Restoration

RESTORATION Ezekiel 39:25-40:4 August 16, 2020 OK, today I want to just jump right into this. It's been 25 years since Ezekiel and the rest of the exiles were taken to Babylon. For 25 years God has said, through Ezekiel, you will never see your homes or your families again. Now, in today's text, God says - I will bring everyone back home. Everyone gets to go back home. Only, we know that's not true. It will be another 25 years before Cyrus of Persia conquers Babylon and let's the captives go home. The Biblical books of Ezra and Nehemiah tell us virtually none of the original exiles go home. Only a handful are left alive. And, they are so old, and fragile they can't make the trip. So, this sudden promise of everyone gets to go back home - is wrong. That can only mean one of three things; and two of them are bad. First, it could mean God doesn't know the future - he just guesses. The Sadducees are right - God is a clockmaker, who is proud of his creation but doesn't have any interaction with his people once the build is complete. Or number two, and I think this is worse, it means God is a liar. God is cruel, and devious, and he enjoys telling lies to humanity. Let's tell them they're all going home, and see how excited they get. Then, watch their little hearts break when they realize it's a lie. If either of those two options is true, God is a bad god. He is evil and mean, and not a true god. So, there is absolutely no point in worshipping or following Yahweh. You are stupid, if you are a follower of the God of Israel. Fortunately, there is a third option. The third option is - this prophecy is not to these exiles, and is not about this home. God is speaking to a different group, about a different situation. Last week we read chapter 37 of Ezekiel. It was the vision of the valley of dry bones. God brought the dead, in fact those who had been dead for a very long time, back to life and gave them brand new bodies. As we worked our way through the text, we realized God wasn't speaking to the exiles. He was speaking to Christians, about our coming resurrection. On the day Jesus returns you and I will get new bodies and live again. And, we will see all the people we love once again. We've skipped over chapter 38, and most of chapter 39. In those verses God continues to talk to Christians about the end of time. Ezekiel has more information about the return of Jesus, and the end of the world. In those chapters he introduces us to two important characters - Gog, and Magog. If those names sound familiar to you, it's because they are significant characters in the book of Revelation.1 In the last days, during the Tribulation, Gog and Magog do everything they can to keep people from believing in Jesus. Gog and Magog are two aspects of the Anti-Christ. They are physical embodiments of evil, who hope to keep Jesus from returning. Ezekiel describes a massive battle between good and evil. Between the people of God, led by the Messiah, and the Anti-Christs. Just as Ezekiel saw a valley of dry bones, filled with the dead who were children of God. Now, he sees the land east of the Jordan River filled with bones. These are the bones of Gog and Magog, and their followers. The book of Revelation gives this battle a name you will recognize - Armageddon. Just like the Apostle John, Ezekiel is given a vision of Armageddon. He sees the conflict between good and evil that ends this world as you and I know it. He sees the Messiah triumph over the Devil. This is the end of the battle with sin. This is the end of failing. The end of failing to keep the commandments; failing to be honest, failing to be loving, and failing to be compassionate. The end of failing to love God, and be nice to people. It all ends here. Ezekiel is still in the middle of this vision when he writes our text today. So, when he says in verse 26 - you will finally come home, and there will be no one, and no thing, to hurt you or cause you pain ever again - he isn't writing to the Babylonian exiles hoping to go back to Jerusalem. He's writing to Christians about going to Heaven. Ezekiel sees the arrival of the Messianic age, from start to finish.2 He sees the arrival of Jesus, and the change from the Covenant of Law to the Covenant of Grace. He sees the sacrifice of Jesus for our salvation. And, he sees the return of Jesus, and his complete triumph over evil. And, Ezekiel announces to the world, we will finally go home. Not Israel; Heaven. When Ezekiel says the exile is over, he isn't speaking about his time in Babylon. He is prophesying to all humanity about our time on earth. We started out in the Garden of Eden. It was perfect. People never got sick. No one died. God visited his people in person every day. Food was there for the taking. And, all of nature operated in perfect harmony. Lions didn't eat lambs for breakfast. Spiders and mosquitoes didn't bite people. There were no floods, no droughts, no tornados and no hurricanes. Then, sin found its way into the Garden. People wanted to be gods. We wanted to be in charge. We wanted to make all the important decisions. And, we got exactly what we wanted. God sent us out of Eden, into this world. In this world we get to be in charge. How well has that worked out? Locked in our homes because of a man-made virus. Racial riots and looting in a different city every night. Police vilified for keeping the law. Criminals are now heroes. Drugs run rampant. War on every continent. Nations actively trying to destroy the economies of others. Families shattered and devastated for sins too numerous to list. Senior citizens being euthanized because they're not productive enough. God exiled us from Eden, and we have made a mess of everything. Then, Ezekiel preaches the good news. The exile will end. Whether you call it Heaven, or Eden, we get to go home.3 That's great! What do I have to do? Ezekiel says first, you must acknowledge your sin. We left Eden because we believed we could do better than God. To go back, we must admit we failed. If you think you are perfect, if you believe you have never sinned, then you don't need Jesus as your Savior. And, there is no room in Heaven for anyone who rejects Christ. It is critical to be honest about ourselves. We must confess to God our sins against him and our fellow man. Ezekiel isn't the only one who knows this. The Apostle Paul writes to the Hebrews (6:1), "So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don't need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds and placing our faith in God." You want to go to Heaven? You want to end the exile and return to Eden? One, confess your sins. Two, believe in Jesus. Six hundred years before Jesus came the first time, Ezekiel knew the process. Ezekiel promised, God himself would be the shepherd who would lead us back home. Just admit your sins and join the flock of Jesus. Ezekiel promises, everyone who confesses Christ will go home. No one left behind. Ezekiel keeps great records. We know he experiences his vision on April 28, 573 BC. He's been in Babylon for 25 years. He is 50 years old. In fact, he has lived in Babylon longer than he lived in Israel. Most of his life has been spent in a foreign land, living among strangers. He's been gone so long he's forgotten much about Israel, and Jerusalem. But, he longs for home. His heart cries out to be in a place he doesn't know anymore. You and I have been away from Eden our entire lives. We have never seen Paradise with our own eyes. And yet, something inside calls us to go home. We instinctively know this is not our home. There is a better place. A place where we belong, where we're welcome, where everything works the way it should. A place where we work the way we should. A perfect place. There is no Holy Temple, so the Jews can't practice their festivals and ritual ceremonies. But, it's not a coincidence that Ezekiel receives this vision on what would be the first day of Passover.4 This is the day the Paschal Lamb would be selected for sacrifice. It's the day when families talk about how fortunate to worship a God who saves. How blessed to be the child of a God who loves beyond all measure, and never forgets his own. Ezekiel is taken to a mountain north of Jerusalem. Jerusalem was burned to the ground 15 years before. It is a ghost town. Only the rats live in Jerusalem. But, where the devastation and destruction should be - Ezekiel sees a city. Not like any city he has ever seen before. It's different. It's perfect. It's welcoming. And, he knows deep in his heart, this is his home. It's a place he has never seen, but this is home. This is the new Jerusalem.5 Or, you could call it Eden. Or, you could call it Heaven. Whatever name you choose, this is where we belong. Ezekiel walks down to the entrance of the city. As he approaches the gate, he sees a man. Only, we can all tell from the description it's not a man. It's an angel. Ezekiel describes him as made of bronze. Bronze was used to make the highest quality mirrors.6 What Ezekiel is trying to describe is a man made of mirror. Imagine walking up to someone, and they reflect everything around them. More than anything else, mirrors reflect light. When the Apostle John writes about New Jerusalem in Revelation, he says (21:23), "And the city has no need of sun or moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light." Ezekiel comes face to face with an angel which reflects God. Perhaps he actually sees Jesus. The angel is carrying a metal rod, and a long rope made of linen. These are both measuring devices. The rod is something like a yardstick. Use it for making short accurate measurements. The rope is for measuring longer distances, like a tape measure. Throughout the Old Testament measuring is another way of saying judging. Ezekiel is going to be judged before he enters New Jerusalem. He already knows he must confess his sins, and accept Jesus as Savior. If he does that, what happens during his judgment? Ezekiel uses a word here, rāham. It means great compassion, or a gift of mercy. This is the only time in the entire book of Ezekiel this word is used in a positive sense.7 Previously, God says he will deny rāham to the exiles. But, if they confess their sins and accept Jesus, the angel tells Ezekiel, you will be judged with great compassion, and a gift of mercy. If you try to enter Eden on your own merit, you will be weighed, measured, and found wanting. But, if you claim the blood of Christ, welcome home. Compassion and mercy are waiting for you. This world can be cruel. This world is definitely not perfect. Every generation watches the world become a worse place than the year before. For all the change, and technology, and innovation we introduce, we make everything worse. But, this is not our home. There is a place. A wonderful place. A place where God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit walk every day. A place where people love each other. A place where no one gets sick, no dies, no one cries. A place where nature operates in complete harmony. That is our home. That is where we belong. After Jesus defeats Satan, and destroys evil forever. He will take us home. Our souls will finally know the peace and calm we have always sought. Everything will finally be right. It's easy to get there. Confess your failures. Don't hold anything back. Tell it all. Next, place your faith in Jesus Christ. There is no other way. Then, spread your arms wide and let the great compassion and gift of mercy wash over you. 1 Ralph H. Alexander, "A Fresh Look at Ezekiel 38 and 39," The Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, 17 no. 3 (Summer 1974), 157-169. 2 Donald Guthrie, New Testament Theology (Downers Grove, Inter-Varsity Press, 1981), 237. 3 R. C. Sproul, general editor, New Geneva Study Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995), 1314. 4 NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2016), 1397. 5 Gordon Matties, New Interpreter's Study Bible (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2003), 1216. 6 Susan V. Meschel, "Nehoshet: Copper, Bronze or Brass: Which are Plausible in the Tanakh?" Jewish Bible Quarterly, 45 no. 3 (July-September 2017), 161-168. 7 Matties, 1215. --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ 2