Wretched Man That I Am

CONFRONTED (20:1-4)

Verse 1 ‘to inquire of the LORD’ or Consult

the elders of Israel had come to the prophet to inquire what message of the Lord he had to give them in the present crisis

Verse 3 ‘speak with the elders of Israel and tell them, “This is what the Lord God says....’ Are you listening…because this is the word of God.

QUESTION: If you are an elder of the chosen and most favored nation Israel: What would be the message that you would most be expecting?

Probably not what they were expecting; but an important message anyway. “The leaders who came to seek God’s counsel were not coming with proper attitudes, and God knew their hearts were not fully His. The summative statement, this is the declaration of the Lord God, again emphasizes the true source of Ezekiel’s words—the Lord.”

Verse 4 The reference to the “fathers” points to an ancient and deep-rooted evil which demanded a radical cure.

When you think of prophet’s, do you think of them bringing popular messages?Often a prophet is characterized by an unpopular message.! God invited Ezekiel here to tell God’s truth in the form of a question: “Will you pass judgment against them....?”

Explain to them: or give them information in more detail AND Then ‘Say’ to them (ironically) שַׁי šay: A masculine noun indicating a gift, a present. It refers to something given freely to show friendship, appreciation, support, recognition (Baker and Carpenter, The Complete Word Study Dictionary)

Ezekiel’s Job was to be like: “I’m gonna just leave this here-just saying… here is a list of the detestable practices that have plagued your people” Detestable things are things deserving of intense dislike-abominations before God.

COVENANT RELATIONSHIP-EARLY ON

Verse 5 ‘This is what the Lord God says’ emphasizes again that this is God’s Word, not Ezekiel’s. “I am the Lord your God, is a reference to the preamble of the Ten Commandments and affirms God’s relationship with Israel.” How fitting that a reference to Exodus 20:1-4 should be inserted here: READ Exodus 20:1-4.

Verse 6 Along with a definition of the covenant that God would make with Israel; God made some promises. God would “Bring them out of Egypt” and lead them to a “land flowing with milk and honey.” That would be cows and bees, right?

Two Occupations: Shepherding and Farming: Goat’s milk and honey probably referring to the sticky sweetness inside dates and figs. The land promised had the potential to be the ‘most beautiful of lands.’ It is here we see the beginnings of God’s graciousness and mercy.

Verse 7-8 Instructions to “throw away the idols they prize”

They continued in their rebellion.

Let’s begin thinking about this in our minds: We don’t need to confess this to anyone but God. But think about this: ‘What is the idol, the thing in your life that God immensely dislikes that He wants you to throw away today?”

Verse 8-9 What was God’s response to Israel’s sin?

‘pouring out my wrath’ ‘exhausting my anger’ but despite the continuing sin of the people; it says, “I acted for the sake of my name, so that it would not be profaned in the eyes of the nations they were living among, in whose sight I had made myself known to Israel....” God was concerned about what the neighbors thought....

How did the Nations See God? What did the neighbors see?

The Egyptians Saw God’s Miraculous Works Causing the Deliverance of His People from Slavery.

The people in Jericho had heard how God had defeated the Egyptians. (Joshua 2:8-11). They also heard how Israel had defeated the kings Sihon and Og east of the Jordan.

God Desired Both His People and the ‘Nations’ to See His Glory through His Mighty Acts. Although they deserved His Wrath, God acted in Mercy to Honor His name and deliver His People.

What is God’s purpose in protecting His Name in the Company of nations that He had not favored?

-The same as He does with those He has favored?

-What effect did the deliverance of Israel have on Egypt?

In an example of how God shows concern for all people-Read Isaiah 2:1-4. Jerusalem was supposed to be a shining city on a hill that declared God’s glory to all nations. He wanted them to be His witnesses; but during Ezekiel’s time, they were as the song goes “hiding it under a bush.. Oh, no!”

This concern for all people is also reflected in the prayers of Daniel as he speaks of the compassion of God. -Read Daniel 9:15-19

REPEATED REBELLION (20:10-14)

Verse 10-12 As God was explaining in detail through Ezekiel the history of their obedience; He says after I delivered them from slavery, I gave them statutes, ordinances, and the Sabbath. He says that following the statutes and ordinances lead to life and that the Sabbath was a sign so that they would know that He had ‘set them apart’ as a people.

What does ‘set apart’ mean? (Consecrates)

Verse 13 How did the people respond after repetitive deliverance and mercy by God?

They “did not follow my statutes” they “rejected my ordinances” and they “profaned my Sabbaths.” This involved outward appearance of following God; but not internally committed to God. Outward worship for others to see....sacrifice of their children in the dark. v.26

Just notice again in verse 14, God says BUT, (and just ‘saying’....just leaving this here: (this is a gift) “I acted for the sake of my name.... so it would not be profaned in the eyes of the nations.” The most important thing to God here is ‘relationship.’

This says a lot about God, His Holiness, His Justice, His Mercy, and His Grace.

So let’s bridge the gap between the OT Israelite to the NT Child of God.

Do we have same problem of repetitive rebellion?

And, let’s not point to the Israelites and say our sin does not rise to the level of idol worship, child sacrifice, and all the crazy things we think they were doing. We certainly have a rebellion problem....born of God, or not! I will demonstrate that here in Romans 7 in a few minutes.

Does knowing that God has a heart of mercy and forgiveness relieve us of our sin?

Romans 6:1 “What should we say then? Should we continue in sin so that grace may multiply?”

MacArthur here presents several ways (all over Scripture) about why a Christian is sensitive to sin: The one that really applies here from Ezekiel is: it pollutes Christian fellowship (1 Cor. 10:21). The reason this is close, is because this is about the One who has called you, and set you apart.

The spiritual believer is sensitive to sin because he knows it grieves the Holy Spirit (Eph. 4:30), because it dishonors God (1 Cor. 6:19–20), because sin keeps his prayers from being answered (1 Pet. 3:12), and because sin makes his life spiritually powerless (1 Cor. 9:27). The spiritual believer is sensitive to sin because it causes good things from God to be withheld (Jer. 5:25), because it robs him of the joy of salvation (Ps. 51:12), because it inhibits spiritual growth (1 Cor. 3:1), because it brings chastisement from the Lord (Heb. 12:5–7), and because it prevents his being a fit vessel for the Lord to use (2 Tim. 2:21). .... because it prevents participating properly in the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor. 11:28–29), and because it can even endanger his physical life and health (1 Cor. 11:30; 1 John 5:16).

Thomas Scott, an evangelical preacher of the Church of England in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, wrote that when a believer “compares his actual attainments with the spirituality of the law, and with his own desire and aim to obey it, he sees that he is yet, to a great degree, carnal in the state of his mind, and under the power of evil propensities, from which (like a man sold for a slave) he cannot wholly emancipate himself. He is carnal in exact proportion to the degree in which he falls short of perfect conformity to the law of God” (cited in Geoffrey B. Wilson, Romans: A Digest of Reformed Comment [London: Banner of Truth, 1969], p. 121). [READ Romans 7:5-6; 13-25.]

I can agree and so deeply understand the apostle Paul regarding the battle with sin: For in my inner self I joyfully agree with God’s law. But I see a different law in the parts of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and taking me prisoner to the law of sin in the parts of my body.  What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this dying body? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I myself am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh, to the law of sin.

The MacArthur Study Bible (Chapter 7)

7:14–25 Some interpret this chronicle of Paul’s inner conflict as describing his life before Christ. They point out that Paul describes the person as “sold under sin” (v. 14); as having “nothing good” in him (v. 18); and as a “wretched man” trapped in a “body of death” (v. 24). Those descriptions seem to contradict the way Paul describes the believer in chap. 6. .... However, it is correct to understand Paul here to be speaking about a believer. This person desires to obey God’s law and hates his sin (vv. 15, 19, 21); he is humble, recognizing that nothing good dwells in his humanness (v. 18); he sees sin in himself, but not as all that is there (vv. 17, 20–22); and he serves Jesus Christ with his mind (v. 25). Paul has already established that none of those attitudes ever describe the unsaved (cf. 1:18–21, 32; 3:10–20).

Paul now realized how wretchedly short of God’s perfect law he lived, even as a Spirit-indwelt believer and an apostle of Jesus Christ.

That spirit of humble contrition is a mark of every spiritual disciple of Christ, who cries out, “Lord, I can’t be all you want me to be, I am unable to fulfill your perfect, holy, and glorious law.” In great frustration and sorrow he painfully confesses with Paul, I am not practicing what I would like to do.

As long as a believer remains on earth in his mortal and corrupted body, the law will continue to be his spiritual ally. The obedient and Spirit-filled believer, therefore, greatly values and honors all the moral and spiritual commandments of God. He continues to declare with the psalmist, “Thy word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against Thee” (Ps. 119:11), and that Word is more than ever a lamp to his feet and a light to his path (Ps. 119:105). God’s Word is more valuable for believers under the New Covenant than it was for those under the Old Covenant, not only because the Lord has revealed more of His truth to us in the New Testament, but also because believers now have the fulness of His indwelling Holy Spirit to illumine and apply His truth. Therefore, although the law cannot save or sanctify it is still holy, righteous, and good (Rom. 7:12), and obedience to it offers great benefits both to believers and unbelievers.

Romans 5:18-19 is a great place to conclude:

18 So then, as through one trespass there is condemnation for everyone, so also through one righteous act there is life-giving justification for everyone. 19 For just as through one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.