I Will Tell You Nothing!

On August 14, during the seventh year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, some of the leaders of Israel came to request a message from the LORD. They sat down in front of me to wait for his reply. Then this message came to me from the LORD: “Son of man, tell the leaders of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: How dare you come to ask me for a message? As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, I will tell you nothing!’ [Ezekiel 20.1-3]

Ever feel like your prayers are getting nowhere?

The leaders of Israel came to Ezekiel wanting to "hear from God." What they got was a rebuke and a message of outright refusal from God with a very detailed explanation why: idolatry. Their idolatry was evident in their failure to observe God's laws and Sabbaths.

While I am not yet convinced that God's people today must observe a particular day as a Sabbath, I am increasingly convinced that our failure to observe the Rest God promised, symbolized by observing His Rest every day, reveals damning evidence that our complete undivided trust is, in fact, not in God Almighty, but spread in adulterous display of polygamous idolatry among idols of our own making. Money, knowledge, government, science, medicine, technology, and even "self" make up the polytheistic group that has become the object of our faith and trust. A very few actually include Almighty God in this group as did those leaders that Ezekiel rebuked.

For those who believe the Old Testament is outdated and irrelevant, I will say this: read it again with the understanding that an idol is ANYTHING or ANYONE in whom we put our trust instead of God and God alone. Then, reflect on what we trust in (rely on) today...(hint: think money, knowledge, government, science, medicine, technology and self). 

There is only one remedy (I discussed this yesterday). We must repent - turn away from (proactively and purposefully forsake) our faith in anything or anyone but The LORD (Yahweh) God Almighty through Jesus the Messiah and the work of the Holy Spirit.

God help us.

Father, I am ashamed of my divided trust in idols. Forgive me. May You find me striving every day to identify and rid myself of idols - no matter how fanatical it makes me in the world's eyes. The last thing I want to hear You say is, "I will tell you nothing!"