Have you ever had food on your plate but asked for
something different? Have your parents ever told you to eat what is on
your
plate? I was always told to eat what my parents put on my plate.
Ezekiel was a prophet in Babylon. His
mission was to preach judgment
against Judah.
He was to tell the Israelites of the southern kingdom (called Judah)
that they were going to be
fully conquered. He was to tell them that many would die. Many of those
left
alive would be taken as slaves to Babylon.
God says that the reason he is allowing this to happen
is because of Judah’s
wickedness. They were a rebellious people. They refused to obey God.
In Ezekiel 2:8,
we read, “But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be
not thou
rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I
give
thee.” God was going to give many words to Ezekiel. Ezekiel
was to spiritually
eat these words and digest them. He was then to obey God and preach
those
words. If Ezekiel did not preach those words, he would be considered no
better
than the rebellious people of Judah.
God has given us his word. He gave us the Bible. He
expects us to study it and then obey it. By studying and meditating on
his Word,
we are spiritually eating it. If we do not then obey him, teach, and
preach the
Word to others, we are just like the rebellious nation of Judah.
Do not be like the rebellious nation of Judah.
Eat what
God has given you. Digest it. Then teach it to others. And if any of
this is
hard to understand, ask an adult to help you.
Bars
of a Castle
By Mark McWhorter
In ancient times many palaces, castles and fortresses
were built on a high place such as a hill. The palace or fortress would
usually
have very thick outer walls. The entrance would have a thick gate with
bars to
secure it in place. All of these made it difficult for enemies to enter
a
palace or fortress. They had to climb steep inclines to get to the
castle. Then
they had thick walls to either get over or try to go through. The
entrance gate
was thick and had bars to keep them from pushing through.
In Proverbs 18:19,
we read, “A brother offended is harder to be won than a
strong city: and their
contentions are like the bars of a castle.”
It is a wonderful thing to have good friends. It is
even better to have friends who are Christians. But, there can be
disagreements. What is important is not to allow emotions and tempers
to get
out of control. If this occurs, then statements and actions can occur
that will
destroy that friendship.
When a strong friendship is destroyed through such, it
is easier to conquer a castle than it is to restore that friendship. It
is not
impossible, but it will take great effort. Those offended will put up
strong
barriers. The hurtful things stated or acted will be like the strong
bars that
seal the gate. It will be very difficult to get the offended to raise
those
bars to allow the ex-friend once again to enter into friendship with
the other.
It is very important to learn how not to hurt one
another. True love and friendship can be learned from the Word of God,
the Bible.
God gave us the information we need to know in order to speak and act
wisely
toward one another. Study your Bible. Learn how to be the proper friend
and how
to control your temper. Do not ever put bars on your gate. If any of
this is
hard to understand, ask an adult to help you.
