A Promised Messiah Pt 2

Intro

Change of Plans: Added 6 sermons to our series, and got rid of planned summer series. We’re going to spend this week and 6 more in the Prophets! I couldn’t skip over them…I tried…

But there is so much good, so many places where we see different aspects of the Promised Messiah throughout the Old Testament Prophets. So we’re not going to go through them all…but like I said, I added six more into the mix!

Because of this, I felt it was important to begin this morning with explaining a little bit more regarding why we, as Christians who are not ethnically Jewish (I don’t believe we have any ethnic Jews apart of our church family), but why can we read the Prophets, read of these promises given to Israel, this promised Messiah for Israel and claim them for ourselves. Why is it that we can look back on these things given to Israel and say they also apply to us? (This was an assumption we lept off of last week, but I want to begin this morning unpacking a little bit more. If you want a fuller explanation, I would encourage you to go back and listen to my sermon from February 1 on Joshua 24-26.)

Let’s PRAY, though, before we get started.

Recipients of the Promise

But just to touch on it a little bit this morning:

Ephesians 2:19–3:6 “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly. When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.”

So Paul is writing to these Gentile believers, he’s just, before this, unpacked the specific ministry he has been called to in taking the Gospel to the gentiles (non-Jews), and he’s telling them: You’re no longer strangers and aliens—you are fellow citizens and members of the household of God. And they are fellow heirs, members of the same body.

They are fellow recipients of the Promises given to the people of God. And we looked at this in depth back in February, seeing that this is a reality because the true recipient of the Promises of God, the Seed of Abraham, the offspring (singular) of Abraham, the Heir of all things is Christ, so all those who are IN CHRIST become fellow recipients of the promises.

So as we continue over these next weeks, seeing more and more regarding the Promised Messiah—who Jesus was promised to be, who HE IS, we don’t have to wonder or questions whether He is all of these things to us as well. He is. While these promises, these Prophecies, were made initially to Israel, we as gentiles have been grafted in by faith, as Romans 11 tells us.

This morning, we are going to be looking together at a prophecy given through a man named Ezekiel.

Who is Ezekiel

Ezekiel was a from a Priestly family in Judah when Babylon first invatded and the first wave of deportations took place. This first wave consisted of many of those in positions of power, authority, and influence. They needed to be out of the way as King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was setting up his rule over this conquered land, so they were the first to be taken away. (This is the same deportation that Daniel and his 3 friends were a part of.)

So Ezekiel was a part of one of these influential priestly families, and when he was 25 years old, he was ripped from his home and taken to Babylon. And for 5 years, nothing happened. He was right at the age of officially entering into the service of the Temple…his entire life had been leading up to this season of serving God in the Temple, and it’s ripped away from him. And instead, he’s left living in exile in a foreign nation.

There’s a sermon here on patiently waiting for the Lord, but I’m not going to preach that one this morning.

But what we find as the book of Ezekiel opens, is 5 years after Ezekiel is taken into exile, as he has been patiently enduring, “the word of the LORD came to [him].” (Ezekiel 1:3) And for the next, roughly, 7 years, he prophesied to those Israelites in Babylon regarding the destruction of Jerusalem due to their disobedience. And it’s interesting as we read through the first few chapters of this book how this took place.

First, he was given a vision of the Glory of the LORD…the problem was that it appeared in Babylon, not Jerusalem. God’s presence had left the Temple…the people had become so rebellious, they had forsaken the ways of the Lord and gone after foreign gods…and so, God removed His presence from among them. And God begins showing Ezekiel what is to come, but Ezekiel isn’t left to just go out and warn the people however he saw fit. In chapter 3, we see that the Lord actually shuts him in his home, closes his mouth, and only loosens his tonge when He has a specific message for the people. They’ve gone beyond the point of reproof and correction. And now…the only message they will get is one of what is to come…the destruction they have brought upon themselves.

After, as I said, roughly 7 years of this, in the 12th year of exile, word came to Ezekiel that Jerusalem had been struck down and the Temple destroyed. It had finally all happened, just as the LORD said it would. And all of a sudden, we see a shift, a pretty drastic shift, in the tone of the message given through Ezekiel.

Whereas the first 7 years of his ministry was filled with warnings and messages of judgement, a different message begins to emmerge…one of Hope.

Now, we’re not going to go fully in depth with all that Ezekiel prophecies. There’s a lot here. But what I want to focus on this morning, specifically, is the prophetic words given regarding the leadership, the shepherds, of Israel and God’s response to them. And in this, we see our Messiah, our Good Shepherd.

Wicked Shepherds

Ezekiel 34:1-10

Markers of these Wicked Shepherds:

Feeding Themselves Instead of the Sheep

Not caring for the weak, sick, injured sheep

Not seeking after the Lost

Ruled with Force and Harshness

What this led to:

Sheep being scattered

Sheep becoming food for wild beasts.

God’s Response:

Required sheep at the hand of the shepherds

Remove them from their position as shepherds

He Himself would Rescue His Sheep

True Shepherd

Ezekiel 34:11-16

Gather His Sheep (Bring back the lost and the strayed)

Give His Sheep Rest

Bind up the Injured

Strengthen the Weak

Destroy the Oppressor (the fat and the strong)

Feed His sheep in justice

Judgement Between Sheep

Ezekiel 34:17-22

Just because it looks like a sheep, and “baaas” like a sheep…doesn’t mean it’s His sheep. (Vs. 17-22)

Romans 9:6–8 “But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring.”

One Shepherd

Ezekiel 34:23-24

Remember who this is?? Remember back—the offspring of David: This is JESUS! Jesus is the promised shepherd. This question, how can God be the shepherd, while simultaneously setting up David as their shepherd?

God Himself, who took on flesh, born of the lineage of David, rightful heir to the throne!

A Covenant of Peace

Ezekiel 34:25-31

This is the promise, the Covenant, God has established through Christ. And again, let’s not forget, we have been grafted in! This eternal covenant of Peace, this eternal state of dwelling securely, showers of blessing, deliverance from enemies, no more fear, no more scarcity or hunger, or need…it is established in Chrsit, our GOOD SHEPHERD, and it is the future that all those who trust in Him have been promised.

Conclusion

Revelation 21:1-27

New Heaven and New Earth - No more pain, no more sickness, no more tears.

New Jerusalem - This city…that isn’t a city…it is the Bridge of Christ…HIS PEOPLE! And notice: There is no TEMPLE! GOD’S DWELLING PLACE IS WITH HIS PEOPLE!

This is our inheritance!!

And how do we get there? How can we be sure that we will make it through this life of pain, heartache, sickness, death…

We have a Good Shepherd.

Psalm 23 - Eyes Closed: Read as Prayer