Topic: Divine Purging [DCLM Daily Manna 11 September 2020 Devotional By Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi]
Text: Ezekiel 20:27-38 (KJV)
27 Therefore, son of man, speak unto the house of Israel, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Yet in this your fathers have blasphemed me, in that they have committed a trespass against me.
28 For when I had brought them into the land, for the which I lifted up mine hand to give it to them, then they saw every high hill, and all the thick trees, and they offered there their sacrifices, and there they presented the provocation of their offering: there also they made their sweet savour, and poured out there their drink offerings.
29 Then I said unto them, What is the high place whereunto ye go? And the name thereof is called Bamah unto this day.
30 Wherefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Are ye polluted after the manner of your fathers? and commit ye whoredom after their abominations?
31 For when ye offer your gifts, when ye make your sons to pass through the fire, ye pollute yourselves with all your idols, even unto this day: and shall I be enquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will not be enquired of by you.
32 And that which cometh into your mind shall not be at all, that ye say, We will be as the heathen, as the families of the countries, to serve wood and stone.
33 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out, will I rule over you:
34 And I will bring you out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out.
35 And I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, and there will I plead with you face to face.
36 Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I plead with you, saith the Lord GOD.
37 And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant:
38 And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
Key Verse: “And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.” – (Ezekiel 20:38)
MESSAGE:
Yeast is a common commodity that you will always find in a bakery. This is because although bread is made from flour, yeast is the ingredient that will make it puffy and become ready for baking. Like yeast and flour, a few negative individuals can play a dominant role in influencing the majority to obey or disobey divine injunctions. Yes, it only takes a few rebels and idolaters to corrupt the entire land.
In the earlier verses of the chapter under consideration, God had wanted to destroy the entire Israelites for their rebellion in the wilderness, but He had mercy. In today’s passage, as soon as the remnant settled in the land of Canaan, they got corrupted with the idols of the land and began to commit whoredoms and made their sons pass through fire. They got entangled in the idolatrous practices of the heathen and served wood and stone.
God would not tolerate such practices. He decided to gather them together and plead with them as He had with their fathers in the wilderness. God promised to purge out from among the Israelites the rebels and transgressors and would not allow them to enter into the Promised Land, so that they would not contaminate the righteous ones. Rebellion and idolatry spread like wildfire if not quickly expunged from a congregation.
Because of the ease with which others can influence us imperceptibly, we must consistently subject our hearts to the scrutiny of the Holy Spirit and allow Christ’s work of grace to purge us from any trace of sin. Whenever sin is also found in the congregation, it must be dealt with immediately, before the whole body becomes polluted. To do otherwise is to risk pollution and the impending purge from God.
Thought For The Day: God will not condone rebellion and idolatry.
The Bible In One Year: Psalm 119:1-56
DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
