Ezekiel 26:7 “For thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I will bring upon Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses, chariots, cavalry and a great army.’”

EVEN A PAGAN

God can use anyone! Yep! I said that! How else do you explain God using Nebuchadnezzar to overthrow Israel and Judah and carry them into exile? Nebuchadnezzar is best seen in the Book of Daniel. He was a prideful, arrogant soul. But God chose to use him to judge His people who had strayed so far from what was holy.

So, will God use unbelievers in your life to get your attention? You had better believe it. He will use whatever and whomever He chooses to get us back on the right path. Let me ask you, “What unbeliever has God used in your life?”

TEACHING MOMENT

Your children need to understand something right now. God will place people in authority over us to teach us and prepare us. Hopefully, most of them will be fellow believers. But He will even put unbelievers in our life to draw out of us all those things He wishes to reveal to us. His whole purpose is to make us more like Him.

Your child may have a teacher who does not believe in Christ. How are you going to teach your child to deal with them- with contempt or with respect? You may have an unbelieving boss right now. How do your children hear you talk about him? We are constantly teaching our children as we are being taught ourselves. So what lessons are we learning and passing on to them?

I don’t know about you, but one thing I have learned from some of my unbelieving bosses is how to be a better boss. As God has allowed me to be in authority over others, I have striven to be a godly and responsible boss. I want to draw my employees toward Him, not away. Won’t you be Jesus to those around you?

Revelation 3:4 “’But you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; and they will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.’”

WHO WERE THEY?

When I read this verse today my first thought was, “Who were these people? What made them worthy?” Obviously, the Lord knew them. He tells John to tell the angel of Sardis (the Pastor of the church) this. I am sure the Pastor knew immediately who these people were.

Don’t you know the people in your church who are living for Christ? Can’t you point out the ones who, from all outward appearances, are walking with Him? Well, at least we think we do. We can only judge from what we see on the outside. The Lord sees the heart. He knows exactly “who have not soiled their garments.” He knows their motives and desires and still He says “they will walk with Me in white.”

TEACHING MOMENT

Our children need to understand that the Lord knows their hearts. He knows exactly what they are thinking. He doesn’t have to wait to see their actions, like their parents. They can’t lie to Him. Be honest, some kids are just good at lying. They can fool the sharpest parent, or at least they can for a while. But not God. He knows what we are thinking even before we think it.

Wouldn’t it be nice then if the Lord would just think for us? Wouldn’t it be nice if He would just tell us the right thing to do before we do it? Well, He will, but we have to give up our rights and die to our own selfish desires. Then He can direct the Holy Spirit to live through us, guiding and shaping our very thoughts. And once we let Him have control, we discover that life is much sweeter. Decisions are easier because it is He who is guiding us. We know that He will ALWAYS direct us to what is good for us.

I don’t know about you, but I want to be known by the Lord as “worthy.” How about you?

Ezekiel 24:14 “’I, the Lord, have spoken; it is coming and I will act. I will not relent, and I will not pity and I will not be sorry; according to your ways and according to your deeds I will judge you,’ declares the Lord God.”

TOUGH WORDS

These are harsh words. These are words that we do not want to hear. These are words that no one ever wants to experience first-hand. But they are the Lord’s words to a rebellious people. He had sent prophet after prophet to proclaim to the nation their need for repentance. He had given them chance after chance to turn away from their filthy idols and come back to pure worship of Him, Jehovah God. But the people continued to rebel.

Now, before you judge too quickly, remember that we are just like them. We thumb our nose at God too may times. We think we have it all together and don’t need guidance from Him. We believe we have the knowledge and experience to face life’s challenges without leaning on a “spiritual crutch.” We may not bow before a false idol or pray to a pagan god, but we are just as guilty of rebellion.

TEACHING MOMENT

So, how can this truth of God’s judgment be taught to our children? Don’t shy away from being brutally honest with your children about God’s holiness and His demands on our lives. Your children need to know that a Holy God has the right to judge us for our unbelief. Even while He holds us accountable He will not force us to comply. Our children have to understand that it is their choice.

We parents cannot force our children to comply to our rules. We can enforce consequences for their disobedience, but we cannot make them do what we ask. They have to choose. The next time you have to deal with an issue with your child, talk about how we all have to be “dealt” with one day by a Righteous Judge.

Oh, but the beauty of it all is that, when we bow and surrender to Him, all the guilt and punishment is removed from us. Christ has taken all this on Himself on our behalf. When we give our lives to Him, He takes a stand in our place. All I have to do is believe and surrender my will to His. Now, that’s a deal. I do not get what I deserve because He took what He did not deserve. Hallelujah what a Savior.

Revelation 2:17a “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

GOD’S VOICE

Sometimes it’s just pain hard to hear God, isnt’ it? Sometimes it seems He is disguising His voice. Sometimes we can’t hear Him because of the noise of our world around us. So, what do we do? How can we tune in to God’s voice and hear the message He has for us?

I don’t know about you, but I can get distracted very easily. I can hear a lot of things at one time, but I can’t effectively listen to them all. I have to zero in on one and concentrate to comprehend what is being said. That takes discipline and the willingness to shut out the other noises.

TEACHING MOMENT

Our children are no different. How many times have you hollered for little Gertrude with no response? You yell and yell her name, but she is oblivious to your voice. She has tuned into a video game or a tv show, and the world around her has ceased to exist. How do we teach our children the importance of listening for God’s voice?

We have to explain to them what His voice sounds like. We have to show them through our own lives what to do when we hear His voice. After all, it’s one thing to hear His voice and another thing to listen and obey. We need to show them in God’s Word how He speaks to us. Every day He can speak to them through the written Word, if they will take the time to read and then listen.

And just like the voice which came to Elijah, it is often a gentle whisper. God seldom yells my name. He desires that I be focusing on Him to truly listen. Are you listening today? Are you focusing all your senses on Him? Are you straining to hear His voice?

There it is! There’s the voice of the Lord saying, “Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy burdened, and I will give you rest.”

Ezekiel 18:23 “’Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked,’ declares the Lord God, ‘rather than that he should turn from his ways and live?’”

JUST REPENT

Have you ever heard someone ask, “Why would a loving God send anyone to hell?” I have heard that too many times. I always explain that God does not send people to hell. They choose hell because of their refusal to bow before a Holy God. This verse backs that up. God desires that all men repent and turn to Him. He takes no “pleasure in the death of the wicked.”

So how do we turn the wicked towards God? We have to love them and tell them just how much God loves them. We have to forgive them. Yes, I said forgive them. Even when they do not “deserve” forgiveness, we are called to forgive. No one has ever hurt me as much as the people hurt Jesus, yet He forgave them all. What is stopping me?

TEACHING MOMENT

As parents, one of the hardest things we do is to teach our children to forgive others. It’s hard for us to forgive those who have hurt our children. But in order for us to teach them to forgive, we have to forgive. Forgiveness is something we cannot do on our own. We have to show our children that forgiveness only comes through God. We do not have the ability to forgive. Our nature is to “get even.”

If your child has not been hurt by someone yet, hang on. It’s coming. Don’t miss this opportunity to teach them forgiveness. Notice the verse says that God desires that even the WICKED turn to Him. We don’t encounter many truly wicked people. Thank the Lord for that! But we do run into people who are fleshly and mean. We have to show our children that, through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can forgive.

I have to be honest. Revenge is sweet! We all desire to “get back” at those who have hurt us. But I have learned that forgiveness is even sweeter. Better yet, it pleases the Father. Make His desire your desire. Forgive!

Rev 2:25 “Nevertheless, what you have, hold fast til I come.”

TO LIVE WE HAVE TO DIE

Are you holding fast? Christ is telling us here through the Apostle John to hold fast to what we have. So, the question is “What do we have?”

Have you thought about the fact that we have soooooooo much in Christ? We have everything we need to live the Christian life. Why? Because it is not our life, it is His. All we have to do is let HIM live through us. All we have to do is die to self daily.

TEACHING MOMENT

Dying to self is a difficult concept to teach our children. When we mention dying to a child they often will get scared and upset. I understand that. To many people, even Christians, death is scary. What we have to do, however, is educate our children about what death really is. For a believer, death is simply a transition to life eternal with Christ. And that, my friend, is a comfort, not a fear.

But how do we help our children “die daily” to Christ? We pray with them each day to let Christ live through them. We teach them to pray, “Lord, get me out of the way today. Be my ears, eyes, mouth and hands. Live and love through me today Jesus.” That’s it! Nothing else! But we have to do it daily or we can’t “hold fast” to what we have.

Holding fast literally means to hold strong, guard or grip tightly. Life wants to cause us to loose grip sometimes. Things get crazy, busy, discouraging, challenging. Christ says here “Hang tight. I’ve got this. Don’t sweat it.” It’s like the song lyrics say, “Jesus be Jesus in me. No longer me but Thee. Resurrection power, fill me this hour. Jesus be Jesus in me.”

Will you today just let Him have complete control? Hold fast to your faith in Him who is holding you fast. Rest my brother! Rest my sister.

Ezekiel 11:19-20 “’19 And I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, 20 that they may walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and do them. Then they will be My people, and I shall be their God.’”

HEARTS OF STONE

The people of Israel had become so hard-hearted that they did not care anything about God’s correction or instruction. God was preparing to send them into exile because of their rebellious acts against Him, and they did not seem to care. Right after these verses God’s glory is removed from the Temple, leaving it desolate and without His presence. Now, that is sad.

But even in the midst of judgment, God reminds Ezekiel that they are still His people. When they repent and turn to Him, He will restore them to Himself and give them a soft, supple heart that can be shaped and molded by Him. This will give them the ability, once again, to keep His commandments.

TEACHING MOMENT

Has your child ever gotten “hard-hearted” towards your instructions? Maybe you call it strong willed or hard-headed. Either way, they refuse to obey. You try everything, and they still refuse to listen or comply. This is a perfect verse to apply to the situation. We cannot make them comply. But we can allow them to have to deal with the natural consequences of their actions, just like Israel had to when they disobeyed God.

How long do we enforce the consequences? Well, that all depends on little Gertrude and Leroy. They must repent of their sin against God and you and ask for forgiveness. They must recognize that they need to restore the fellowship. They must give up their hard heart and receive that new heart. Our challenge, as parents, is to NOT cave under pressure and rescue them before they have reached that point of confession. In many ways, it is harder on us.

God could have decided to NOT send the people into exile. He could have just forgiven them and gone on about His business. But He knew that would only make the people worse. We have to do the right thing with our children also. Remember, this is a marathon, not a sprint. We are looking at the finish line, not each hill along the course. Stay true to the course. God has placed your children in your care to teach and prepare to follow Him. He will give you the wisdom and grace to parent. Just ask Him!

Jude 17-18 “17 But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, 18 that they were saying to you, ‘In the last time there will be mockers, following after their own ungodly lusts.’”

DISRESPECT

Have you noticed how the world around us is mocking God? They acknowledge God only when He is convenient or in agreement to what THEY believe. But the very second God’s Word comes into contrast to what they believe, He is mocked and ridiculed or downright dismissed.

So why are we surprised by this? We are told right here in the small book of Jude to expect that. Even back in the time of Christ, they were doing that. They mocked Him. They even spat on Him. Why should we be surprised today when we witness the same?

TEACHING MOMENT

It is our responsibility as godly parents to teach our children to always respect and honor the Lord. We have to address any disrespect we see in the lives of our children, whether that be against us, another adult or the Lord Himself. We are building a foundation of honor and respect in their lives. The day will come when they will have to choose. They will choose between following the Lord or joining the loud and rowdy chorus of unbelievers who will be more than willing to accept them.

Our children will model our behavior. You know that. So we have to be so careful to demonstrate to them what honor and respect look like. We have to be deliberate in our teachings about honoring the Lord. We have to consistent in correcting disrespectful behavior. But above all, we must live what we preach. We have to show through example what an honorable and respectful life looks like.

Will you ask the Lord to show you? Will you ask the Lord to be your teacher? Will you be the example for others to follow?

Ezekiel 9:3a “Then the glory of the God of Israel went up from the cherub on which it had been, to the threshold of the temple.”

DEPARTURE OF GLORY

When I read this verse, my first thought was “How Awful!” The Lord had just shown Ezekiel all the abominations that were going on privately inside the Temple. Priests were worshipping false gods. The people were praying to pagan idols. And God had had enough!

Then this verse! His glory leaves the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies and goes to the door of the Temple to leave. How sad! How heartbreaking! I remember the passage when the glory filled the Temple following Solomon’s prayer. And now we see it leave.

TEACHING MOMENT

We should pray that our children never witness anything like this in their church. However, we have churches all across the world that are compromising the truth of the Gospel in order to be politically correct and inclusive. I do not have to list the compromises. I am sure you know exactly what I am referring to. I am fearful God is removing His glory from these places of worship, just like He did here in Ezekiel.

So how do we teach our children the importance of maintaining the truth of God’s Word? We have to live it. We have to walk it. We have to stand up and fight for what God’s Word says is true, not what the world says is okay. We have to teach our children that, no matter what the world says is acceptable, the only guide we will follow is His Word.

Will this be easy? Will this be popular? Nope! Will this cause an uproar? Probably! But we must hold to the truth.   We must insist that there is only One Truth! We must continue to point our children in the direction of truth. But above all, we must continue to live truth. We do not want just a “form” of godliness. We want godly lives.

Will you stand for truth?

Jude 9 “But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, ‘The Lord rebuke you!’”

FIGHTING OUR FIGHTS

Did you know there are only two angels named in the Bible? Yep, Gabriel and Michael. The rest, well, they are nameless. Michael is one the greatest angels. He has the role of the Guardian Angel of Israel, among other things. He is the one who fights against Satan, but even Michael knew his limitations.

We see in this verse that he leaves the rebuking of the devil to God. He says, “The Lord rebuke you!” He knew God had sent him to fight against the devil, but God was still the One in charge.

TEACHING MOMENT

If there is one lesson worth teaching our kids, this is it. Let God rule! Let God fight! Let God have complete control. When they learn to do that, all of life’s battles will be so much simpler. They won’t have to struggle to walk the Christ life. If they will just let God have dominion over their lives, He will guard them and protect them.

I am sure there are things you do to protect your children. The next time something like that comes up use this verse to explain, just as you protect them, God wants to protect them spiritually. But they have to let Him. God will not force His protection on anyone. We can choose to do things our own way and face the repercussions of a rebellious soul.

I don’t know about you, but I am tired of fighting my battles. It seems every time I take one step forward I get pushed two steps back. When I allow the Lord to lead me it is so much easier. Every time I yield to Him, I ask myself why I fought it so long. I guess I am just hard-headed and stubborn – just like you. Lol

Just let Him do His thing. After all, He has promised to keep us and protect us.