God Dwells In Us—July 17 Bible Reading Plan

God Dwells in Us

Being holy is not something we can do on our own, yet God commands us to be. We who have accepted the gift of salvation have the Holy God residing in us. God dwells in us—How then shall we live?

We are finishing the book of Ezekiel today.

Bible Reading of the day: Ezekiel 43-48

The Israelites were in exile and God is injecting hope to His people through Ezekiel speaking about their future. The people were learning about worship in the new temple to come. And the glory of God will fill the future temple, returning to His people.

We are now the temple of the Holy Spirit and God fills us. But there will also be a future temple during the millennium when Christ reigns in Jerusalem.

God speaks through Ezekiel about the sins of the Levites, the duties of the Levites and priests, the allotments, borders and sacrifices.

Easy English Bible Commentary

“Some people say that this vision shows the eternal state. The ‘eternal state’ means the new heaven and the new earth. But this vision cannot be of the eternal state. In the new earth, there is no temple (Revelation 21:22). Then the river will flow from the throne (Revelation 22:1). In Ezekiel’s vision, the river flows from the temple.

I believe that the most likely time for this prophecy is the millennium. The millennium is the 1000 years when the Lord Jesus will rule on the earth (Revelation 20:1-6). This is before this earth ends and before the start of the new earth (Revelation 21:1).

During the millennium, people from other nations will worship with them in Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:16). Ezekiel’s vision shows perfect practice in Israelite worship. In the Old Testament, the sacrifices refer forward to the Messiah. In the millennium, the sacrifices refer back to the death of the Messiah. The sacrifices never could take away sins. In the millennium, the sacrifices will not take away sins. The sacrifices will remind people about the one sacrifice of Jesus the Messiah. That was the only sacrifice that dealt with sin.”

Got Questions Commentary:

“According to premillennial, dispensational theology, this section of Ezekiel describes the worship of the Lord that will take place during the future 1,000-year reign of Christ on earth during the millennium (see Revelation 20). Christ will be reigning in Jerusalem. There will be a temple, the massive size of which is detailed by Ezekiel. The prince mentioned in Ezekiel 46, it appears, is the leader of the nation of Israel during this time. He is the representative of the nation of Israel and will bring offerings to the Lord and provide an example of devout worship.

As with any passage that deals with eschatology, this section of Ezekiel is open to some debate. We believe that the offerings Ezekiel speaks of are similar to the church’s taking of communion. They are a memorial pointing back to what Jesus did to secure our salvation. At the time foreseen by Ezekiel, Jesus will be physically present, reigning supreme as the Lord of all.”

Distinguish Between the Holy and the Common

We who have witnessed the grace of God must still distinguish between the holy and the common.

Ezekiel 44

6 “Say to the rebellious people, the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord God says: I have had enough of all your detestable practices, house of Israel. 7 When you brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in both heart and flesh, to occupy my sanctuary, you defiled my temple while you offered my food—the fat and the blood. You broke my covenant by all your detestable practices. 8 You have not kept charge of my holy things but have appointed others to keep charge of my sanctuary for you.’”

God’s people have rebelled. The crux of their rebellion is seen in Ezekiel 44:23

“They are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common and explain to them the difference between the clean and the unclean.”

We talked about this on Wednesday as we studied the book of Leviticus. We live in a time where people want to be casual. God is seen as the man upstairs. But do not be deceived – He is still holy.

We must distinguish between the Holy and the common in our lives, too.

What do we watch? What do we do? How do we walk?

God Dwells in Us—God Dwells With Us

Ezekiel 48:35, “And the name of the city from that time on will be: THE LORD IS THERE.”

God is still with us despite our waywardness. He will complete the work He has begun in us.

We fall short—how can we be holy? We cannot be in our own strength, but God will complete the work in us as we seek Him and study His word and ask for His help!

Scripture of the Day:  Ezekiel 43:2

“Suddenly, the glory of the God of Israel appeared from the east. The sound of his coming was like the roar of rushing waters, and the whole landscape shone with his glory.”

Application

• The glory of God fills this temple – ourselves – is this evident to those around us that God dwells in and with us?
• We need to live holy lives in a common world.
• Christ died so we could live a holy life.
• He did not die just to cover our sins, but to help us rise above the power of sin.

7-Fold One-Year Bible Reading Plan

Day #199: Ezekiel 43-48

Scripture of the Day: Ezekiel 43:2

Listen: https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Ezek.43

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