A Needed Encounter with the God of Glory

Introduction: Meeting Ezekiel, Meeting God

Have you ever riden with a teenager who was all brake or all gas. Fast or slow. That is how this journey will feel at times.

Section 1: When the Past Comes into Focus (Chs. 1–24) / Slide

Ezekiel opens by looking back. God shows His glory, confronts Israel’s long history of rebellion, and explains why exile had to come. In this section, the past comes into focus not to shame, but to show how God’s story holds together.

A Needed Encounter with the God of Glory (1:1–28)

Called to a Hard Mission Among a Hard People (2:1–3:27)

Speaking Even When No One Listens (3:16–27)

When God Acts On His Word (4:1–7:27)

When God Calls Each Person to Account (14; 16; 18; 20; 23; 24)

Bible Reading

Ezekiel opens his book not with a word but with a vision. He says, “the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God” (1:1).

Now before we look at the vision, let’s meet the man.

Ezekiel 1:1–3 “1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. 2 In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin’s captivity, 3 The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him.”

Who Ezekiel is: His name means “God strengthens.” He is both a priest and a prophet (1:3). That’s rare.

Ezekiel was a priest by birth. He had trained for this moment his whole life.

According to the law, priests entered temple service at thirty (Num. 4:3). This would have been the year Ezekiel began serving in the house of God. But instead of walking into the temple courts, he is sitting by a river in Babylon. Instead of lifting up prayers with incense, he is sitting in the dirt with captives. Instead of blessing God’s people, he is surrounded by their sorrow.

Where he is:

Not in the temple. Not in Jerusalem. He’s in Babylon.

So instead of incense, there’s dust. Instead of worship, there’s weeping.

Psalm 137: “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.”

How did this happen?

Just a few years earlier, Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylonian army had swept into Judah. In 597 B.C., they captured King Jehoiachin and deported thousands of leaders, soldiers, and craftsmen — Ezekiel among them (2 Kings 24:10–16).

Jerusalem was still standing, but its future was grim.

Now Ezekiel is in exile, hundreds of miles from the temple. His calling seems cut short. His people feel abandoned. Babylon boasts in its power. Its idols line the streets. Its propaganda fills the air.

What he faces: A people crushed, wondering if God has abandoned them. A world that mocks their faith. A priest with no temple, a servant with nowhere to serve.

This is the setting of the book.

The first half (chs. 1–24): judgment is coming on Jerusalem.

The middle (chs. 25–32): judgment on the nations.

The turning point (chs. 33–39): hope and restoration — new heart, new Spirit, dry bones live.

The finale (chs. 40–48): a vision of glory returning, the river of life flowing, and a city renamed “The LORD is there.”

The question on the hearts of God’s people is haunting: Where is God? Has He been defeated? Is He absent? Is His glory chained to Jerusalem while we sit here in Babylon?

It is into that despair that Ezekiel 1 breaks open: “the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.”

This was not a vision Ezekiel asked for. It was one he needed. Before he could ever preach to a stubborn people, before he could ever carry out his prophetic ministry, he needed to be utterly convinced of the glory of God.

That’s Ezekiel’s story. And it starts here — with God breaking into exile and showing His glory.

Why it matters: Ezekiel needed this vision before he could ever speak for God. And we need it too. We live in a culture that shrinks God down, makes Him manageable, turns Him into an accessory. But a small god can’t sustain you in suffering or send you on mission.

So Ezekiel 1 is here to lift our eyes. To remind us who God really is.

1. A Needed Encounter with a Powerful God (1:4–14)

Ezekiel sees a storm. Not just rain and thunder, but fire flashing, lightning bursting, brightness blazing. Notice the direction: it comes “out of the north.” Babylon had come from the north to invade Judah. But here’s the point — what Ezekiel sees is not Babylon’s army, but God’s glory. What looks like the power of empires is actually the stage for God to reveal Himself.

A. The storm that shook him

Ezekiel 1:4 “4 And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire.”

North was the direction Babylon invaded from. But this storm isn’t Babylon — it’s God.

Fire and cloud recall Sinai (Exod. 19) and wilderness (Exod. 13). God comes in power.

B. The creatures that surrounded him.

Ezekiel 1:5 “5 Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man.”

Four living creatures (vv. 5–14): man, lion, ox, eagle. Wisdom, strength, service, swiftness.

They blaze like fire. They move like lightning.

The whole created order under God’s command.

C. The holiness that undid him

Surrounded by mute idols , Ezekiel needed to see the living God. Jeremiah 10:3–5 “3 For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. 4 They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. 5 They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.”

This is majesty, not mythology. This is holiness, not helplessness.

Application:

We need this too. We live in a culture that trivializes God. Even in the church, we sometimes treat Him casually — as if He exists to make us happy, rather than to be worshiped in holiness.

We need to recover reverence. God is not small. Hebrews 12:29 “29 For our God is a consuming fire.”

We need to confront our idols — money, approval, politics, tech. They can’t speak. He thunders.

We need to let awe come before action. Isaiah cried, “Woe is me” (Isa. 6:5). Paul fell blind (Acts 9:3–4). Ezekiel fell flat (1:28). Ezekiel 1:28 “28 As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake.”

Many times you and I do not want an encounter with a holy, powerful God. Because we are busy trying to convince ourselves that we are powerful. However, there are times in our lives when we face challenges that seem so insurmountable we must see a God that is Big or will not be able to go on.

Transition: But power without purpose would only terrify us. Ezekiel sees next that God’s power is perfectly directed.

2. A Needed Encounter with a God in Control (1:15–21)

Now Ezekiel sees wheels. Not just ordinary wheels, but “a wheel in the middle of a wheel” (v. 16). Picture intersecting wheels, able to move in any direction without turning. Verse 17 says they could move “upon their four sides: and they turned not when they went.” In other words, they move unhindered, unstoppable. Even more striking: verse 18 says, “Their rings were full of eyes round about them four.” These wheels are covered with eyes — a symbol of God’s perfect knowledge and omniscience. Nothing escapes His gaze.

A. The wheels that moved everywhere.

“Wheel within a wheel” (v. 16). Movement in all directions.

Nothing stuck. Nothing blocked.

Picture intersecting wheels, able to move in any direction without turning. / ZTR

B. The eyes that saw everything.

Rings full of eyes (v. 18). Symbol of omniscience.

God misses nothing.

C. The Spirit that directed it all

“Wherever the Spirit wanted to go, they went” (vv. 20–21). History is not random. It is Spirit-driven.

Why Ezekiel needed this:

Because his life had been shattered. His priestly ministry was over before it began. No temple. No altar. No sacrifices. From his perspective, it was chaos.

God shows him: My plans are not derailed. My Spirit directs the wheels of history. I am not bound by geography or circumstance. I reign here in Babylon as much as in Jerusalem.

“We don’t know exactly what Ezekiel saw, but we know what effect it had: it left him on his face before God. That is the proper response.”

Application (1–2–3):

When life feels out of control, remember the wheels aren’t wild. The Spirit directs them.

When people mean evil, God means good (Gen. 50:20). He works all things for good (Rom. 8:28).

When you can’t trace His hand, trust His heart (Spurgeon).

Transition: But Ezekiel’s vision doesn’t stop with power and control. Above it all, he sees the throne.

3. A Needed Encounter with a God Who Reigns (1:22–28)

Here is the climax: a throne of sapphire, brilliant and glorious. And on the throne sits the likeness of a man. Not a beast, not a tyrant, but one in human form. This points us to the ultimate revelation of God’s glory — the incarnation of Christ. John 1:14 “14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”

A. The throne that rules all

Above the storm, above the creatures, above the wheels — a sapphire throne.

A man seated on it. Anticipating Christ — “the image of the invisible God” (Col. 1:15).

B. The radiance that shines mercy

Fire and brilliance (v. 27).

Verses 27–28: “And I saw as the colour of amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it… and there was the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain.” Around the throne is a rainbow, recalling God’s covenant with Noah (Gen. 9:13–16). Even in judgment, He remembers mercy.

“Left to ourselves we tend immediately to reduce God to manageable terms. We want to get Him where we can use Him… But God cannot be tamed.”

C. An appropriate response

Ezekiel’s response: “I fell on my face” (v. 28).

Worship is the only right posture before the reigning King.

“The church has surrendered her once lofty concept of God and has substituted for it one so low, so ignoble, as to be utterly unworthy of thinking, worshipping men. This she has done… with tragic results.” - Tozer

Application:

Don’t fear thrones of men. Nebuchadnezzar’s reign bowed to God’s (Dan. 7:9–10).

Don’t despair in chaos. The throne in heaven is not empty (Rev. 4:2–3).

Don’t doubt His reign. “He shall reign forever and ever” (Rev. 11:15).

Conclusion: Three Needed Responses to the God of Glory

Ezekiel 1 is not meant to satisfy curiosity about strange creatures and wheels. It is meant to overwhelm us with the reality of God’s glory.

Ezekiel needed to see a God who is powerful in the face of Babylon’s idols.

He needed to see a God who is in control in the face of life’s chaos.

He needed to see a God who reigns above Babylon’s throne.

And we need the same vision.

How should we respond?

1. Worship Him with Reverence

Ezekiel fell on his face (1:28).

Practice reverence: prepare your heart, confess sin, embrace silence, sing the throne, approach the Word and Table with awe.

Do our gatherings lift God or ourselves? Do our kids see reverence in us?

2. Trust Him in Uncertainty

Wheels full of eyes, Spirit directing (1:20–21).

Practice trust: lament honestly, journal God’s providences, memorize Bible verses.

Where are you assuming God can’t work?

3. Obey Him with Surrender

Worship flows into calling (2:1–7).

Practice surrender: ask “What pleases the King?” before decisions, smash idols, witness as an exile, take costly steps of faith.

Where are you resisting His reign?

Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 4:6: “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

Ezekiel saw the vision. We see the fulfillment. In Christ, God’s glory has come near. In Christ, majesty and mercy meet.

So lift your eyes. Don’t let exile define you. Don’t let Babylon intimidate you. Don’t settle for a small god. When God’s glory breaks in, we encounter Him as powerful, in control, and reigning. And the only response is to fall down and worship.