Grafted & Growing

He said to me, “Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.” As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard him speaking to me.

He said: “Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against me to this very day. The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’ And whether they listen or fail to listen—for they are a rebellious people—they will know that a prophet has been among them. And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people. You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious.

But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious people; open your mouth and eat what I give you.”

Then I looked, and I saw a hand stretched out to me. In it was a scroll, which he unrolled before me. On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe.

And he said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the people of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat.

Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth.

He then said to me: “Son of man, go now to the people of Israel and speak my words to them. You are not being sent to a people of obscure speech and strange language, but to the people of Israel— not to many peoples of obscure speech and strange language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you. But the people of Israel are not willing to listen to you because they are not willing to listen to me, for all the Israelites are hardened and obstinate. But I will make you as unyielding and hardened as they are. I will make your forehead like the hardest stone, harder than flint. Do not be afraid of them or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people.”

And he said to me, “Son of man, listen carefully and take to heart all the words I speak to you. Go now to your people in exile and speak to them. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says,’ whether they listen or fail to listen.”
-Ezekiel 2-3:11

 Devotional:
The prophets of the Old Testament are often put in unenviable positions. They preach repentance, expose the people’s sins, and warn of God’s justice, all to an audience that simply doesn’t want to hear it. Prophets like Jeremiah, Elijah, Isaiah, and others are ignored and grossly mistreated. They are given grueling work to do.
 
Ezekiel is no exception. In this story of Ezekiel’s call, Ezekiel is called to speak to a rebellious nation. Ezekiel is called to proclaim to the children of Israel, yet they are more often like the Gentiles than God’s own people. He’s called to speak to a nation that acts like impudent and stubborn children. From the very beginning, Ezekiel is never under a false pretense that his message is going to be received with open arms and warm hearts.
 
Israel is rebellious, but Ezekiel is told that he cannot be. If he is going to faithfully speak on behalf of God he has to be totally surrendered to Him. Not only does Ezekiel need to be completely surrendered to God, God’s Word needs to reside in Him in a deeper way. If Ezekiel is going to effectively minister to these stubborn people the Word of God needs to be digested and be a part of him. God gives Ezekiel a scroll to eat, and it tastes like honey to him. It was sweet and pleasant. God gave him this unusual food, and it was the sweetest thing to be eaten.
 
And then, Ezekiel is given encouragement for the road ahead. God tells Ezekiel that he is going to be speaking God’s words, not his own. Ezekiel is not going to have to craft winsome messages from his own mind, he is going to speak God’s words to the people. This is a great gift for a prophet. Any success that Ezekiel is going to have is because of God’s word, not Ezekiel’s. Additionally, God tells Ezekiel that He is going to make his forehead like adamant stone, harder than flint. Israel was stubborn, like…really stubborn. But, God was going to strengthen Ezekiel to be even more resilient in courage and integrity.
 
I have most often heard sermons/meditations on this text as exhortations for pastors. Ezekiel’s call to be the mouthpiece of God is equated to the call to be a pastor in the church. And, Ezekiel’s warnings about Israel’s stubbornness is equated to how people in our churches can be stubborn and hard to lead (not VCRC, of course ). I don’t think these applications are wrong, pastors have a lot to learn from Ezekiel’s call. But, I prefer a more broad application. I am compelled by the Apostle Peter’s idea of the priesthood of all believers (1 Peter 2:9). Every single disciple of Jesus is called into spiritual service, not just the ordained. So, in this Ezekiel text we have a prophet who is being equipped and bolstered for a life of proclamation to a tough crowd. All of us are called, equipped, and sent out for a life of proclamation. As disciples of Jesus, we are all priests who engage in the mission of disciple-making. We are all called into spiritual service. The broken and sinful world around us is going to be stubborn. Our neighbors who don’t yet love Jesus are going to have a difficult time hearing about their deep need for a savior. We will get rejected for our association with Jesus. The good news for us is that we do not proclaim our own message, but the Word of God. We hear God’s word, AND we ingest God’s word so that it dwells in the core of our being. The good news for us is that the Holy Spirit bolsters us for a life of proclamation.
 
“Go now to your people in exile and speak to them. Say to them, ‘this is what the Sovereign Lord says, ‘whether they listen or fail to listen.” (Ezekiel 3:11)