Message from headquarters

The boss is not happy with us.  We just got this memo...

From: God
To: My people
Subject: What's going on around here, anyway? (Ezekiel 22:26-30)

"Your priests violated my law and desecrated my holy things. They can’t tell the difference between sacred and secular. They tell people there’s no difference between right and wrong. They’re contemptuous of my holy Sabbaths, profaning me by trying to pull me down to their level. Your politicians are like wolves prowling and killing and rapaciously taking whatever they want. Your preachers cover up for the politicians by pretending to have received visions and special revelations. They say, “This is what God, the Master, says . . .” when God hasn’t said so much as one word. Extortion is rife, robbery is epidemic, the poor and needy are abused, outsiders are kicked around at will, with no access to justice.’

30-31 “I looked for someone to stand up for me against all this, to repair the defenses of the city, to take a stand for me and stand in the gap to protect this land so I wouldn’t have to destroy it. I couldn’t find anyone. Not one."

This is not good.

Not good.

Ezra's good at talking to God - let's have him answer...

From: Ezra and the team
To: God
Subject: RE: What's going on around here, anyway? (Response) (Ezra 9:6-15 [selected]) (Ezekiel 22:26-30)

6-7 “My dear God, I’m so totally ashamed, I can’t bear to face you. O my God—our iniquities are piled up so high that we can’t see out; our guilt touches the skies. We’ve been stuck in a muck of guilt since the time of our ancestors until right now; we and our kings and priests, because of our sins, have been turned over to foreign kings, to killing, to captivity, to looting, and to public shame—just as you see us now...

10-12 “And now, our God, after all this what can we say for ourselves? For we have thrown your commands to the wind, the commands you gave us through your servants the prophets. They told us, ‘The land you’re taking over is a polluted land, polluted with the obscene vulgarities of the people who live there; they’ve filled it with their moral rot from one end to the other. Whatever you do, don’t give your daughters in marriage to their sons nor marry your sons to their daughters. Don’t cultivate their good opinion; don’t make over them and get them to like you so you can make a lot of money and build up a tidy estate to hand down to your children.’

13-15 “And now this, on top of all we’ve already suffered because of our evil ways and accumulated guilt, even though you, dear God, punished us far less than we deserved and even went ahead and gave us this present escape. ... Are you angry to the point of wiping us out completely, without even a few stragglers, with no way out at all? You are the righteous God of Israel. ... Look at us, openly standing here, guilty before you. No one can last long like this.”

Oh, man, are we sorry.

O God, are we sorry.

Ezra - what are you doing...?  (Ezra 10:1-14 [selected])

Ezra wept, prostrate in front of The Temple of God. As he prayed and confessed, a huge number of the men, women, and children of Israel gathered around him. All the people were now weeping as if their hearts would break.

2-3 Shecaniah son of Jehiel of the family of Elam, acting as spokesman, said to Ezra: “... Let’s make a covenant right now with our God, ... It’s what The Revelation says, so let’s do it.

4 “Now get up, Ezra. Take charge—we’re behind you. Don’t back down.”

5 So Ezra stood up and had the leaders of the priests, the Levites, and all Israel solemnly swear to do what Shecaniah proposed. And they did it.

10-11 Ezra the priest stood up and spoke: “You’ve broken trust. ... You’ve piled guilt on Israel. Now make your confession to God, the God of your ancestors, and do what he wants you to do...”

12 The whole congregation responded with a shout, “Yes, we’ll do it—just the way you said it! ... We’ll keep at this until the hot anger of our God over this thing is turned away.”

And so they did.

They cleaned up their act.

Or at least they tried.

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And we do too.  We try.  Sometimes harder than others.

But that sinful old self keeps showing back up on my doorstep.

Luther has a great morning prayer to help us chase him off and get our day started off right...

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I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, your dear Son, that you have kept me this night from all harm and danger. 

Keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please you. 

Into your hands I commend my body and soul and all things. 

Let your holy angel be with me, that the wicked foe may have no power over me. 

Amen.

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