ROD OF DISCIPLINE OR JUDGMENT…
ROD OF DISCIPLINE OR JUDGMENT…
The word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel and say to the land of Israel, Thus says the LORD: Behold, I am against you and will draw my sword from its sheath and will cut off from you both righteous and wicked. Because I will cut off from you both righteous and wicked, therefore my sword shall be drawn from its sheath against all flesh from south to north. And all flesh shall know that I am the LORD. I have drawn my sword from its sheath; it shall not be sheathed again. “As for you, son of man, groan; with breaking heart and bitter grief, groan before their eyes. And when they say to you, ‘Why do you groan? ’you shall say, ‘Because of the news that it is coming. Every heart will melt, and all hands will be feeble; every spirit will faint, and all knees will be weak as water. Behold, it is coming, and it will be fulfilled,’ ” declares the Lord GOD. And the word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, prophesy and say, Thus says the Lord, say: “A sword, a sword is sharpened and also polished, sharpened for slaughter, polished to flash like lightning! (Or shall we rejoice? You have despised the rod, my son, with everything of wood.) So the sword is given to be polished, that it may be grasped in the hand. It is sharpened and polished to be given into the hand of the slayer. Cry out and wail, son of man, for it is against my people. It is against all the princes of Israel. They are delivered over to the sword with my people. Strike therefore upon your thigh. For it will not be a testing—what could it do if you despise the rod?” declares the Lord GOD. —Ezekiel 21:1-13
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. —James 1:22-25
Disobedience brings discipline first and then judgment! The rod had been brought against His people, but they would not respond to it. Now judgment was to come. It was not a test… it was judgment and it would affect both the righteous and unrighteous.
When people do not respond to His rod of discipline then there is only judgment that will follow. We need to look at this in America. If we do not respond to His rod of discipline, and we have not, then judgment will follow. As a nation we are in a dangerous place! Brother and sister, do we “groan; with breaking heart and bitter grief, groan before their eyes. And when they say to you, ‘Why do you groan?’ you shall say, ‘Because of the news that it is coming. Every heart will melt, and all hands will be feeble; every spirit will faint, and all knees will be weak as water. Behold, it is coming, and it will be fulfilled,’ declares the Lord GOD.” If His people are not at the point of groaning, of hearts that break and of bitter grief because of the state of our nation, then we are far worse off than even we may think! May we repent, have a heart fully committed to God and His will— being doers of His Word and not hearers only. To be hearers only is to be self-deceived. To be doers follows with blessing in our doing. Without obedience there is no blessing! Oh, that we would do His will. May we be obedient to our Lord God Almighty! May it be so! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOd7Eedu-M0
Dear Father I do not want to be self-deceived. I desire to be a doer of Your Word and not a hearer only. I desire to be a wise man that puts into practice Your Word and not a foolish man who only hears Your Word and does not put it into practice. May I be a doer in the power of Your Holy Spirit and in the authority of Jesus. May it be so?