Ezekiel 31:1-32:32, Hebrews 12:14-29, Psalm 113:1-114:8, Proverbs 27:18-20
Today is the 15th day of November, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It’s great to be here with you today. I guess this is the…the dead center day of the month of November. So, here we are in the middle again and continuing to take our steps forward. So, we are reading from the New International Version this week and our next step forward leads us back into the book of Ezekiel in the Old Testament. Today, Ezekiel chapters 31 and 32.
Commentary:
Okay so, in the book of Hebrews today, the writer is telling the Hebrews, and we remember Hebrews is written to Hebrews and so, the writer of Hebrews is telling the Hebrews, who believe in Jesus but who are being tempted by culture and oppression and persecution to sort of shrink back into traditional Judaism that they’re not going back to Mount Sinai, they’re not going back to a mountain that can be touched with burning fire and darkness and gloom, to the trumpet blast, all of the things that we saw when we left Egypt with the children of Israel and camped out at the mountain of God. That terrified the people. The writer of Hebrews is saying, you’re not going back to that. Rather, you have come to Mount Zion to the city of the living God that heavenly Jerusalem, you have come to the multitude of the Angels, you have come to Jesus, you have come to God the judge of all, you’ve come into a new covenant. And so, there is a warning here about sort of shrinking back and disappearing into the wall work, as it were. And that is basically look, if our ancestors were terrified at the voice of God in Mount Sinai so that the whole earth shook and trembled and we said we can’t hear the voice of God, and we needed Moses to speak on behalf of God, then what do you suppose? Because now the veil is torn and we can go into the Holy of Holies, we can go right into the presence of the Almighty God, who shook Mount Sinai. So, if you’re trying to go back to that tradition, now, knowing that there is no separation anymore, like how is that gonna work out? And so I quote from Hebrews, “see to it that you do not refuse Him who speaks, if they,” speaking of the ancestors around Mount Sinai, “if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we. If we turn away from Him who warns us from heave. At that time, His voice shook the earth, but now He is promised once more, I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” And that part right there, once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens, is from the prophecy of Haggai. So, once more “I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens. The words, once more, indicate the removing of what can be shaken, that is created things, so that what cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe for our God is a consuming fire.” So basically, we have Hebrew believers who believe in Jesus and were in the first century. They had become aware of this new covenant through Jesus. They had become aware that the sacrificial system of atonement was complete and they were a part of the people who work to let the entire world know this good news. But even among the other Hebrew people, most people did not get on board with this. If they had done away with Jesus, than the Jesus message was still being opposed, and so people who thought that there was an eminent arrival of Jesus and the kingdom of God was about to be set up and then that didn’t happen but what happened instead was marginalization and oppression and persecution that made them sort of shrink back into the wall work. Because the more that they believed in Jesus and the more that they shared their belief in Jesus, the more they were finding aggression against them and opposition against them. The more that they shared the good news, the more shaken their lives became, the more things got shaken up all around them. So, in quoting Haggai, I the writer of Hebrews is telling the Hebrew believers in Jesus, yeah, not only was Jesus foretold, this shaking was foretold. Nobody likes their lives to get shaken up. Nobody wants to get shaken upside down. We typically prefer our lives to be orderly and, in our control, fully, not shaken. And so, the believers in the first century, whose lives were being shaken, and they were trying to figure out what to do and they were disappearing back into Judaism, etc. etc. The writer of Hebrews is saying this is all part of it. This was foretold long before this. We find this in our books of prophecy what can shake is going to shake. And so, rather than looking at this as a bad thing or looking at this as like we’ve been fed a line here and this isn’t true and all that’s happening is my life is getting ruined, I’m going back to where I was before. The writer of Hebrews is saying no, this is how it’s supposed to be, everything that can shake is going to shake. And that might sound ominous and you may not want to go through this shaking but when you come outside the other side of the shaking, all that will be left in you is that which is unshakable. So, the writer of Hebrews is encouraging the Hebrew believers. And since we’re reading this in the Scriptures, encouraging us to be aware that life has its shaking’s and to embrace the shaking, knowing that it isn’t for nothing. God is establishing what cannot be shaken, and part of that is inside of us. And where we can take this to heart is in simply reflecting back, maybe back to the beginning of the year, maybe back to the beginning of the summer, back to any point that we want to and look at the ways that our lives have been shaken since that season began. And what has that shaking done to us. Nobody likes that, nobody likes it, so it's…it’s probably made is very, very uncomfortable. But we might find ourselves rebuking all kinds of things to get the shaking to stop, not understanding that this shaking may have purpose in our lives. Maybe we’ve been using all of our energy to stay in control because we don’t like the shaking. When actually God has been trying to shake loose our need for control. And so, we’re working against the whole process and what we need to understand is that in the end, all that can be shaken will shake, so that all that is left is that which is going to endure, that which cannot be shaken. It’s funny, we pray these kinds of prayer’s, make me a solid foundation, make me a rock, make me immovable, set my face like a flint. We’re saying like, make me stable, make me a pillar. And asking that, essentially, we’re saying is, strengthen me and shake all that can be shaken loose, so that all that remains is unshakeable. So, let’s give it some thought today, how are we shaking, what is being shaken, how are we responding to that? Are we responding in trust, knowing that as difficult as some of these seasons can be they are not purposeless, they are unto something. And that thing that they are unto is that we will not be shaken. Even having a little bit of perspective along those lines can be a tremendous help as we move through the shaky seasons of our lives.
Prayer:
And so, Father, we invite You into that. We’re not assuming that everything that ever happens to us that we find to be negative, is You shaking something loose in our lives, but we normally don’t even have this as a category. Anytime we find ourselves uncomfortable, we want to rebuke that thing, we want to get back to comfortable and You do too. But sometimes getting back to comfortable is getting back to the foundation of what cannot be shaken because there are things that need to be shaken loose. And that, may at times be a little uncomfortable, if we don’t have any perspective at all. So, Holy Spirit, give us perspective, show us the things that You are prying loose and shaking off of us, things that are weights, that are holding us down exactly like we were talking about yesterday, things that we’re carrying around that are deadweight, brambles that are around us that are keeping us from moving. We need those things to be shaken loose, so that we are unshakable. And so, give us perspective as we move through these seasons, we ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
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And that’s it for today, I’m Brian, I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here, tomorrow.
Prayer and Encouragements:
Shalom Daily Audio Bible, this is Duane from Wisconsin. All praise and glory to our wonderful Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Calling in today for Vincent who called in and is struggling with a question that many have asked, what is the meaning, why would God put love into your life and then take it away. Well, how about why would God put love into your life in the first place. People always want answers for that, we always look for the answers. We want to know what God knows. Go back to the garden. What did Satan tempt Eve with? Oh, you’ll know everything that God knows. And that’s what tempts us, we want understanding. And we strive for it and we struggle with it and it’s hard at times. You know, I’ve raised my kids well, why is one in jail? Why is another homeless? I haven’t seen my daughter in 5+ years. Why did my nephew die at such a young age. Yes, it’s hard. We understand, we wonder why. But there’s so much of God’s glory, that’s why He created us, in this place to live on. The sunset this time of the year, the fall colors, the look in my wife’s eye, know that yes, at some point we will all pass on. But we have to embrace that as Christians. We cannot fear death and not let sin be what, what we look at. We look at the good and glory that the Lord has given us. And we will pray for you, we pray that you will have the peace you are looking for. In Jesus name, Amen. And God Bless.
Hey, DAB family, Reday Alsovey here, aka Kathleen in Illinois. I was just listening on the tenth or eleventh, I think it was the tenth, and I heard Barbara’s call who said just lost her husband. And I just wanted to let you know, I’m praying for you, Barbara. We all, you know, as we get older, we know these things are coming but it’s just, got to be a shock when it does. I just am glad that you found this family, and I’m glad that the DAB can bring comfort to you. And I just lift you up to the Lord. Just want you to know that. Have a good day everybody.
Hey, Daily Audio Bible family. Hey, this is Crystal. Hey this is like the 3rd time I’ve got in this. And really, please go through this time. I just want to say hey, everybody. Hi, my names Crystal, I’m from Nottingham here in England. I have been listening to the Daily Audio Bible for about 4/5 years. I’ve listened to it all the way through. I’m literally, how I got through the entire Bible by listening to this amazing podcast. I just want to say, I hear all of your prayers and I do pray for people, especially when something really tugs at my heart. I will be in prayer for my brothers and sisters around the world. I’m actually on here today to just share, just how faithful God has been. So, I’ve been on here a couple of times, and I’ve actually submitted prayers, maybe three or four. Over the past 5 years, I’ve been struggling with an addiction to alcohol. I also home educated my school; I home educate my children. I have been incredibly worried at times and was really facing like, insanely dark days. Just like being worried about my children, being worried that you know, I’m so stuck in this addiction. January of this year, I went into rehab. And today, I have been sober about 9 ½ months. I can’t begin to express how God has been so, so good. Like, I just, you know, just to be free all of this time, it’s just so freeing for me. It’s been so helpful, like so beautiful for my family. And I’m just so grateful that God has delivered me, that He has set me free from this generational curse. I really wanted to go on but times gonna go. But I just wanted to say that God is faithful. Love you all. Speak against …
This is for Dennis and Walking in Love. Vincent, this is your brother in Baltimore. I heard your…your request, your prayer on the, on the 11th of November and you’re asking the question to the Lord, what is the meaning of it all? Solomon had the same question. And there are a lot in the Bible who have the same question. You’re not alone. I’m not gonna pretend I know the answer though. Because that would be just endless. But I pray that the Lord comes along side of you and give you comfort and peace, in your sense of loss. And I pray that you would receive the comfort and strength in you. And that He would meet you at the point of your need. We pray this in Jesus name. Amen.
This is John in Florida. I am so wiped out. We just had a second hurricane come through here. It’s like we’re in the crossfire here in Central Florida. Just got things cleaned up from Ian and now Nicole comes through here yesterday and just pretty much, all the work I did, out the window. I found this program about ten years ago and I haven’t listened in quite a while, but I listened today. And it’s ironic is you know; I was thinking about the Book of Job. And in chapter 40 verse 6, it says the Lord answered him out of the whirlwind and told him gird up his loins and He will answer him. And that’s the whole of this point that God would just answer me. Because I am so wiped out and exhausted. I’m not going to go into all the losses I’ve had in my family. But just here on my property, these two hurricanes, it just is one thing after another. So, I thought maybe, if I’m not hearing from God, maybe some other people out there, I know it doesn’t sound logical but maybe some other people out there, I mean, John’s such an uncommon name, right? But maybe some other people out there are praying for me if God won’t answer me. Pray for me.
Hey family, this is Rosanna from East Tennessee. I’ve been listening for about 3 years now and Brian, I just want to say, oh my goodness, thank you. I, my…my spiritual walk has been, my walk with Jesus has been so much deeper since I’ve been able to get in the Word with the Daily Audio Bible. And so, I’m calling today to thank Brian for creating Sleep, A Contemplating Journey. And I want to say, I feel like this is, that this music is anointed. Because not only is it peaceful and you can play it through the night, but it literally impacts the spiritual realm. When the spoken word of God is spoken into a house. I have kids who have struggled with night terrors and I’m going, that’s demonic. And when…when you have Scripture that is spoken into the spiritual world, which is, when we speak out Scripture, there is power in the Word of God. I mean, Scripture tells us that, that the Word of God is sharper than any two-edge sword and it can cut between bone and marrow and it’s the only offensive armor weapon that we have. So, Brian, thank you, thank you, thank you. I’m letting it play through the night on replay for my kids as they sleep. There is power in the name of Jesus and there is power in His spoken Word. So, Brian, thank you. And guys I pray for you every single day. I don’t call in that much but I just wanted to say I love you and Brian; the Lord has used you. And guys, Isaiah ___ says ___. So, it’s really true. If we are receiving from something then we need to give back. We really need to give back.