Read  EZEKIEL 2

Ezekiel was given a vision of God’s glory that was so overwhelming that he “fell upon his face" (Ezek. 1:28). The glory of the Lord appeared to him like fire and brilliant light and he fell facedown, overwhelmed by God’s holiness. In this undignified but perfectly understandable position, Ezekiel was ideally situated to hear from the Lord. It was there, in the posture of awe-struck submission, that he was told, “Son of man stand upon thy feet and I will speak with you” (Ezek 2:1). The voice was the voice of God. This was no ordinary voice, and the words spoken were no ordinary words. These words contained the very power necessary for obedience to them. Ezekiel testified, “The Spirit entered into me….. and set me on my feet” (Ezek 2:2).

Men and women today rarely find themselves flat on their faces in reaction to hearing the voice of God. But we do have available to us the written word of God, which, when read, and inwardly digested, not only commands but empowers for obedience. Ezekiel soon discovered he needed the unique empowering of the Spirit working through the word. Ezekiel was instructed, “I am sending you to the nation of Israel, a nation that is rebelling against me. . . . They are a hard-hearted and stubborn people. . . . They won’t listen, for they are completely rebellious” (Ezek 2:3-4, 7). The nature of Ezekiel’s mission was essentially that he was to talk to people who would not listen and who, even if they listened, would not do or respond to what they were told.

It might reasonably be asked, “What, then, was the point of sending Ezekiel to them?” God’s rationale for sending him was that “whether they will hear or not . . . at least they will know they have had a prophet among them” (Ezek 2:5). The point of them knowing they had been listening to a prophet may not have been immediately obvious. But perhaps later on when they heard the message again, or things had got tough and they turned in desperation to God for help, the words of God they had heard through Ezekiel (and others) would come again to their minds, and they would know the truth of them and what they needed to do.

It is sad for us when we see no obvious signs following the preaching of the Gospel; we would love to see souls turning in repentance and faith. But perhaps the Word that is being sown today will be recollected in future times and cause some dear person to respond to the Lord. As has been said previously, our responsibility is to preach the word (2 Tim 4:1), to faithfully proclaim a message relevant to those who listen, and then back it up with prayer.

Sometimes we are required to share our faith with people who just don’t (or won’t) understand. The Lord told Ezekiel not to be afraid and rebel, but to speak His words, whether or not the people would listen. Similarly He wants us to tell the Good News, whether it’s convenient or not (2 Tim. 4:2).

The world of business can define success in terms of giving customers what they want. Ezekiel, however, was called to give God’s message to the people, whether they would listen or not. The measure of Ezekiel’s success would not be how well the people responded, but how well he obeyed God and thus fulfilled God’s purpose for him. Isaiah and Jeremiah also prophesied with little positive response (see Isaiah 6:9-12; Jeremiah 1:17-19).

 God will not judge us for how well others respond to our faith, but for how faithful we have been. God always gives us the strength to accomplish what He asks us to do.