Anglican Devotional 11 August 2022 – The Returning Of God’s Glory To The Temple

The Daily Fountain Devotional of the Church Of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) 11 August 2022 – The Returning Of God’s Glory To The Temple

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TOPIC: The Returning Of God’s Glory To The Temple

TEXT: Ezekiel 43:1-12(NKJV)

1. Afterward he brought me to the gate, the gate that faces toward the east.
2. And behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east. His voice [was] like the sound of many waters; and the earth shone with His glory.
3. [It was] like the appearance of the vision which I saw — like the vision which I saw when I came to destroy the city. The visions [were] like the vision which I saw by the River Chebar; and I fell on my face.
4. And the glory of the LORD came into the temple by way of the gate which faces toward the east.
5. The Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the temple.
6. Then I heard [Him] speaking to me from the temple, while a man stood beside me.
7. And He said to me, “Son of man, [this is] the place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever. No more shall the house of Israel defile My holy name, they nor their kings, by their harlotry or with the carcasses of their kings on their high places.
8. “When they set their threshold by My threshold, and their doorpost by My doorpost, with a wall between them and Me, they defiled My holy name by the abominations which they committed; therefore I have consumed them in My anger.
9. “Now let them put their harlotry and the carcasses of their kings far away from Me, and I will dwell in their midst forever.
10. ” Son of man, describe the temple to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure the pattern.
11. “And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the design of the temple and its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, its entire design and all its ordinances, all its forms and all its laws. Write [it] down in their sight, so that they may keep its whole design and all its ordinances, and perform them.
12. “This [is] the law of the temple: The whole area surrounding the mountaintop [is] most holy. Behold, this [is] the law of the temple.

The MESSAGE:

After restoration of Israel in their land, God proposed to live among them. The book of Ezekiel begins with an awe-inspiring vision of God’s glory. Chapters 8-11 describe how the glory of God progressively departed from the temple and the land of Israel because of the sins of the people. Israel’s past evil had created a world in which God could no longer be present among them; a world in which God’s presence could not be known.

The prophet concludes with another awe-inspiring vision: God’s glory, power and love filling the temple again. Now God’s glory and presence returned to the temple. In the Old Testament, God had a temple for His people, but in the New Testament, God has His people for His temple. Christians are expected to drop their old ways of life (v.9) because they are now a new set of people (2Cor. 5:17). They should destroy every of their earthly members (Col. 3:5). Just as God is holy, so Christians are to be holy (Lev. 19:2). Christians will only be holy when they are devoted to God and separated from sin. We should desire above all else to see God’s glory manifested within the church through the operation of the Holy Spirit.

PRAYER: Lord, let Your glory be seen through me in Jesus’ Name. Amen.