God’s people were supposed to rebuild the temple once they were released from Babylon. But they got caught up building extravagant homes for themselves. Of course, God didn’t need a home built from human hands, but the temple was about God’s presence and glory being near His people. What are you building? Are you building up a life that is far or near from God’s glory and presence?
In a crazy, and somewhat spooky vision, God shows Ezekiel that He is still at work in spite of Israel’s failures. He will be restoring Israel to what they were meant to be. And yet, this vision has a double meaning — one that is more applicable for us today. God is not only reviving Israel, but He is in fact restoring life to our dry bones. As we continue through Lent we see the promise of resurrection given long ago.
God’s people were worshipping the gods of other nations along with the God of Israel. As Elijah said, they were hobbling between two crutches. God uses Elijah, his prophet, to show who the true God is during an epic showdown between Elijah and 450 prophets of Baal. It would seem Elijah would be outmatched, but really it was a battle between God and Baal - and Baal would prove to be no match at all for the true God.
