution is not the mindset that we need to stay away from G-d, but rather allow Him to run to us and we run to Him. Leviticus 13 is not about how we stay away from G-d, but how we protect ourselves and others when we are dealing with the junk that could threaten the stability of the larger group. And in the midst of the leper colony, we connect with the Father, who runs toward us.

Even while we are managing a sickness that can threaten our community, the holiness of heaven, with its weaving together of principles to produce change, desires to meet us where we are, outside the camp or inside the camp.

So, as you are looking at these passages, do not merely see them as “G-d doesn’t like me”. Rather, see them as “G-d has a purpose to connect with me in this season”.

So, when you read “unclean”, stop with the nonsense of thinking, “G-d refuses to receive me or look at me because I am a worm bastard sinner”. Think “G-d wants to clean me up and distill and purify my essence so that it is a single and cohesive whole.”

G-d is zealous that our essence be 100% your essence with nothing added…

You should be, too.

Blemishes on the Skin

by theparacleteshammer, posted in Principles, Principles Of Relationships, Uncategorized

I was reading Leviticus 13, and then it dawned on me.

“You have leprosy.”

Now to frame this, I don’t actually carry any form of physical Hansen’s Disease or anything that the Scripture deals with when it discusses various forms of leprosy.

But here is the punch line and the principle. I have been carrying something that has gnawed at me and has negatively affected how I present to others, and it does not reflect well.

I understand that there might be those that say “what does presentation matter?  G-d allows us to come as we are (oftentimes taken to mean, any old way we damn well please).

And ther are others that might say, “yes, we present our best to G-d”, complete with the religious spirit of dressing in a suit or summer dress for Easter and looking down one’s nose at anyone else who should dare to wear anything resembling shorts, t-shirts, or flip-flops.

And yet both miss the mark.

ἕκαστος ἐν τῷ ἰδίῳ νοῒ πληροφορείσθω.  Let everyone be fully convinced in their own thought (Romans 14:5).

Again with the Romans passage, how many times will David continue to harp on that old horse?

Until each and everyone quits measuring the holiness of another by outward appearance, festal holidays, celebrations, and personal convictions on matters of conscience.

Now, with that under our belts, consider this thought.

How many of us carry something that, for years, Father has been on us about getting rid of?  How many of us have been hounded by the HOLY Spirit to drop that crappy thing that has been keeping us from a new level of HOLINESS.  He is the Spirit that wants to make us HOLY, and implement a new way of living in every aspect of our lives, such that our presence and fragrance cleans up that which is around us and not in alignment with G-d’s best.

How many of us have leprosy in our hearts, our minds (brain rot), our sexual lives, our skin and appearance and presentation, or our relationships, or even our reins?  What is toxifying our capacity to sanctify others so they can be the best versions of themselves?

What is holding each of us back?

That thing will keep the Priest from pronouncing us clean, gang.

Clean in order that we might proceed into that next season.

Lest we forget, sowing two different fabrics, or two different crops, or two different natures together causes the thing in question to become defiled.

G-d wants our essence to become 100% our essence.

We should be possessed of zeal toward those many ends, and transforming from glory to glory, and from strength to strength, from deep to deeper, and from everlasting to everlasting.

What is defiling you that is causing your spirit to cry out to others “UNCLEAN! UNCLEAN!”?

These are universal, non-optional, cause-and-effect relationships.

Just in case we forget, there is the next thing that Father wants to highlight and remove.

He wants us equipped both not to care when the fear of man may be the issue, and to care, when a lack of the fear of G-d may be the issue.  He wants fullness and the capacity to walk when we need to walk, in the manner in which we need to walk.

“To walk with kings yet not lose the common touch” (Rudyard Kipling).

To care when it is time to care. And to give no care when it is time to give no care.

Being held hostage to the taskmasters of either disdain for appearance, or vanity towards appearance are not our aim.

Rather, we ought, nay, we must needs, walk with a higher goal in view.

The fullness of capacity to walk as the context demands.

A Greek to the Greek, and a Jew to the Jew.

“There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”

Concerning G-d’s Command to Abram in Genesis 17:1

by theparacleteshammer, posted in Uncategorized

G-d speaks to Abram, identifies himself as El Shaddai (please try not to get distracted by parsing out that name of G-d, because that name is not the point of this post), and commands something peculiar of Abram at the age of ninety-nine.

“Walk before me, and be blameless…”

Permit me to share an expansion of what I saw concerning that comment.
Translation:

Walk before me in such a way that accusations about your behavior that are untrue, negative, and unworthy of my children could never stick.

Exposition:
How many times do we excuse our behavior by saying we are sinners saved by grace (we are not sinners saved by grace; Bill Gaither’s statement is not biblical and deserves to die a horrible death)?  HOW MANY TIMES have we said, it’s okay because Yeshua died for my sins and He forgives me?
How many times have we excused our behavior rather than repenting for it?
Now, am I saying there is condemnation when we sin?  Absoutely not.  I am very much in alignment with the father heart of G-d.
That said, the voice of our life lived before others and the nonverbal rebuke of lives lived in compromise are both strengthened when we walk in a unblameable fashion.  Note: this has nothing to do with the religious spirit.  And yes, there are people who will never be satisfied with how we walk and will always find something to critique.
That said, if we walk above board, in the ways of accountability that Father has given us, then we will surely not give them added ammunition against us.
Walk in a fashion that does not incur needless blame.  If you are going to walk in a way that incurs blame, make darn sure you are being accused for behavior that is worthy of the testimony and authority Yeshua has put in you.

μηδὲ δίδοτε τόπον τῷ διαβόλῳ.

Merciful Maps and Profound Plays: God Reveals Himself More in Ezekiel

by theparacleteshammer, posted in Uncategorized

By Eric Hatch
July 2, 2018
As we read Ezekiel’s writings, including most of the last post about it, God would forgive you (if you asked!) for thinking the prophet only describes a God who revels in judgment.  However, Ezekiel’s audience finds bountiful hope and a cornucopia of details throughout his book, including amazingly detailed maps and powerful drama.  Both continue to provide color in our process of learning God’s true character.  We will study the unique way God directs Ezekiel to use plays to explain God’s response to His people’s sin.  First, though, we will provide some context for Chapters 40 to 48.

Maps Detail God’s Redemptive Heart

This closing section foretells the merciful plans of the Eternal God of Isaac and Jacob for their descendants.  Ezekiel receives The Word of The Lord with boundary lines for how God will apportion the restored land first promised to Abraham and his children.  This may seem straight forward – that God has a specific plan to give each tribe a place to build and call home.  However, Christians may find these chapters difficult to harmonize with Apostle John’s words in The Revelation and other end-time prophecies.
In this layout of a future kingdom promised by God to the nation of Israel, Ezekiel provides pinpoint, “GPS” cartography, laying out of the boundaries of each tribe of Israel’s allotment of land in a restored and future kingdom.  From my view, this detailed description may have provided John with his framework of Jewish apocalyptic writings.  Yes, I believe that God directly inspired John’s description of numbers: for example, the 144,000 Jewish converts to Christ during the Great Tribulation period and the New Jerusalem, a city over 1,000 miles wide, and just as long and high (yes, tall enough to stretch into Outer Space).  With reformed Temple worship including animal sacrifice, even seemingly after Christ’s “once for all” sacrifice (Romans 6:10), these last 9 chapters may scare away more Christians and theologians than any of Ezekiel’s writings, even the graphic descriptions of 16 and 23!
I will note here that I don’t feel qualified yet to interpret the closing passages of Ezekiel and all of its minute detail.  However, we can know for sure that Ezekiel completes his prophecies in the same place as John does in Revelation.  At the end of his writings, Ezekiel writes in 48:35, “the name of the city from that time on shall be, The Lord Is There.”  Then, as John finishes The New Testament, John writes in Revelation 21:3 this description of the New Jerusalem in language complementary to Ezekiel’s hope-filled name of our future home:

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
“Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man.  He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God.”

With these passages, let us build our hope on The One True God and His desire to reveal Himself in the short-term, when we commune in the spiritual realm, and His promise to live with us in the long-term, when He will physically and perfectly inhabit our new home.
Looking at both John and Ezekiel’s writings, I admit to confusion.  I try to  understand how God sees present-day rulers in Israel/Palestine, and the ongoing fight for land in The Middle East, and the promise of a perfect nation ruled by “The Prince of Israel”.  I also don’t understand when and how the Lord’s coming will occur, as described by John.  Nevertheless, God promises His mercy, and He even maps it out in detail because He will fulfill His words.  His grace is consummated for all women and men who care for Him.

Profound Plays Tell God’s Tragic Tale

Still, Ezekiel contains an even more uncommon narrative style, when compared to other parts of The Bible: 2 forms of drama.  In Chapter 4, Ezekiel acts out a true “One Man Play” among the exiles from Judah in Babylon, preaching each day while laying down outside for over a year (390 days)!  To depict God’s wrath on Jerusalem, he also builds dirt dioramas of The City of David and shows in excruciating detail how The Babylonians will destroy Judah.
In the second form of drama, Ezekiel performs as God’s avatar, his direct reflection to reveal how God acts in relationship with His rebellious children.  In Chapter 24, God tells Ezekiel of his wife’s impending death, but God requires Ezekiel NOT to mourn her passing.  Seemingly the cruelest job of any prophet, God wants the exiles in Israel to understand their deep, ongoing sin.  It’s almost like God says to His people, “See, look at Ezekiel.  He doesn’t even grieve the loss of ‘the delight of [his] eyes’.  Like him, I have no more tears to cry for you.  My wrath will be spent.”
This harsh picture of God shows the other side of God’s character, seemingly in contrast to the tender story in Amos about God’s buying back unfaithful Israel.  There, Amos, acting in the part of God, marries the prostitute Gomer, who bore children not fathered by Amos.  Then, when Gomer returned to prostitution, Amos bought her back, knowing that she still was unfaithful to him.
Both of these examples of “prophet as performance artist” complement each other, similar to the proverbial “two sides of the coin”.  We can’t have a coin… without 2 sides!  God acts at different times and in different circumstances with wrath toward His children in rebellious disobedience and with mercy toward the sinner.  These sets of actions provide more evidence of the significance of reading the writings of Ezekiel.
See, many preachers and seekers of The Lord Jesus Christ (including myself, occasionally) emphasize God’s mercy when responding to sin and unfaithfulness, as seen in the “reality drama” of Amos and Gomer.  However, just like the best human fathers, God not only provides mercy, but He also doles out discipline.  By reading all of the prophets and their proclamations, we see a glimpse of the true depth of God’s personality.  What majesty I see in this nuanced revelation of God’s goodness: just, fierce, forgiving, merciful, and always trustworthy!  And I know this about God because I read all of the counsel about Him in scripture.

God Reveals Both His Mercy and Justice

How should this two-sided (NOT two-faced!) picture of God affect His followers and our sharing of His grace with humanity?  For one thing, we only understand the character and actions of God as we seek Him in and through His past words in The Holy Bible.  For both believers and seekers of The Lord God, we can and should use our studies of the Old and New Testaments to push our awareness of His divine nature.  Remember that God doesn’t expect us to somehow discover a jewel about Him after innumerable unfruitful searches in the garbage heaps of Worldly Wisdom.  I am, similar to greater minds of the past like Isaac Newton, a follower of Jesus Christ and a person concerned with living my life in the logical world created by Him.  Therefore, I “use a metaphor popular at the time [of Newton]: God created two books, the book of Scripture and the book of Nature, and both books are true.” (Seen at https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/the-book-of-nature-the-book-of-scripture).  We need not worry if reality seems hazy at times, whether within one of God’s “two books” or when comparing Nature with Scripture.  As we wrestle with the meaning of The Bible, and as we learn more every day about the intricacies of God’s Creation, let us seek to find both what is real and what is holy.  As we do, we will know more about how God relates to us and what we must know to follow Him.
Thank you for your consideration… and remember: Holy Spirit is directing us all on a journey to unity in Him, through Christ, bringing us all closer to unity in Heavenly Father.  “God, bless those who read this.  In Jesus’ name, amen!”
I will share in my next post about more of the somewhat obscure parts of Ezekiel.
 

Ezekiel’s Hard-Edged Gloom… and a Glimmer

by theparacleteshammer, posted in Uncategorized

Second from Really, God?: Recognizing The Real God in The Book of Ezekiel, an ongoing series of blog posts
To see the first of this series, please click here.
By Eric Hatch
June 27, 2018
A note by way of introduction – Regardless of your level of understanding of The Bible, I say “Thanks for your time consideration!”, and after you read, please share your Comments below.
As we continue to look through some of the lesser known parts of The Bible, and specifically into the Book of Ezekiel the prophet, I must provide a bit of “Truth in Advertising”.
I admit that Ezekiel, though colorful and fantastic in its narrative, is… at times… hard to read.  This prophet, along with many others, share similar (read: repetitive) phrases throughout the book, and his stories and pronouncements of “The Word of The Lord” speak the same judgments on multiple nations, although they are from different points of view.  They tell God’s people in the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah to follow God’s path toward fulfillment.  They speak harshly about the violence toward the poor and alien among God’s chosen people and in their neighbors.  They speak in graphic terms (what American audiences might name “NC-17” descriptions) about the adulterous and wicked idolatry of even the priests of God’s Temple in Jerusalem.  However, this trumpeting of the reality of Ezekiel’s national decline seems to mirror our “enlightened” modern generation.  Both ages of humanity hear these words of warning and blessing over and over, and like most of those in the USA and other cultures who claim Jesus Christ as their Lord, the Israeli nation started to disconnect from (what the New Testament’s Apostle and Prophet Paul called) their “form[s] of godliness” in the religious ceremonies, and then, they start “denying the power” of those forms (2 Timothy 3:5).
Now, we can’t deny the jagged edges of The Major Prophets (called “Major” not for their influence as much for the size of their biblical writings).  Yes, Ezekiel reveals the hard-to-stomach truth of God’s gloomy judgment (7:9-13) –
“I will not look on you with pity; I will not spare you.
I will repay you for your conduct
and for the detestable practices among you.
Then you will know that it is I the Lord who strikes you.
See, the day!  See, it comes!
Doom has burst forth, the rod has budded, arrogance has blossomed!
Violence has arisen, a rod to punish the wicked.
None of the people will be left, none of that crowd –
none of their wealth, nothing of value.
The time has come!  The day has arrived!
Let not the buyer rejoice nor the seller grieve,
for my wrath is on the whole crowd.
The seller will not recover the property that was sold –
as long as both buyer and seller live.
For the vision concerning the whole crowd will not be reversed.
Because of their sins, not one of them will preserve [his] life.”
Yes, in a Bible Dictionary, this passage would provide a proper example of “Doom and Gloom”.  As God commanded, Ezekiel and all of the Prophets proclaimed Heavenly Father’s holiness and His inability to go against His own nature to simply excuse or overlook the sin of His chosen nation Israel.  Ezekiel woke up his countrymen to God’s irrevocable death sentence, an appropriate response to Israel’s violence, desecration of The Temple of God (Chapter 8), and adultery and prostitution with other gods and nations.
Let me emphasize a word of caution here about God’s righteous judgment.  As you read through Ezekiel, and if you have never read Chapters 16 and 23 of Ezekiel, seriously, sit down with a somber tone before reading them.  Ezekiel, receives “The Word of The Lord”, which describes Israel as an abandoned, unwashed newborn, then as a young and pretty peasant woman.  God matures her and describes His people as twins in Chapter 23 to represent the divided kingdoms of Judah and Israel.  God also lavishes gifts on her as a doting Father, then marries and clothes her in gorgeous wedding attire as her Bridegroom.  Yes, these are strangely mixed metaphors here, but Ezekiel wants his audience to remember the roles filled by God the Father and Christ, The Husband of The Church.   And though God made Israel and Judah into an attractive blessing to the nations around them, they cheated on their Creator, sold themselves into sexual slavery, then gave themselves willingly to their enemies.  Israel and Judah went whoring with other gods, and Elohim disgraced and destroys them for this purposeful betrayal.  Seriously, the horrific language of Chapter 23 stunned me the first time I read it, and it pushed me into a deeper meditation on knowing God’s love for His followers and correctly doing as He directs.
Clearly, God’s wrath reaches an end for His chosen people Israel, especially in light of the later chapters of Ezekiel, where He gloriously restores them to a place of prominence, including the entrance on previously unseen “Prince of Israel” onto the religious and political stage, who was and will be fulfilled in the comings of Jesus Christ.
Yet, even with a future hope in the minds of the prophet’s readers, we should recognize the level of heartfelt love and personal treachery, which God describes about his relationship with His nation.  As the One True God and Father of Israel sees it, His people walked out on Him, sold themselves away to His enemies, and gave away their holiness for almost nothing.  Do we not see the treason?  As believers in the God of mercy,  this is not the example of a slight mistake.  We have become the worst of enemies: those who turn away from what is holy and good and turn toward sin, selfishness, disobedience, and evil.
So, instead of seeing Israel and humanity as the victims of a harsh judgment by a tyrant God, let us know God and His chastisement in its correct fullness.  He must discipline us for our sin.  The acts of rebellion require condemnation, but because He shows mercy, He always offers restoration.  We will show this in detail… in upcoming posts.
Thank you for your consideration!  Does God, as revealed by Ezekiel, surprise you?  Either way, please make comments below.
I pray, “Make those who read this siblings in You: Lord of Lords, Señor Jesucristo, Yeshua HaMashiach, Isa ibn Miriam (عيسى ابن مريم), Eesus Hristos (Иисус Христос).  In Your name I pray; Amen!”
 
I will share in my next post about more of the somewhat obscure parts of Ezekiel.
 
 
 

“Really, God?”: Recognizing The True God in the Book of Ezekiel

by theparacleteshammer, posted in Uncategorized

The first in ongoing series about lesser known parts of The Bible
By Eric Hatch
A note by way of introduction – many readers are at this blog because they like to study The Holy Bible.  Others of us have only skimmed that Childrens’ Bible gifted to us by religious relatives.  Hopefully, some of us only know bits and slivers of scripture.  Whatever level of familiarity we have in our Bible studies, know this – I consider it a high honor to share about God’s revelation of Himself to Humanity.  For your time, I say “Thanks for your consideration!”, and after you read, please share your Comments below.
 
Let’s take a trip back to earlier times… maybe last year, for some of us!
Look back to the moments when you were a new reader of The Bible, whether a seeker in younger (or older) ages or a preschooler whose parents selected some of the most kid-friendly stories of the “picture Bible” or (a personal fav!) The Old Testament of “The Brick Bible”, where the dioramas are made of LEGO’s… yes, it exists!
Got those moments in your mind, Ms. or Mr. Reader?
Show of hands, now — how many of you started reading of The Bible in the book of Ezekiel? (Looking… shielding eyes from the spotlights…) None? Is that a grand total of zero?
Show of hands, once more — raise an arm and hand if you can remember any more than two stories in Ezekiel. (Squinting… hearing crickets … hmm, even the praying mantis in the back has her arms down!)
So, among an audience who wants to study The Bible, we don’t read Ezekiel much, we likely only know two of the stories from Ezekiel, and for 99% of you, there are parts of Ezekiel you have NEVER read.
You may have read all of Ezekiel, Mr. / Ms. 1%.  However, do you remember how Ezekiel wrote with vulgar, graphic, maybe even pornographic language to describe his people’s shameful activity? Yes, I’m serious; it is in Chapters 16 and 23.
Now, I know that, even after reading this series, pastors won’t plan a sermon series on Ezekiel for the next 48 Sundays.  The book presents some difficult passages to interpret from the pulpit or even a seminary.  However, as adult Christians, we create a level of dangerous ignorance when we don’t read The Major Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel.  If we neglect reading this important part of God’s Word to us, we fail to recognize some of the attributes of God.
Similarly, we do not understand or proclaim all of God’s story when we study and share about His grace without describing His holiness and His Law.  For example, why would we even mention His grace if we have not disobeyed His Law?  As well, what makes sacrifice, including the perfect death of The Lord Jesus Christ on His Cross, even necessary?  It is the active rebellion in sin by humanity.  Because we fail to follow God’s Law, we require His grace to stand in His presence and to receive eternal life.
So, please join me as we study Ezekiel, as it will provide us with a clearer view of God’s plan and love for us.  As we grow in our awareness of Ezekiel and all of scripture, we will move away from Satan’s deceptions and our preconceived notions of God.  Then, instead of false ideas about God, we will more fully know His character, Law, and grace, which will point us to their perfect revelation in Christ.

The Detailed Yet Unstudied Picture of God by Ezekiel

Now, looking to Ezekiel’s writings, most of us, even those among us who have read the whole Bible, rarely remember more from Ezekiel outside “The Valley of The Dry Bones” vision in Chapter 37 and what I would call “The Wheel Within a Wheel” vision in Chapters 1 & 2 (when God choose and called Ezekiel as His prophet). These two could become the front and back covers if anyone wrote a novel about Ezekiel.  For some Christians, we may have also heard the “Stand In The Gap” verse (22:30), which pastors and other leaders sometimes use to encourage prayer ministry.
All of these passages exemplify Ezekiel’s recorded visions and commands from God: larger than life, almost psychedelically vivid, waking dreams of God’s terrifying power, righteous judgments against His rebellious people, and promises of sovereign restoration for those who repent.  Still, these tiny portions only make up about 5% of the Book of Ezekiel!  Let the author confess here: I have often misquoted and used as pretexts these and other scriptures to support my own “pet doctrines”.  This misinterpretation, called “eisegesis” in technical terms, occurs when we go to The Holy Bible with our own presuppositions, instead of seeking The Lord’s direction.
As a consequence to our use of the Book of Ezekiel as a pretext, and even then only knowing a few verses from his stories, we end up acting like so-called “Christmas and Easter Christians”, nominal believers who attend congregational worship at our convenience or out of tradition.  Sadly, when we only try to learn about spiritual reality occasionally, we do a great disservice both to God (you become a less faithful steward of your talents and responsibilities) and to your family, friends, and acquaintances (they don’t see the need or benefits of seeking God’s discipline and training).
Neglecting to study Ezekiel, other Major (Jewish biblical) Prophets, and any part of The Bible doesn’t just mean we miss an artistic and cinematic portion of God’s words for us. We don’t just lose a portion of scripture, which would cross cultural boundaries in a media-soaked world. No, we most importantly hide some of God’s revelation of Himself from Humanity.  If you haven’t read and studied Ezekiel, Isaiah, or other prophets, sadly, you can unwittingly accept false ideas about God, such as The Prosperity Gospel or what I would call “One God under Nationalism”.  These deceptions keep you from experiencing the just discipline, true grace, and full love of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, which Israel’s prophetic writings foretold… but for many of us, we don’t know much of what the prophets said of Jesus!
Thank you for your consideration… and receive this blessing in my prayer for you:  Lord Jesus Christ, let all who read this seek you, drawn by You, Holy Spirit, embraced by You, Heavenly Father, and saved to Your holy discipline, Lord Jesus Christ!  Make those who read this siblings in You: Lord of Lords, Señor Jesucristo, Yeshua HaMashiach, Isa ibn Miriam (عيسى ابن مريم), Eesus Hristos (Иисус Христос).  In Your name I pray; Amen!”

Lastly, here’s a preview of the next three posts about the obscure and more well-known parts of Ezekiel.

The Hard-Edged Gloom of Ezekiel (Posted on June 27, 2018)
The Powerful Storytelling and Drama of Ezekiel, and how they tell who God is (To Be Posted June 30, 2018)
The Visions of Ezekiel, the Most Colorful Old Testament Prophet  (To Be Posted July 3, 2018)