Ignoring God

Ez 5:13 "Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself. And they shall know that I am the LORD--that I have spoken in my jealousy--when I spend my fury upon them." ESV

 

One thing that I usually take comfort in is that God does not change. No matter what I do, He stays the same. The reason I take comfort in that is that this reminder is used so often when we talk about God's love. You know, "What can separate us from the love of Christ?...." The answer: Nothing. No matter how dumb I am. No matter how much I blow it. No matter how much I screw up, God will love me just as much as when I am walking consistently with Him.

 

But then I hit verses like this one that deals with God's anger and fury and jealousy. If God does not change, then guess what? I have to realize that this part of Him does not change either. Kind of sobering. Is God a God of love? Absolutely. Is God a God of justice? Absolutely. And God knows how to balance these two qualities perfectly.

 

Israel was in a heap of hurt. They had done some pretty dumb things to show that they did not give a rip about God, His law or His love. They committed idolatry. They listened to false prophets. They went their own way and did their own thing. This was rebellion. This was an abomination to God. The result? A prophet, Ezekiel, was sent to them to demonstrate what was going to happen to them (both Judah and Israel). The things that Ezekiel had to do were amazing. Lay bound so he could not move on his left side for 390 days, and then lay bound on his right side for another 40 days to show what Israel and Judah were going to go through. He had to eat a certain kind of bread that was cooked over cow poop. Then he had to shave his head and divide his hair three ways to reveal what was going to happen to a third of Israel. The result was going to be pestilence, war and scattering.

 

Why? Because Israel and Judah ignored God. This resulted in His judgment. Why? So they would eventually know that He alone was the Lord. So they would eventually see who He was, a God of love and justice.

 

God does not like us to play with His reputation. He is the Lord. He is Jehovah. He is the Existing One. He always was, He always will be, He never changes and He is the One who is in control. Not me. When I think that I can do my own thing, go my own way, make my own decisions and ignore what God says, I will do nothing but screw up my life. God doesn't change. He still loves, but He is consistent and expects His children to obey Him. When we don't we can anticipate some nasty results.

 

But when I do…blessing. That is what God wants.