Ezekiel chapter 40. Let's restore our Temple today.
God gives Ezekiel a vision on restoring God's Temple in Israel that was destroyed by surrounding nations.
Reasons for restoration was so that people could make sacrifices:
1) CLEAN – They started with first cleaning the sacrifice.
2) KILL- Killing the sacrifice.
3) PRESENT- Presenting the sacrifice to the Lord.
Just as God wanted to restore the temple building that was destroyed, so does he desire to restore each of us, for our bodies are His temple. COLOSSIANS 3:16-17 and 1ST CORINTHIANS 6:19-20. Please read them!
1) CLEAN through CONFESSION: When we come before the Lord, we are to be cleansed. This occurs through confession of sins. 1 John 1:9 says that if we confess our sins he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and CLEANSE us from all unrighteousness.
What do we need to confess to the Lord today so that we can be CLEAN before Him?
2) KILL through GIVING IT UP: we must be willing to give up any and everything that hinders our relationship with the Lord.
*This could be relationships that don't build us up in the Lord but actually pull us away from Lord.
*This could be our possessions that we hold on to so tight that God is never glorified through them.
*This could be certain behaviors or addictions that also hurt our relationship with the Lord.
3) PRESENT to the LORD.
To present any or everything to the Lord gives HIM the freedom to work in and through our lives and possessions.
We can't do this on our own. We need to give it to the Lord every single day in order to have victory over that which hinders our relationship with God. Satan will daily eat at our minds and heart to the point that we drive ourselves crazy with things that are temporal and not eternal.
Any possession or relationship we have is not really ours. It belongs to the Lord and He is entrusting all this into our hands for his glory. That may mean giving it away, or using it for the glory of God for the benefit of others. Like our car, for example, IS my car my god or do I use my car to help others in need so as to bring glory to God and not myself?
And what about the death of a loved one? We have to learn to heal and let them go. Let the reality that this Earth is not our home but only a temporary place for the coming eternity, become a reality to us. Accepting the idea that death awaits us all should hopefully drive us to want to be a witness to our loved ones and even our enemies.
CONFESS SINS – GIVE UP EVERYTHING – PRESENT IT TO GOD.