THERE IS A SPIRIT that is embedded in all prophecy, from whom the prophecy itself emanates, and that Spirit is the Spirit of the Lord of creation. Peter speaks of this. “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Pet. 1:20-21)
And just as death begins with conception, and new life with death, so are the prophecies of God finely poised on the scalpel’s edge at the point between life death. “Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.” (Heb. 4:12-13) Prophets speak life and death to kingdoms and kings; they also speak those same words to individuals. They spoke historically, and they still speak today.
In the O.T., God places his Spirit sovereignly on those he calls to speak for him. Ezekiel is such a prophet. In his thirtieth year, while in exile in Babylonia, “the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.” (Ezek. 1:1) God tells him: “Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.” (Ezek. 2:1) Ezekiel comments, “As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet.” (Ezek. 2:2) As we watch and listen, we have a powerful palpable sense of God’s immanent palpable presence. “I am sending you to the Israelites, to a people obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’ And whether they listen or fail to listen—for they are a rebellious people—they will know that a prophet has been among them.” (Ezek. 2:3-5)
The message God has through Ezekiel, and to Ezekiel, is charged with great portent and responsibility. “I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ and if you do not warn them order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn from their wickedness or from their evil ways, they will die for their sin; but you will have saved yourself.” (Ezek. 3:17-19)
To hear God and to do his will are closely linked; this word from the Lord is laden with accountability and responsibility, both for the speaker and for the listener. For each, there is a promise and a curse; for each there is life and death.
In the N.T. we are all minor prophets, not in the sense of fore-telling events, though that gift still exists for some, but as forth-tellers of the words of scripture, and in particular the message of the gospel. We have been tasked with responsibility, and accountability. Our Lord said, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” (Mark 16:15) Paul defines the gospel as, “the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’” (Rom. 1:16-17) And Paul further explains, “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.” (2 Cor. 5:20) He also adds, “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” (1 Cor. 9:16) We have been given everything in the salvation, sanctification, and eventual glorification that comes in Jesus Christ, and we are warned, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” (Luke 12:48)
Disciples of Jesus are the watchmen of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.” (Matt. 13:16) He explains what that secret is to his followers regarding the parable of the sower (cf. Matt. 13:3-9)—it is the seed of the gospel. Here also is a strong warning, not to the people of the world, but the people of the secret kingdom. “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.” (Matt. 13:10-12) The author of Hebrews encourages us, “But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.” (Heb. 10:38-39)
Given these warnings, we might ask who of us is up to such a task. This is especially so as we look out upon the sin-sick world. We stand at the edge of light and darkness, and always the prophet’s message is heard by only a few, even though “the fields are ripe for a harvest.” (John 4:35) Just as most of the people of Ezekiel’s time did not listen, so today’s people will not listen. “But the people of Israel are not willing to listen to you because they are not willing to listen to me, for all the Israelites are hardened and obstinate.” (Ezek. 3:7) This, however, is what God did with Ezekiel: “But I will make you as unyielding and hardened as they are. I will make your forehead like the hardest stone, harder than flint.” (Ezek. 3:8-9)
If we are called to be watchmen in this world, if we are called to speak the gospel, then God will also ‘harden our foreheads.’ He will give us a mind and an understanding, a passion and a force of will, that imparts to our spirit the necessary mono-focus to accomplish his will, so that “my word that goes out from my mouth will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isa. 55:11)
Q. Have I fixed my mind upon my Father’s will?
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