Ezekiel chapter 13 talks about God's message for the false prophets who were testifying incorrect things using God's name. Nestled in the very beginning of the chapter is the following verse:
Ezekiel 13:5
"You have not gone up to the breaches in the wall to repair it for the people of Israel so that it will stand firm in the battle on the day of the Lord."
Although the verse is originally directed towards the false prophets of Israel, I couldn't help but notice how each of us can also glean some very important things from this verse.
It is important to quickly explain the context and meaning of this verse before we can dive into possible applications.
The Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament explains the verse this way:
"The sins of the [Israelite] people had made gaps and breaches in the walls of Jerusalem; in other words, had caused the moral decay of the city.
But [the false prophets] had not stood in the way of this decay and its causes,
as the calling and duty of prophets demanded, by reproving the sins of the people, that they might rescue the people and kingdom from destruction by restoring its moral and religious life."
In other words, the false prophets did not do their duty of praying for and interceding on behalf of the people. Instead of confronting the people with their sins (the breaks in their walls), the false prophets chose to be people-pleasers instead (and not help fix the gaps), which in the end meant that on the day of battle, the wall (the people) would come crumbling down. This is exactly what ended up happening when Babylon completed their destruction of Jerusalem.
We can learn a lot from this for our own lives.
When reading this verse I was immediately struck with a couple of things.
We All Have Cracks
First, it's important to realize that we all have breaches (breaks/gaps/cracks) in our walls.
We all have areas in our life that need improvement, through God's help.
None of us are perfect or sinless.
Romans 3:23
"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,"
Matthew 7:3-5
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye
and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?
How can you say to your brother,
‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’
when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?
You hypocrite,
first take the plank out of your own eye,
and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye."
Romans 12:3
"For by the grace given me I say to every one of you:
Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought,
but rather think of yourself with sober judgment,
in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you."
We Need To Repair Our Cracks
Notice in the verse, God is not angry about the breaks in and of itself.
He is angry however because they left the breaks and did not fix it.
We all have breaches in our life.
But as followers of Christ, we are not called to remain with breaches.
We are called to continually repair them.
We are not to remain under sin and bondage.
We are called to walk with Christ and be more and more like Him everyday.
We are called to be holy.
1 Peter 1:14-16
"As obedient children, do not conform
to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance.
But just as he who called you is holy,
so be holy in all you do;
for it is written:
“Be holy, because I am holy.”
We need to seek God for His guidance and ask Him to point out the breaks in our walls.
He is kind and wants us to be like Him so when we sincerely seek Him and ask Him,
the Holy Spirit will point out these areas to us.
Psalm 32:8
"The LORD says,
“I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.
I will advise you and watch over you."
James 1:5
"If any of you lacks wisdom,
let him ask God,
who gives generously to all without reproach,
and it will be given him."
Psalms 25:4-11
"Show me the right path, O LORD;
point out the road for me to follow.
Lead me by your truth and teach me,
for you are the God who saves me.
All day long I put my hope in you.
Remember, O LORD, your compassion and unfailing love,
which you have shown from long ages past.
Do not remember the rebellious sins of my youth.
Remember me in the light of your unfailing love,
for you are merciful, O LORD.
The LORD is good and does what is right;
he shows the proper path to those who go astray.
He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way.
The LORD leads with unfailing love and faithfulness
all who keep his covenant and obey his demands.
For the honor of your name, O LORD, forgive my many, many sins."
The Holy Spirit helps us find our cracks by convicting us.
However, we must be compliant, willing, open to hearing the Holy Spirit
and also be ready to humble ourselves, ask for forgiveness
and ask for God's help to make the necessary repairs.
We can ask God to help us with all of this.
He has promised to help!
Ezekiel 36:26-27
"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you;
I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
And I will put my Spirit in you
and move you to follow my decrees
and be careful to keep my laws."
Repairs or restoration of any kind takes time.
It requires careful inspection, patience and effort.
When we seek God first, spend time alone with God and His Word,
the Holy Spirit is able to help us with careful introspection, guide us with heavenly wisdom
and God through His strength helps us make necessary repairs in our life.
Through this process, we find ourselves being transformed into more and more like Christ.
It Is Easier To Make Repairs In Times Of Peace
Imagine trying to make any sort of exterior home repair in the middle of a thunderstorm.
Is it possible? Sure.
Is it recommended? No.
Will it be easy? Definitely not.
In the middle of a storm, you would hope that your home is secure so that you can safely weather the storm inside, not risking your life outside.
This might seem like an extreme example but how many of us are making similar mistakes in our spiritual life?
We know that there are areas in our life where we need to seek God's help more (breaks). However, when things are going well, when life is good and when God has graciously given us a season of peace, we tend to ignore the breaks in our life.
Instead of taking advantage of the time of peace and doubling down to focus on fixing our breaks, we tend to prioritize other things in life.
We busy ourselves with plenty of "good" and "happy" distractions.
We become complacent.
We become lazy with our Christian habits of spending time alone with God,
diligently reading our Bible and praying continually.
We tend to forget who gives us the good times in the first place and without fully realizing it, we allow other things to take God's place of primacy in our lives.
Then, when the storms of life hit us and when our walls come crumbling down, that is when we find ourselves running straight back to Him.
What we should be doing in seasons of rest, is doubling down on our Christian habits. Spending more time reading God's word.
Spending more time praying and listening to Him.
If troubling times draw us closer to our God, we must use the times of peace to draw even closer to Him!
Friend, these are the best times to draw close to Him.
Our seasons of peace are perfect opportunities for getting to know our Lord even more.
But instead many times, sadly, God ends up taking second place in our life in our seasons of plenty. We enjoy the gifts given in the season of rest but we sadly forget the Giver.
We enjoy the gift but we forget the Giver.
I love how God knows this about our nature and has given us the following warning in His Word.
Deuteronomy 8:11-18
"Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God,
failing to observe his commands,
his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.
Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied,
when you build fine houses and settle down,
and when your herds and flocks grow large
and your silver and gold increase
and all you have is multiplied,
then your heart will become proud
and you will forget the Lord your God,
who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness,
that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions.
He brought you water out of hard rock.
He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness,
something your ancestors had never known,
to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you.
You may say to yourself,
“My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.”
But remember the Lord your God,
for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth,
and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today."
Friend, we must learn to make God the priority always,
regardless of what season of life we are in;
good times or bad (Matthew 6:33, 1 Chronicles 16:11).
However, when we tightly cling to God even when everything in our life is going well,
we have the perfect environment to really listen and get to know our Father even deeper.
These are seasons He can use to build us up even stronger.
We will not have the distractions of pain and sorrow that usually come with seasons of trial and turbulence to distract us.
He can help us reinforce our walls so that we will be ready for any trials that come next.
Of course we must seek Him continually.
Of course we must seek Him in times of trouble.
But how much more can our relationship with Him grow in seasons of beautiful bountiful peace!
We are missing out on so much!
Trials will come.
But friend, imagine how much more prepared God will help us be for the day of battle,
if we ensure that we are walking with Him and repairing our walls in times of peace!
So friend, let us remember to always seek Him continually;
not just on the day of battle but especially in times of peace.
Psalm 105:4
"Seek the Lord and his strength;
seek his presence continually!"
The lyrics of the famous hymn 'Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing' by Robert Robinson captures beautifully this sentiment of our hearts, which are prone to wander away from the God we love.
Friend, let us not let our hearts wander away in times of plenty.
Let us not forget our God, the giver of all good gifts (James 1:17).
Let us seek Him first continually and through His help,
let us repair the beaks in our walls so that we will be ready when trials come.
"Oh, to grace how great a debtor
Daily I'm constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here's my heart, O take and seal it;
Seal it for Thy courts above"
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