Stand In The Gap

Stand In The Gap Ezekiel 22:23-30 Tomorrow is Veterans Day, and I’d like to share a couple of quick stories with you. 2nd Lieutenant Joe Biggers was wounded when his platoon came under intense fire. Despite his wound, he led an assault against the enemy position, forcing them to abandon their position. He again led his men forward to assault another position and was wounded a second time. He refused medical attention until all of his men had been treated and evacuated. Albert Munro, WWII, attempted to evacuate a battalion of Marines that were trapped by the Japanese in Point Cruz. Munro volunteered as Officer in Charge of a group of 24 Higgins boats that would complete the evacuation. Munro used his own boat as a shield between his own troops and the Japanese gunfire to allow the other crafts to land ashore and carry out the rescue. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his bravery. These are just two stories of countless others who have stood in the Gap. Men and women have answered the call by placing themselves in harm's way. Active duty and retired military and First Responders alike have all responded when needed. They have stood in the gap between America and its enemies. They served to protect what we hold dear. They’re when we need help the most. These men and women took a stand for you and me. They stood in the Gap. But what does it mean to stand in the gap? To answer that, let's look at today’s Scripture. Verse 30 pictures an individual standing in the gap of a broken-down wall to prevent the invader from entering and destroying the city. To stand in the gap means taking a stand even if nobody stands with you. It means placing yourself out there while courageously holding your ground. It’s doing your duty even if no one else will. It means caring about others more than yourself. Standing in the gap is answering a call. It’s fighting for what you believe in and doing what’s right for your neighbor. And remember, who does the Bible say our neighbor is? It’s everyone. To stand in the gap is to be both offensive and defensive. It is offensive because, just like a biblical prophet like Ezekiel, prophets take God’s Word to the people. Whether it’s a message that brings joy or fear, biblical prophets stood in the gap between God and man. But to stand in the gap is also defensive. Biblical prophets took a stand for God and defended His Word. Today we don’t have prophets as they did back in Old Testament times, but the role, the job duties of a prophet are still very much needed. Every Christian, not just pastors, are called by God to share their faith. We are called to proclaim God’s Word. Believers are to take the Bible to the people. To preach a message of sin and their need for salvation through Christ. And when confronted, to defend our faith. But fear has a way of crippling even the most committed believer. I mean, how many of us have wanted to share Christ with someone but failed to because of fear? Remember verse 30 and how it pictured someone who would face the enemy head-on? They would confront the enemy, and even with the wall of protection crumbling beneath their feet, they would climb that wall and stand their ground. Ya know, it takes courage to stand in the gap. Remember, back in those days, a city and its people were surrounded and protected by a wall. These walls were usually tall and very thick. And if the wall was breached, the enemy would rush in. And now here in verse 30, God says that He’s looking for someone to not only stand in the breach but to rebuild it, to build up the wall. Amid all confusion and chaos, God looked for that faithful person to take a stand. Someone who would place themselves between a ruthless enemy and a city full of people. But why? Why would God ask this of someone? Because when we look at the rest of today’s Scripture, we read exactly why God desired that somebody take a stand. In today’s verses, God is talking about the corruption of Jerusalem. God begins in Verse 25 by saying, “ There is a conspiracy of her princes within her like a roaring lion tearing its prey; they devour people, take treasures and precious things and make many widows within her. Her priests do violence to my law and profane my holy things; they do not distinguish between the holy and the common; they teach that there is no difference between the unclean and the clean; and they shut their eyes to the keeping of my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them. Her officials within her are like wolves tearing their prey; they shed bold and kill people to make unjust gain. Her prophets whitewash these deeds for them by false visions and lying divinations. They say, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says’ – when the LORD has not spoken. The people of the land practice extortion and commit robbery; they oppress the poor and needy and mistreat the foreigner, denying them justice.” That’s a mouthful right! I mean, if we were to really go through that verse by verse, we’d unpack a great deal of information. But for right now, let's reduce all of this to just one word, sin. Let’s look at some high points of what this sin included. It included: dishonest leaders, people in power who desired only personal gain, people who make laws against worshipping God, teach false religions, devaluing God’s Word, not make time for God because of worldly distractions, and unjust gain. And that only scratches the surface! And what’s even worse, is the prophets, the very religious leaders who were trusted to keep and teach God’s Word, whitewashed these sinful deeds. To whitewash something means to cover something up. It’s just like when Jesus taught about the whitewashed tombs. He said in Matthew 23:27-28, “You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.” In other words, they tried to make sin not just look appealing but even approved by God. And what do we see today? The same problem. People trying to make sin not sinful is nothing new. What God is saying to Ezekiel in today’s Scripture He’s also saying to us! You see, Jerusalem’s corruption was never isolated to just that city and at that particular point in history. Throughout the history of humanity, ever since Adam and Eve introduced sin into the world, mankind has looked upon themselves more than God. People have loved the world more than the Creator of the world. And to make themselves feel better when sins uncleanliness creeps in, they whitewash their evil deeds. You know, I can clean the outside my car and make it look spectacular, but that doesn’t mean that the car even runs. I mean, what would you think if you took your broken down car to a mechanic and all he did was give it a wax job? Sure it looks great, but it doesn’t work. It can’t go anywhere. It’s clean, but it’s not doing what it’s designed to do. It needs a tune-up. Likewise, you and I are like cars. We’re different ages and go different speeds. Some are loud, and some blow smoke. Some are quite, and others are gassy. And sometimes we even bump into one another. A lot of us are running rough because it’s easy to make a car look clean, but to maintain a car mechanically takes effort and can be costly. Being a Christian takes effort, and it can sure be costly. There is always a price to stand in the gap, but the reward is far worth the cost. We are in need of a tune-up because we’re designed to be tuned-in to God. We’re made to Go, preach God’s Word, make disciples, and stand in the gap. You can be beautiful on the outside but dead on the inside. Remember David? When looking for the next King, people looked at one’s outward appearance, but God looked at the heart. The heart is where the battle is being fought, and the battle is taking a Stand for God. I want you to remember one more very important thing; standing up for God, fighting corruption, and standing in the gap between good and evil, is not just about our Christian duty to serve and care for other Christians, but to care for our own heart as well. Standing in the gap means standing between earth and heaven. It means not allowing yourself or your Christian brothers and sisters to give into temptation. Within every single one of us, a battle is being fought. Temptation lurks around every corner, and “the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). All of us have built walls of protection around ourselves. And over the years those walls can crumble. But stay strong in God. The wall spoken of in today’s Scripture is not made of stones or blocks, but of faithful people who unite their efforts to resist evil. The wall was broken down because nobody would lead the people to God. They allowed evil to overcome them instead of “overcoming evil with good” (Romans 12:21). Imagine if our military and our first responders allowed themselves to be overcome? What danger we’d be in. The same goes for our eternal welfare. Think of the danger those people are in who deny Christ. For the Christian, to stand in the gap is to stand up when God calls, regardless of the circumstances. Back in 1947, a pastor taught Christians to walk backwards in the snow carrying Bibles into countries that forbid them. That way, when the border guards looked down from their towers in the morning, they would run with the police in the wrong direction following the footsteps! The end of verse 30 is heartbreaking. When God asked for someone to stand in the gap, the Bible says that God looked around, “but found no one.” So I ask you, which direction are you running? Are you running towards sin, or are you running towards the wall to stand in the gap? Because even though Jerusalem’s sin angered God, just like our sin angers God, if someone would have stood in the gap, God would turn His anger away because “mercy triumphs over judgment” (James 2:13). Folks, Christ stood in the gap for all us, and now asks for us to stand in the gap for Him. We all owe our thanks to our military and first responders because they stand in the gap. Likewise, for every Christian willing to share Christ, they too stand in the gap. Interestingly, the Hebrew word used for stand is pronounced aw-mad, which means, “to arise, to rise up, to establish, to continue, to endure, to remain, to stand fast, firm, and still, and to repair.” Do you want to make a difference for God in the world? Then stand in the gap. Be willing to stand in the gap for God, and be ready when the world judges you because of that choice. Rise up, endure, stand fast, stand firm, and help repair a sinful world. Fight the good fight of faith. Stand in the gap! AMEN We thank you for the freedom you have given to us, and for the price that was paid by Christ so that we could live free. We remember today. The cost of it all. The great sacrifice for freedom. We thank you for the brave who have fought and continue to fight, so courageously for our nation. We ask for your covering and blessing over them and their families. We pray that you would be gracious and encircle them with your peace. We pray for your great favor and goodness to be evident in their lives. Please be with the men and women in uniform who serve our communities and nation every single day. Lord bless all those who wear the uniform, who serve our cities, our nation, our people. Bless their families. Thank you that in our nation today, we are free to worship. We are free to pray. We are free to read your Word. We are free to speak. We are free to share. For this, we are incredibly grateful. Yet, we understand how quickly these freedoms can be taken away. Give us an increased awareness of the spiritual battle we’re in. Help us to stand strong in you and for your purposes. Thank you that as believers, we can be assured, you never leave us, and you are with us always.