Entrances and Exits

I have been reading about Ezekiel’s vision of the future temple. I love the Old Testament because it tells us so much about God and his ways.  I believe that we should always be looking at both the Old & New Testaments of the Bible in order to have a proper understanding of God.  The Old Testament contains hundreds of prophecies that pertain to the New Testament, many of which have already been fulfilled.

In Hebrews 4:12 the writer says that the word of God is "a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart'.  God can speak to us in different ways through his word at various times.  So what caught my eye in Ezekiel 44:5 that could possibly have meaning for us today? This is how it spoke to me.

In his vision God spoke to Ezekiel about how things are to work in the temple.  Some of the temple staff had sinned against God in times past by worshipping idols while still offering sacrifices in the temple. They had also broken God's laws in other ways. These words at the end of Ezekiel 44:5 struck me......"Give attention to the entrance to the temple and all the exits of the sanctuary."

What does the temple have to do with a believer today?  In the New Testament Paul says, "...do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?" 1 Corinthians 6:19. In this passage Paul is telling the believers to be careful what they allow into their body, specifically regarding sexual purity.  However there are other ways to 'pollute' our temple.  That is why we have to guard the gate in.....that could also be the 'eye gate' or the 'ear gate'.  We have to be careful about what we watch and what we listen to.

Then there is guarding the exit which is the 'mouth' gate. In Colossians 3 Paul writes to the believers....."But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth.  Do not lie to one another......".  He expands on the reason for this in Ephesians 4...."Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers."

Let us be mindful of guarding 'the gates' of our bodies that we may live to please God.

PRAYER:  Heavenly Father, thank you for reminding me that I should live my life in such a way as to bless others and glorify you.  Please help me to do this. Amen

Believe it......or Not!

 

Today I'm concerned about a topic that is becoming increasingly important for all of us to consider. With the development of artificial intelligence we cannot always believe what we see or hear.  I'm reminded of the words of dear Thomas the disciple of Jesus. When the other disciples told him that that had seen Jesus' after his crucifixion said ......."Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe." John 20:25.  

These words have caused this poor man to be called 'doubting Thomas' from that time forth. He was being very honest, and God was kind to him; for Jesus did appear again when Thomas was present and offered evidence to him that Thomas too might believe.

Today I feel to offer a warning about what our eyes may be seeing in the future, hence my title "Believe it ...or Not".  In both of his letters to Timothy Paul warns him about deception. He says that in the future  many will turn away from the truth of God's word and be taken in by doctrines of demons. 1 Timothy 4:1. In 2 Timothy 3:13 he adds that people will deceive many because they themselves are deceived.

If you keep up with the news you will have noticed, more recently, the warnings about AI-generated images of people that look real but are definitely not.  This is a timely warning that we cannot now believe everything we see and hear. That not only applies to the secular but also to the Christian world.  

I think most of us know that there are many religious groups that are deceived into believing lies about how Christians should live.  Not only are they deceived, but they 'deceive many' others into cultish faiths. These may sound good but are to be avoided because they bring us into legalistic bondage. 

I was recently watching a Christian YouTube channel warning about the dangers of AI.  This person had himself created very realistic AI clips of 3 different men preaching deceptive teaching. For one who knows the Bible, the words spoken were clearly "off the mark" BUT to some people they would be very attractive. Why?  Because they are being told what they want to hear!

Again in 2 Timothy 4:3-4 Paul writes that there would come a time when people would have "itching ears".  They would not want to hear 'sound doctrine' and so they would be carried away with fables (false teaching).  There would be plenty of people saying what sounded good to them.

God's word is Truth and if we don't want to be 'fed with fables' and deceived into believing lies, we had better be giving time to reading and understanding our Bibles. We should also be seeking understanding from trusted spiritual leaders, and asking God for wisdom to discern between good and evil.  King Solomon, was renowned for his wisdom. He was commended by God because as he became King he didn't ask God for riches , but for wisdom to lead God's people, 1 Kings 3:9. Check it out and pray your own prayer daily for God to give you the wisdom, so that you may know what to believe, what is true and what is not.  This will become increasingly important as time goes by.

PRAYER: Father God, please give me a desire to read and understand your Word so that I might have wisdom to discern good from evil, truth from lies. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen