Monday, June 01, 2009

More thoughts, Part 2, Ezekiel 3:16-21

This post won't be very long. Daniel Block has written an excellent 2-volume commentary on Ezekiel due to his wonderful grasp of the original language. Much of his writing deals with the language aspect, but he always includes a "Theological Implications" section, which is really an application section. While he has a lot of good things to say, it is not new to what I have already posted from Iain Duguid's NIV Commentary. Yet, Block states a couple of things that are insightful:

1 - The responsibility of the called. It is ultimately God's evaluation of their (the wicked mentioned within the text) situation that the doomed need to hear, not the myopic opinions and panaceas of fellow human travelers. Sin and wickedness require a radical prescription: repentance and casting oneself totally on the mercy of God. That God speaks on this situation is itself an act of grace.

2 - The messenger of God is called to faithfulness, not success. Faithfulness in service is measured not by effectiveness but by fidelity to the divine charge.

That last phrase has really stuck with me " fidelity to the the divine charge." How many have strayed from the original call? Unless God tells you to do something else, you are still held by the parameters of the original call.

Any thoughts?

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