Read Ezekiel 34:25-27, 30.
In the book of Ezekiel, we see God’s heartache over the rebellion of His creation, as well as His righteous anger towards their sin. His children are running—fleeing—from Him by committing every atrocious sin imaginable. And at the end of each statement promising justice, the Lord says repeatedly, “Then they will realize that I am God.”
But there are also bright lights in Ezekiel—glimpses of God’s loving, gracious heart. In chapter 34, God draws near to His people while they are in a season of darkness. He says in Ezekiel 34:25-27,30:
I’ll make a covenant of peace with them. I’ll banish fierce animals from the country so the sheep can live safely in the wilderness and sleep in the forest. I’ll make them and everything around my hill a blessing. I’ll send down plenty of rain in season—showers of blessing! The trees in the orchards will bear fruit, the ground will produce, they’ll feel content and safe on their land, and they’ll realize that I am God when I break them out of their slavery and rescue them from their slave masters… They’ll know, beyond doubting, that I, God, am their God.
God wants us to know—beyond a shadow of a doubt—that He is God. When the storms come, He is God. When the flowers bloom, He is God. When we sin, He will reveal His glory through justice. When we obey, He will reveal His glory through His presence.
So our desire should match His—more of His holiness and less of our own happiness. Whatever season we walk through, we can thank Him simply because He is holy, and He deserves our praise. May our lives be marked by this assurance: in the good and the bad, He is God.
God, thank You for always reminding us that You are God—in the good times and the bad. Amen.
-written by a missionary on our Diaspora Team