...our Bibles and turn now to
the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel chapter 20. Ezekiel chapter
20. I'd like to deal with verses
1 to 37, but I'll be quick on most of them. Verse 37, I'm going to just read
that one verse and then we'll just go and lead up to it. The Lord said, Ezekiel 20, 37,
And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring
you into the bond of the covenant. Beginning now in Ezekiel 20,
verse 1. I'll read a few verses, make
a couple of comments, and we'll come up to that 37th verse. Ezekiel 20, verse 1. It came
to pass in the seventh year, fifth month, tenth day of the
month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of
the Lord. and sat before me. Then came
the word of the Lord unto me, saying, Son of man, speak unto
the elders of Israel, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord
God. Are you come to inquire of me?
As I live, saith the Lord God, I will not be inquired of by
you." It is right and it is profitable
for the soul to inquire after the Lord, to seek after the Lord. But here is an amazing thing.
The Lord said to these elders that came, I am not going to be inquired of
by you. Oh my! rejected to be heard by them. The Lord told Ezekiel, I'm not
going to hear them. Now, I'm going to just share
something with you and we'll just go right on into it. We're
going to find out in just a few minutes why the Lord would not
hear them. Verse 4 to 7. Will thou judge
them, son of man? Will thou judge them, cause them
to know the abominations of their fathers? And say unto them, Thus
saith the Lord God, In the day when I chose Israel, and lifted
up my hand unto the seat of the house of Jacob, made myself known
unto them in the land of Egypt, when I lifted up my hand unto
them, saying, I am the Lord your God. In the day that I lifted
up my hand unto them to bring them forth of the land of Egypt
into a land that I had aspired for them, flowing with milk and
honey, which is the glory of all lands, Then said I unto them,
Cast ye away every man, the abominations of his eyes, and defile not yourselves
with the idols of Egypt. I am the Lord your God." Now
here's what the Lord said to Ezekiel. Now these elders have
come and they're going to come to Ezekiel. He's the prophet.
If you wanted to hear what God had to say, go to the prophet.
And the Lord told Ezekiel, He said, You tell these fellows.
I'm not going to hear you. Why? Well, because of rebellion
that had happened in the past. He said, Ezekiel, will you plead? I'm sorry, judge. Will you judge? Will you plead for them? Here's
what he's asking him. Will you spend your breath, Ezekiel,
pleading for them. He said, Ezekiel, I want you
to do something. I want you to rehearse in their
ears the history of their father's rebellion when I brought them
out of Egypt. I want you to tell them why. I'm not going to be inquired
of by them. Here's the history. If you want to just listen, I'll
just read it to you. 6, verses 7 to 8. Here's what the Lord had originally
told him. He told him, he said, now, you
know, the day I chose Israel back in chapter 20, this is Exodus
6, verses 7 to 8. He said, I will take you to me
for a people. I will be to you a God. You shall know that I, the Lord,
am your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of
the Egyptians, and I will bring you into the land concerning
which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, to Jacob,
I will give it to you for a heritage. I am the Lord." Now here is what
he told them. He said, I chose to show mercy
to you. I in sovereign grace set my affection
on you. I chose you, and I chose a land
that I was going to give you. Here is a beautiful picture of
the Lord saying to a sinner, I will have mercy on whom I will
have mercy, I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion,
and I have prepared in my Father's house many mansions. Somebody will say, no thanks. Now, that doesn't sound fair
to me. I think I'll pass. He said, son of man, I want you
to remind them how they were told to cast away the abomination
of their eyes and not defile themselves with the idols of
Egypt. Here's what he says. I don't
want you to mix with the religions of this world. Don't cater to their ways, to
their thoughts, thinking that they're doing something to merit
salvation. Cast it away. Cast away from you all your transgressions
whereby you've transgressed. Ezekiel 18.31 says, I'll make
you a new heart, new spirit. Why will you die, O house of
Israel? He said, Ezekiel, you tell them
how I lifted up my hand unto them, saying, I am the Lord your
God. You tell them how I swore by
my name, by my character, by my will, by my purpose, by my
covenant, that I'll have mercy and compassion upon my people. Verses 8 and 9 in Ezekiel 20. But they rebelled against me
and would not hearken unto me. They did not every man cast away
the abomination of their eyes, neither did they forsake the
idols of Egypt. Then I said, I will pour out
my fury upon them to accomplish my anger against them in the
midst of the land of Egypt. But I wrought for my namesake,
that it should not be polluted before the heathen among whom
they were. in whose sight I made myself known unto them in bringing
them forth out of the land of Egypt." He said they were in
the land of Egypt, Ezekiel. Now you tell them, these that
want to be inquired of by me that wouldn't hear what I had
to say, rejected my word. You tell them how they were in
the land of Egypt, their fathers, that I originally put them there. I sent Joseph ahead of them.
You remember the story, don't you? Joseph was taken into captivity
and he was made second in command to Pharaoh. He oversaw all the
distribution of the corn. And God sent Israel, His boys. And the nation grew and grew
and grew. God had put them there to protect
them, oversee them. They were His people. You tell
them. He said, Now, Ezekiel, they've
rebelled against me. They're not hearing my word,
and they're not casting off the filthiness of their eyes. And they didn't forsake the idols
of Egypt. Oh, they liked what they saw.
It catered to their flesh. It was beautiful, big, and pompous. Therefore, they were deserving
of judgment. He said, I said in verse 8, I'm
going to pour out my fury upon them to accomplish my anger against
them in the midst of the land of Egypt. But I withheld. I withheld. I wrought for my
name's sake, that my name should not be polluted, that my name
should not be treated as common. He said in the sight of the heathens
that they were among, lest it should appear to the Egyptians.
Whenever Moses went in and told them, God said, let My people
go. He said, lest it should appear
to the Egyptians that I would have saved My people, but I couldn't. because they were too strong,
because they were stronger than me. I would pour out my fury
upon them, but I wrought for my name's sake. I'm God. Nobody's going to say that I
couldn't save. You know, that's what the world's
religion says. He will save if you let him. No, what you're
saying is he can't. What you're saying is he can't
save you. It's going to take a puny worm
like me to help God? What kind of a God is that? It's
not God. God's nobody. He's not God. David said, Our God's in heaven.
He's done whatsoever He's pleased. That's God. This God that people
say, He wants to save you if you'll let Him, if you'll give
Him your heart. Verse 10, Wherefore, I caused
them to go forth out of the land of Egypt, and brought them into
the wilderness. I gave them My statutes, I showed
them My judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them.
Moreover also, I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between
Me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that
sanctified them." He gave the Sabbath, the Sabbath day, a day
of rest. What does that mean? Don't go
out to eat? Don't go to the picture show?
Don't walk so many steps? You know, I'm going to honor
the Sabbath day. I'm not going to do anything on the Sabbath
day. You know what the Sabbath day was given for? The Sabbath
day was a picture of Christ, the rest of His people in the
Savior. Their rest from laboring. to
establish righteousness before God. That's what the Sabbath
was. You don't keep the Sabbath because you don't go to a movie.
Are you kidding me? You think you've done something
for God? No, God's done something for us. He's given us the Sabbath. Verse 13, But the house of Israel
rebelled against me in the wilderness. They walked not in my statutes. They despised my judgments, which
if a man do, he shall even live in them. My sabbaths they greatly
polluted. Then I said, I'll pour out my
fury upon them in the wilderness to consume them. But I wrought
for my namesake that it should not be polluted before the heathen
in whose sight I brought them out. Yet also I lifted up my
hand unto them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into
the land that I had given them, flowing with milk and honey,
which is the glory of all lands, because they despised my judgments,
walked not in my statues, but polluted my Sabbaths. For their
heart went after their idols. Nevertheless, mine eye spared
them from destroying them, neither did I make an end of them in
the wilderness." For the setting forth of God's glory They rebelled
in Egypt. He said, I would have poured
out my fury on them in Egypt, but I wrought it for my name's
sake so that my name would not be profaned, made common in Egypt's
sight, thinking that I couldn't. I was going to show mercy to
them if I didn't pour out my fury on them. I brought them
out. They rebelled against me in the wilderness. I would have
poured out my fury upon them in the wilderness. But I wrought. I withheld for my namesake."
The heathen would not think he could not save them. He could
not save them. I gave them my law. I gave them
the ground, the foundation by which a man shall live. And if a man can keep the law,
he will live. The only problem is We can't
keep it because of the weakness of the flesh. Listen, listen.
Life rests in the observance of God's law. Now just establish
that. Life rests, life is found in
the observance of God's law. That's right. But the problem
is nobody born in Adam can do it. That's why the Lord Jesus Christ
came into this world, establishing obedience to the law for the
sake of His people. He did keep the law. And that
law, I mean, that obedience to the law is imputed, is charged
to the account of God's people. We did not keep it in ourselves,
but in Christ we did. In Christ we did. He said, I
gave them a law. I gave them my saddles. Our problem
is that the weakness of our flesh, we can't do it. Thanks be unto
God for the Messiah. But even in the desert, after
the Lord had delivered them out of Egypt and brought them through
the Red Sea and gave them water out of the rock and fed them
with manna from heaven, the people rebelled against the Lord. Some
might say, I don't see how they could have done that. We're doing it right now. We
do it right now. We're doing the same thing. They
didn't do anything we don't do. We don't do anything they didn't
do. We're all cut out of the same lump. There's none of us
in ourselves worth anything. They despised his judgments,
walked not in his statues, polluted his Sabbaths. He said, I'll pour
out my fury upon him to consume him. But I wrought how many times
Do we find ourselves deserving, deserving of God's wrath? But
he said, I wrought, I withheld for my namesake. Thanks be unto
God for His long-suffering. Look at verse 18. But I said
unto the children in the wilderness, Walk ye not in the statutes of
your fathers, neither observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves
with their idols. I am the Lord, your God. Walk
in my statutes, keep my judgments, do them, hallow my Sabbaths,
and they shall be a sign between me and you that you may know
that I am the Lord, your God, that you will know that I am
your God, that you are my people. Notwithstanding, the children
rebelled against me. They walked not in my statutes,
nor kept my judgments to do them, which if a man do, he shall even
live in them. They polluted my Sabbaths. Then
I said, I will pour out my fury upon them to accomplish my anger
against them in the wilderness. Nevertheless, I withdrew mine
hand and wrought for my namesake, that it should not be polluted
in the sight of the heathen in whose sight I brought them forth.
I lifted up mine hand unto them also in the wilderness, that
I would scatter them among the heathen, disperse them through
the countries, because they had not executed my judgments, but
had despised my statutes, polluted my Sabbaths. Their eyes were
after their father's idols. Wherefore, I gave them also statutes
that were not good, and judgments whereby they should not live.
And I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused
to pass through the fire all that openeth the womb, that I
might make them desolate to the end, that they might know that
I am the Lord." He said, this is what happened. He said, the
fathers rebelled. I said to the kids, y'all don't
do that. And the kids did the same thing. Rebellion is a manifestation
of a nature that every man born in Adam possesses. I will, he said, pour out my
fury upon him, accomplish my anger against him. But he said,
I withheld. I scattered them among the heathen
to disperse them to the country." What did the Lord do? Verse 26,
He said, I gave them, now listen to this, verse 26, I polluted
them in their own gifts. Let me read verse 25, Wherefore,
I gave them also statutes that were not good. and judgments
whereby they should not live. And I polluted them in their
own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all
that openeth the womb, that I might make them desolate to the end,
that they might know that I am the Lord." What did he just say?
He said, I tell you what I did. I gave them my statutes, I gave
them my Sabbaths, I gave them my law, that if they'd keep it,
they'd live by it. But they didn't do it. They didn't
do it. So what did I do? Verse 25, I
gave them statutes that were not good. And judgments whereby
they should not live. He said, I gave them exactly
what they wanted. You want to rebel? I'm going
to give you just exactly what you want. Just exactly. Listen to Psalm 81, 10-12 and
tell me if that's not exactly what the Lord said. I am the
Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt. Open
thy mouth wide, and I'll fill it. But my people would not hearken
to my voice, and Israel would none of me. So I gave them up
unto their own hearts' lust, and they walked in their own
counsel. Is that not what he said? I'm going to give you just exactly
what you want. Is that what you want? I'll give it to you. I'm going to let you do just
exactly. He permitted them for a while to think that God could
be worshipped acceptably in their rebellion. And do we not find this to be
often the case today even with us? That fleeting thought of
rebellion that constantly enters our mind. Thinking, I can do
something for God. Why did He do that? He said,
look at the last part of verse 26. He said, that I might make
them desolate to the end that they might know that I am the
Lord. I'm going to cause you and bring
you to see your stupidity. How many times have we thought
the same things? And the Lord in mercy comes to
us and reveals to us what we are doing. And we think, how
could I have been so foolish? How could I have done that? Verse 27-28, Therefore, Son of
Man, speak unto the house of Israel and say unto them, Thus
saith the Lord God. in this your fathers have blasphemed
Me, in that they have committed a trespass against Me. For when
I had brought them into the land for which I lifted up Mine hand
to give it to them, that they saw every high hill, all the
thick trees, they offered there their sacrifices. There they
presented the provocation of their offering. There also they
made a sweet savor and poured out there their drink offerings."
Even after they had taken possession of the promised land. Even after they came into Canaan,
you'd think, boy, once they came into Canaan, they'd never, never
rebel against God again. He said they saw the thick trees. It's the leafy trees. They were
places of false worship is what I could find out about those
thick trees. Places that appealed to the eye,
to the flesh. And there, what they were doing
was they were setting up their places of worship just like the
heathen. They started mixing and mingling,
taking in, you know, a little bit of law and grace. Does not
false religion say this? Now listen. Listen to what I'm
about to say. When the scripture declares,
for by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves.
It's the gift of God. If I say, or you say, or anybody
says, salvation is by grace. I believe that. I believe salvation
is by the grace of God. The Lord graciously offers it,
and all I have to do is take it. Now wait a minute, you've
just negated grace. If it's grace, then it's no more
work. Or works is not works and grace is not grace. We're not
defining the words. No, grace means no work, no effort
on your part. That's what grace means. Salvation
is of the Lord. That's what it means. He said
what they did was after they came in to Canaan, they did the
same thing. They came to the thick trees
where the heathens worshiped. Always looking for gimmicks,
appealing to man's desires. You put a man in the best environment
that you can put him in. And leave that man to himself,
and what will he do? He'll do the same thing Adam
did. And I do. And you do. Verse 29 to 31, Then I said unto
them, What is the high place whereunto ye go? and the name
thereof is Bema unto this day. Wherefore, say unto the house
of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God, Are ye polluted after the
manner of your fathers, and commit ye whoredom after their abominations? And when you offer your gifts,
when you make your sons to pass through the fire, you pollute
yourselves and all your idols, even unto this day. And shall
I be inquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, saith the
Lord, I will not be inquired of by you." Israel was to worship God in
the high place of God's choosing. And that elevated place is what
it means. in that sacred place. It doesn't
necessarily mean a hill. It just means that place, that
sanctuary of God's choosing, where God Almighty, where God
raises up the gospel. I might say it doesn't matter
where you go to church. I beg your pardon. Be careful what you hear. Be
careful what you hear. The Spirit of God said to the
Apostle Paul in Galatians, If an angel from heaven preaches
any other gospel except this gospel of God's sovereign, free,
saving grace in the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed. I'm going to give you the best
advice I can give you. If you're sitting somewhere, if you're
hearing somebody and they're preaching free will, man-centered
religion, My advice to you is don't ever go back. God help us. If we listen to
anything that is not sovereign grace, He said, I saw where you went
where they were. Listen to this, 1 Kings 3.23.
Only the people sacrificed in high places, the place of God's
choosing. that elevated place of worship
and sacrifice. Only the people sacrificed in
high places because there was no house built unto the name
of the Lord until those days. And Solomon loved the Lord. Walking
in the statutes of David, his father, only he sacrificed and
burnt incense in the high places. That is of God's choosing. And
the king went to Gibeah to sacrifice there. For that was the great
high place. 1,000 burnt offerings did Solomon
offer unto that place. Wherever the Lord raises up the
Gospel, hear it. Be like Mary. Hear the Word of the Lord. What
the people did was they profaned the true and genuine worship
of God and followed the customs of the land. And the Lord asked
them a question there in verse 29. He said unto them, What is
the high place whereunto you go? What he said is this, what
are you doing? What are you doing? That's what
he's asking. What are you thinking? Thinking that you can go and
you think that you're going to go somewhere where my Son is
not honored? Where my Son is not glorified?
Where Christ is not exalted? And man is put down to being
the worm? You think you can go somewhere
And you're going to just say, we're going to worship the Lord.
That's everybody that's got their hands. We're going to worship
God. He said, I'm not going to hear you. I am not going to be
inquired of you. They said, well, I can worship
the Lord any way I want to. No, you can't. You think you
can. He said, I'm not going to hear.
He said, you pollute yourselves in false worship and think that
I'm going to be inquired of by you. Verse 31, As I live, saith
the Lord, I will not be inquired of. You think you can approach
me just any way? No. No. I'm going to tell you
something up until this point. We don't have a whole lot of
hope, do we? Well, thanks be unto God. Look at verse 32. He said, In that which cometh
into your mind, Now listen, I'm going to tell you something.
You that know Him, and we all think this way, and don't say
we don't. We struggle with these thoughts.
And that which cometh into your mind shall not be at all that
you say we will be as the heathen, as the families of the countries
to serve wood and stone. This is what the Lord said. what you thought to do, what
your flesh has dictated to your heart that you thought that you're
going to worship Me in the way of your choosing, in the place
of your choosing. He said, listen, it ain't going
to happen. It's not going to happen. And
let's look at verse 32 again. And that which cometh into your
mind shall not be at all that you say we will be as the heathen,
as the families of the countries, to serve wood and stone. Here's
what happened. He said, the direction that you
were going, because of the dictates of your nature and the way that
you thought, just because of the depravity of your heart that
you thought. You take a man or woman that's
coming up in false religion. Mark, we know something about
that, don't we? Ruthie? Yeah. That you think, and I'm
going to just stay right here. I'm happy right here. I'm a faithful
servant. That you thought, I'm going to
be like this, I'm going to worship God this way. He says, not going
to be. I'm not going to allow it. I'm not going to allow you
to continue. He said, verse 33, As I live,
saith the Lord God, surely with a mighty hand and stretched out
arm and with fury poured out will I rule over you and I will
bring you out from the people. and will gather you out of the
countries wherein you are scattered, with a mighty hand, a stretched-out
arm, and with fury poured out. And I will bring you into the
wilderness of the people, and there will I plead with you face
to face, like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness
of the land of Egypt. So will I plead with you, saith
the Lord God." Now, as the Lord lives, this is what He said,
I'm going to do. Those that I've everlastingly
loved, those that I've chosen in my Son, the elect, God's people,
by irresistible grace, He said, this is the way it's going to
be. By grace, according to My omnipotent hand of power, He
said, I'm going to fetch you out of the clutches of sin. I'm going to get you wherever
you are, wherever I've scattered you. I put you there. I'm going to get you, you Mephibosheth. I'm going to bring you into the
wilderness, and I'm going to plead with you." He said, I'm
going to bring you into that place to where you realize I
don't have anything else but the Lord. I'm going to bring
you into the wilderness, and there I'm going to plead with
you. This is a beautiful word. Here's the definition of I'm
going to plead. I'm going to decide the controversy. That's what I'm going to do.
It's not like I'm going to plead with you. Oh, please, please,
please, please, please give me your heart. No, no, no, no, no.
He said, with a mighty hand, with power and a stretched out
arm, with an outstretched arm, who hath believed thy report?
And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? Here's what I'm
going to do for you. With power by my Son, the arm
of the Lord, with fury poured out, You know, in closing, I want
us to look just for a second. Look what the Lord, when they
were in Egypt, look at verse 8, back in verse 8. They rebelled
against me. I would not hearken unto me. They did not. Every man cast
away the abomination of their eyes, neither did they forsake
the idols of Egypt. Then I said, I will pour out
my fury upon them. Look at verse 13. The house of Israel rebelled
against me in the wilderness. They walked not in my statutes.
They despised my judgment, which a man do. He shall even live
in them. My Sabbaths they greatly polluted.
Then I said, I will pour out my fury upon them. Look at verse 21. Notwithstanding, the children
rebelled against me. They walked not in my statutes,
neither kept my judgments to do them which a man do. He shall
even live in them. They polluted my Sabbaths. Then
I said, I will pour out my fury upon them. What did He say in verse 33? As I live, saith the Lord, the
Lord God surely with a mighty hand and without stretched arm
and with fury poured out, not upon them, upon His Son, upon
the Lord Jesus Christ. He said, I'm going to rule over
you. He did pour out His fury. He's a just God. and a Savior. What power is exhibited when
God comes to rule in His people? You leave them to their self,
and all they're going to do is rebel and rebel and rebel. But when He says, no more, no
more, I'm going to give you a new heart. I'm going to give you
a new spirit. I'm going to reveal Myself unto
you. I'm going to show you what you are. I'm going to bring you
into the wilderness of your nothingness. And I'm going to decide the controversy. The Spirit of God comes and He
reproves them. He convinces them of sin, that
that's what they are, of righteousness that they don't have any of themselves,
only the righteousness of Christ and of judgment that Almighty
God has poured out His judgment upon Christ in their stead. And here's the last verse. And
I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you
into the bond of the covenant. A couple of verses and I'm over.
Leviticus 27. If you want me to, I'll just
read this to you. Leviticus chapter 27, verse 32. This was taken from a shepherd. A shepherd's rod. And what he
would do is that shepherd's sheep would pass under that shepherd
with that rod. Leviticus 27, verse 32. The Scripture says, concerning
the tithe of the herd or of the flock, even whatsoever passeth
under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord. And whenever
a shepherd would count his sheep, he would count those, and a tenth
of them, that was for the Lord. He counted. He passed them under
the rod. Jeremiah 33, verse 13. Jeremiah 33, 13. Scripture says, In the cities,
in the mountains, in the cities of the vale, cities of the south,
land of Benjamin, places about Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah
shall the flocks pass again unto the hands of him that telleth
them, saith the Lord. That telleth. I looked it up.
It counts them. You're mine. You're mine. You're mine. Back in Ezekiel 27, verse 27,
I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you
into a knowledge of the bond, of the security, of the covenant
that I made with you. That's what David said is salvation. He said, this is all my salvation.
He made with me an everlasting covenant ordered in all things
insure. This is all my salvation. This
is all my plea. This is all my hope. Almighty
God has a people. And they're born in rebellion.
And leave them to themselves and they'll die in rebellion.
But for the grace of God, He said, I'm not going to allow
you to continue. The things that you thought in
your mind, he said, ain't going to be. I'm going to bring you
out with a mighty hand, with an outstretched arm. And with
fury poured out upon my Son, I'm going to save you in spite
of you. And I'm going to cause you to
pass under the rod. And I'll bring you into a knowledge that
I've everlastingly loved you. And I cause you by grace And
I kept you by my power for my namesake. Amen.