Ezekiel 44-46
Read these chapters now with the BIBLE READER to the right of this post, or at http://www.biblegateway.com/.
JUST WHAT IS HOLY?
In today's reading, there was much talk of things being holy or unholy. Also, in order to be holy, people had to do all these weird routines. For instance:
They must not shave their heads or let their hair grow long, but they are to keep the hair of their heads trimmed. No priest is to drink wine when he enters the inner court. They must not marry widows or divorced women; they may marry only virgins of Israelite descent or widows of priests. They are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean.
Ezekiel 44:20-23
Believe it or not, these were actual things that God's followers had to do in order to be holy. If you're like me, you're probably wondering why WE don't have to do these "holy" things! And here is what I think:
Holiness is standing out. We are holy when we stand out from the ways of the world and turn to God's ways. Others may see that we are different, and therefore what we're doing to get them to notice is holy.
Now, I don't mean we need to shave our heads, or run around cities wearing "I LOVE GOD" shirts. That's the wrong standing out... to me, anyway. I think God is wanting each and every one of his followers to stand out in ways that are positive and life-changing.
We need to LOVE GOD and LOVE OTHER PEOPLE. If we live lour lives the way JESUS wants us to, we are therefore setting ourselves different from the ways of the world, and becoming holy while doing so. It's a big process called LIFE where we try out very best to live Jesus-filled lives, in hopes that others will see how we're different, and want to become followers, too.
So, next time you get the chance, (which is-- by the way-- all the time...) make sure you're setting your actions differently. Live for Jesus, and people will start to wonder!
If you've got a Twitter or Facebook account-- you can stand out from the crowd RIGHT NOW by clicking the "Share It" widget to the right of this post.
Have a greatttt day! Peace.
Read these chapters now with the BIBLE READER to the right of this post, or at http://www.biblegateway.com/.
JUST WHAT IS HOLY?
In today's reading, there was much talk of things being holy or unholy. Also, in order to be holy, people had to do all these weird routines. For instance:
They must not shave their heads or let their hair grow long, but they are to keep the hair of their heads trimmed. No priest is to drink wine when he enters the inner court. They must not marry widows or divorced women; they may marry only virgins of Israelite descent or widows of priests. They are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean.
Ezekiel 44:20-23
Believe it or not, these were actual things that God's followers had to do in order to be holy. If you're like me, you're probably wondering why WE don't have to do these "holy" things! And here is what I think:
Holiness is standing out. We are holy when we stand out from the ways of the world and turn to God's ways. Others may see that we are different, and therefore what we're doing to get them to notice is holy.
Now, I don't mean we need to shave our heads, or run around cities wearing "I LOVE GOD" shirts. That's the wrong standing out... to me, anyway. I think God is wanting each and every one of his followers to stand out in ways that are positive and life-changing.
We need to LOVE GOD and LOVE OTHER PEOPLE. If we live lour lives the way JESUS wants us to, we are therefore setting ourselves different from the ways of the world, and becoming holy while doing so. It's a big process called LIFE where we try out very best to live Jesus-filled lives, in hopes that others will see how we're different, and want to become followers, too.
So, next time you get the chance, (which is-- by the way-- all the time...) make sure you're setting your actions differently. Live for Jesus, and people will start to wonder!
If you've got a Twitter or Facebook account-- you can stand out from the crowd RIGHT NOW by clicking the "Share It" widget to the right of this post.
Have a greatttt day! Peace.
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