Studies in Ezekiel: Call and Commission (Chs 2-3)

Chapter 1 ends with "the likeness of the appearance of a man" in fire, rainbow, and great brightness, and Ezekiel recounts "This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face..." (1:28). This was the manifestation of the God of Israel in the vision of Jesus Christ, 500 years before His birth in Bethlehem.

The ministry of a certainty belongs to Christ who is the Son over His own house (Heb.3:5). It was He whom Moses obeyed when he forsook Pharaoh's palace (Heb.11:26), and He who was the Pillar of Cloud and Pillar of Fire, the Angel of the LORD to lead the Israelites in the wilderness (1Cor.10:1-4). The Messiah was before Abraham (Jn.8:58). Christ now calls Ezekiel and commissions him to the prophetical ministry that would reveal the transition from the old into the new, the fading of the Old Covenant into the New Covenant. It doesn't mean a cessation of Israel as a people of God, but a revelation of God's purposes for them in a glorious Temple of which Christ Himself is the High Priest. It marks the plan for the tearing of the veil and the revelation of God's Holy Presence through the covenant of Jesus Christ. Ezekiel, perhaps, had been contemplating on his 30th year that he should have been in the temple at Jerusalem, but God now reveals that he is appointed to be a prophet of renewal. God's glory now comes from the north (not from the east) directly to Babylon where Ezekiel, the heavens open up on earth to a man called to be a priest. He is now called to be a prophet of the Most High, to reveal mysteries that are too hard for words, that would need symbols, imageries, and parables. Ezekiel the priest is called and commissioned by God in exile.

Thought: Do you think you are in an exile like situation where ministry is an impossibility? You do not need to worry about place, time, or situations. God is not limited by them. His Glory fills the universe. Do you think that you have not been qualified enough? God doesn't call people after they have qualified themselves. In fact, He only uses people whom He first calls and qualifies. We only need to believe and obey. Do you believe in Christ? Are you willing to do whatever He says? The only way to be God's servant is by giving up all rights, absolutely all of them, in perfect submission to His Lordship. It is then that His fire and His light envelops your heart and passion to be a watchman of Israel.