Move Now or Miss God

Invocation

The Lord is in His Holy Temple.

Let all the Earth keep silent before him.

I was glad when they said unto me let us go into the House of the Lord.

Our feet shall stand within Thy gates Oh Jerusalem.

Song- I Just Want You (Myron Williams)

Lead:

I just want you

I just want to live

In your presence everyday

I lay down my will

And every selfish desire

And whatever it takes

Father that’s what I’ll do

Because we just want you

People:

I just want you

I just want to live

In your presence everyday

I lay down my will

And every selfish desire

And whatever it takes

Father that’s what I’ll do

Because I just want you

Alternative Song-Windows of Heaven Are Open

The windows of heaven are open, The fire is falling tonight. I've got joy, joy, joy in my heart, Since Jesus made ev'rything right. I gave Him my old dirty garment, He gave me a robe of pure white, And now I'm feasting on manna from heaven, and that's why I'm happy tonight.

Opening

Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. For indeed, even when we are not faithful to him, indeed our God is faithful to us. Amen. I thank God for everyone in their respective places and I appreciate you for your contributions to the Kingdom. It is my prayer that each of you will continually see the blessings of the Lord as we seek to be men and women after God’s own heart. Amen.

To my beautiful wife on this morning, I thank God for her each and every day because she has been better to me than I have been to myself is that alright. Alright let us get into the WORD OF GOD.

Read Scripture: Ezekiel 12:1-12

Ezekiel 12:1–12 KJV 1900

1 The word of the Lord also came unto me, saying, 2 Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not: for they are a rebellious house. 3 Therefore, thou son of man, prepare thee stuff for removing, and remove by day in their sight; and thou shalt remove from thy place to another place in their sight: it may be they will consider, though they be a rebellious house. 4 Then shalt thou bring forth thy stuff by day in their sight, as stuff for removing: and thou shalt go forth at even in their sight, as they that go forth into captivity. 5 Dig thou through the wall in their sight, and carry out thereby. 6 In their sight shalt thou bear it upon thy shoulders, and carry it forth in the twilight: thou shalt cover thy face, that thou see not the ground: for I have set thee for a sign unto the house of Israel. 7 And I did so as I was commanded: I brought forth my stuff by day, as stuff for captivity, and in the even I digged through the wall with mine hand; I brought it forth in the twilight, and I bare it upon my shoulder in their sight. 8 And in the morning came the word of the Lord unto me, saying, 9 Son of man, hath not the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said unto thee, What doest thou? 10 Say thou unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; This burden concerneth the prince in Jerusalem, and all the house of Israel that are among them. 11 Say, I am your sign: like as I have done, so shall it be done unto them: they shall remove and go into captivity. 12 And the prince that is among them shall bear upon his shoulder in the twilight, and shall go forth: they shall dig through the wall to carry out thereby: he shall cover his face, that he see not the ground with his eyes.

Prayer

Give Subject: Move Now or Miss God

Introduction

Amen… This phrase, “move now or miss God” has been ringing in my spirit for several weeks (possibly months now) and I know what it means for me. But when God was speaking into my spirit I had a hard time understanding how it applied to each one of you who are hearing me today. It is not that I misunderstand the need to move now or miss God… but it is my earnest intent whenever I preach the Word of God not to preach at people but to instead preach INTO people.

I do not want an emotional reaction I want an internal change to take place by way of the Holy Spirit. However, God knowing the person I am he often speaks to me in a way that first titillates your mind and then stirs your spirit because it does no good for your spiritual vessel to be full but your mental one be empty. The scripture says let this mind be in you which is also in Christ Jesus. So God is not simply after your spirit but he is after your mind because he made your mind but we have allowed our mind to be corrupted by flesh. So we pray to God that we be not conformed unto this world, but that we would instead be TRANSFORMED by the renewing of our MIND. And too many Christians get saved and then we LOSE our mind. We do not go crazy or suffer from dementia but in fact many of us take on faith and we get lazy. We take on belief and we get slow. We invite God in but then we let our mind check out. That is why you have so many people in the house of God rejecting basic science and technology… because you have taken on faith and lost your mind.

Does the scripture say take the vaccine no… but nowhere does my Bible mention Ibuprofen.

No the scripture does not say and immediately they wore masks… but nowhere does your bible mention contraception.

The scripture is void of conversation about social distancing… but it also does not say anything about two or three gathering in the A/C there I am in the midst.

And so we pick and choose scripture for the sake of convenience but ignore the weightier matters of the scripture.

And it all originates around this idea that God is a monolithic figure that never moves, never wavers, and never changes.

Can we be real in the House of God.

We get into this mindset that we have never done it that way and so we will never do it this way. You not going to like me today.

We get into a habit of building a monument around what God did but we will not follow him where he is going.

So we get into this cycle and all I can think to do is ask the question...

Are we following God or are we expecting God to follow us?

What does your worship look like?

I have said this before, but God did not create you to do what it is you wanted to do.

But we are to present our bodies as a living sacrifice… Holy and acceptable unto God which is our reasonable service.

You do not have possession of your own body because you were bought with a price… paid in blood.

And too many of us live life as though God owes us something and he owes you nothing.

And so because we feel that God owes us something we do what pleases us and expect God to go around and make all YOUR ideas possible.

And if I step on your toes today let me make it plain… I only want us to pursue a Kingdom walk as I could care less about your church stances and beliefs.

Because we have crafted this image of God that needs us and God is waiting on you and we peddle that narrative to make people feel good about dragging they feet on God.

But my Bible says that he was a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night and when he moved… they moved.

When he packed up… they packed up.

But we have created a generation of church members who think that God is holding the bus for them.

The Devil is a Liar...

The Bible teaches us that the nature of God is to go after the lost sheep… but many of us are not lost we are just disobedient.

And so the Church today has gotten out of step with the Body of Christ.

The Church has gotten out of step with the will of God.

The Church has gotten out of step with the calling that Christ gave us.

The Church is supposed to be more than a padded pew and some hollering.

The Church is a hospital to the sick.

Its a home for the homeless.

Its a potter’s wheel for the broken.

It is the place where people are supposed to get help… if they can’t get it nowhere else.

Pray for people… absolutely… but God’s kingdom is supposed to have power, influence, money, integrity that goes beyond prayer.

Your prayer life should produce what people need in their lives.

Your fasting should yield what people have need of in their marriages.

Your worship should nurture the increase people need in their finances.

For the Bible says that we must become all things to all men that we might SAVE SOME.

And so… many of us wonder why

Churches are shrinking.

Churches are closing.

Religious affiliation is falling.

It is because we as the Church have missed a calling because we waited on God to follow us rather than for us to follow him.

This takes me to my text for this morning.

Ezekiel 12:1-12

Ezekiel is a prophet who was called by God to speak concerning the situation of the people of Israel leading up to and in their state of captivity. Based on scholarly understanding… Ezekiel would have been born at some point during the reforms of Josiah (who we have been studying in our Wednesday Night Bible Study). Ezekiel was born to a priest, meaning that he grew up exposed to the inner workings of the religious community and would likely have enjoyed a front row seat as a child to the changes and decisions implemented by Josiah and those who served with him.

And so Ezekiel grows up and matures in a Kingdom that rightly divides the Word, knows the Word, and performs the Word.

He saw the transformative power that came through the Word.

And yet everything that he saw was only a temporary hold that we knew would change, according to the will of God.

We have already learned that during his reign, Josiah encountered the law that had been hidden away by priests at one point, and when he read the law he sent for Word from the profit.

We learned in Bible Study that Josiah sent the priests to get word from the women of God Huldah, who told them in no uncertain terms.

God was not pleased.

God was going to send his wrath.

But Josiah would be spared from God’s wrath.

They bring back this Word and yet, Josiah digs his heels into the Word of God and makes the entire Kingdom pledge themselves to upholding the Word.

All of this is transpiring while Ezekiel is a young man, so if the timeline of the scholars is correct and if Ezekiel is part of the priesthood as his lineage suggests, it means Ezekiel is possibly one of the people who rededicated their life to Christ.

So Ezekiel sees the Godly reforms of Josiah.

And he at some point rededicates his life to God’s way.

And yet, for all the efforts of Josiah, Jeremiah, and others the people of God turned back from God and in response...

God’s word to Hezekiah

His promise to Josiah

and His anger towards the Kingdom… are all fulfilled through the collapse of the Kingdom under Zedekiah.

So Ezekiel steps onto the scene and opens up the book of Ezekiel with visions of prophecy from the Lord.

He is 30 years old and has to this point been in captivity for about 5 years.

God opens up Heaven and calls him to be a prophet to the rebellious house of Israel.

He then spends the remainder of the book of Ezekiel prophesying concerning the actions and inaction of the Israelite people.

He is often called by God to demonstrate God’s words using his body and props.

At times he looks to the hills and begins to prophesy to the mountains, rocks, and hills the oracles of God.

Many people viewed Ezekiel as being crazy.

Even now, theologians argue whether Ezekiel was schizophrenic or otherwise mentally ill.

Some say that he was facing mental problems due to the complex and eclectic nature of his visions.

And yet these same people find it hard to corroborate the intense nature of his visions with their supposed diagnosis because the accuracy with which he prophesied to the will and meaning of God.

People will talk about you… but God will close their mouth.

And so, he is now in captivity.

Having been deported to Babylonian captivity with the former King of Judah, Jehoichian.

He lives along the Keber river in captivity as he tries to find ways to occupy his time.

I imagine he spent some days trying to familiarize himself with the surrounding countryside.

Maybe his fished off the bank of the river...

We know that the Elders in his little community met frequently based on other passages of Ezekiel...

Possibly he and his wife took time to reconnect, sense he would have been relieved from any priestly duties by virtue of no longer being in Jerusalem.

God comes to him with visions and begins using him to prophesy while he and some of his people are in captivity.

We see one of those prophesies here in the book of Ezekiel in the 12 Chapter.

Here God comes to Ezekiel and asks him to begin packing up and moving his belongs.

He asks him to do so in broad daylight so the people can see him as he is doing the move.

Sometimes God is going to ask you to do things that look foolish to man but they are perfectly within the will of God.

God may even ask you to do things that people will not only find foolish, but he will purposefully ask you to put yourself in the spotlight so you can look even more foolish.

Sometimes you have to be willing to look foolish for God because he is calling you to a foolish place.

For the scripture says it Pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

Scripture says even that God will use the foolish things to confound the wise.

He asks him to continue moving his things into exile, under the HOPE that MAYBE they will here even though they are a rebellious people.

Even when they are not listening… keep preaching.

When they ignore you… keep preaching.

When they incline their ear… keep preaching.

When they turn their backside… keep preaching.

For the Gospel is to be preached in season and out of season.

And the word tells us if we would just lift him up… he will draw all men unto us.

This means we must preach HIS GOSPEL.

We must preach Christ and HIM crucified.

Now we must remember about Ezekiel at this point in his life… that he is in Exile on the River of Keber in the midst of Babylon.

He is in captivity… and God is asking him to preach to a captive people...

Furthermore, he is preaching to a captive people… to get a message to a free people.

Ezekiel 12:10–12 KJV 1900

10 Say thou unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; This burden concerneth the prince in Jerusalem, and all the house of Israel that are among them. 11 Say, I am your sign: like as I have done, so shall it be done unto them: they shall remove and go into captivity. 12 And the prince that is among them shall bear upon his shoulder in the twilight, and shall go forth: they shall dig through the wall to carry out thereby: he shall cover his face, that he see not the ground with his eyes.

Now at this point in his ministry and life, Ezekiel has been in captivity for about 5 years so he has, in theory, lived in captivity in his home for that five years.

And yet while he is in captivity, their is still a contingent of the Israelites in Jerusalem led by King Zedekiah.

Zedekiah has been made King instead of Jehoichian by the Babylonian King, Nebuchadnezzar and is serving as regent subservient to the Babylonian crowd.

So God, through this servant Ezekiel is sending word BACK TO JERUSALEM letting them know that they are next.

Have you ever had to do something for God and it brought you too a painful place.

It felt to soon to minister from that place.

It felt too early to minister from that place.

Maybe you had not yet healed in that place.

Perhaps you were still nursing pain and humiliation.

And then God asks you take some clay from your vessel… before it even gets the chance to harden… to try patching another vessel.

And you say God but that was my healing…

That was my deliverance...

That was my breakthrough....

And you become angry with God because

You just gave me the money to pay my light bill and now you want me to give it to Sister Rent Due and...

You just gave me this new job and now you want me to quit it and go into full time ministry at Ungrateful Baptist Church...

God… how can you do this to me.

Because make no mistake about it Ezekiel has just been given the opportunity to move and get settled in an area that is not his.

He just learned how to drive around without a GPS....

He figured out which bank he wanted to switch to....

And he about to get his phone switched to the new area code...

And just when he thinks he has it figured out… God comes calling and says get all of your stuff and I want you relive the most painful moment of your life… to prove a point to people who may not hear you no way… and if they hear you they probably won’t listen.

Its not like Ezekiel assumes they will not listen… but God reminds him as he gives instruction.... THEY ARE A REBELLIOUS HOUSE.

And God says to Ezekiel… Pack up your bags and move…

And as I go to my seat, that is what I wanted to tell somebody on today… You have to move now or miss God.

Conclusion

I need you to understand that God is calling you to get beyond yourself and heed the voice of God.

I wish I had time to deal with the Wall....

I wish I had more time to deal with the Children of Israel...

But in the end… it is all the same thing.

The children of Israel are in their predicament because they prized the voice of their leader over the voice of God.

They had erected idols...

They had built high places...

They had burned incense to other god’s...

They had erected statutes to other god...

They had even taken the things of God and used them to honor other Gods...

They spent generations falling away from God and failed to acknowledge and honor the move of God.

And God is calling them to MOVE away from their rebellious ways...

Move away from your wayward tendencies.

Move away from your idolatrous ways.

And move with the move of God.

And you may not consider yourself rebellious.

You may not consider yourself idolatrous

But the pandemic is a sign that the saints are not moving with the move of God.

For the Bible says if MY PEOPLE that are called by my name, humble themselves and pray.... seek my face and turn from their wicked ways… Then will I hear from heaven and heal their land.

Have you been on your post.

Have you been praying.

Are you sacrificing yourself to the move and shift of God.

Have you inclined your ear to HEAR GOD.

Can you get beyond yourself and hear him?

Can God trust you to move even if, like Ezekiel, you have to go through some pain?

If you have to go through some hurt.

If you have to relive some bad memories.

Can God trust you to strengthen your brother when your conversion comes?

Can God trust you to be somebody else’s Ram as he is yours?

Can You MOVE NOW… or Will You Miss God?00