Readings for today: Ezekiel 1-4, Psalms 31
(Picture: Modern day view of the river Chebar)
God shows up in the most unlikely of places. Though we tend to associate Him with beautiful cathedrals and magnificent churches, God makes His dwelling with the humble and lowly of heart. Ezekiel was such a man. Born to be a priest, he was carried off into exile with the other leaders of his people. He was a contemporary of Jeremiah and must have heard his preaching. Jeremiah often preached to the ruling class in Jerusalem. He may have even known the man personally. But now Ezekiel finds himself in exile. He lives with his people in a refugee camp. And he spends days down by the local water source, pondering all that happened. He must have felt the deepest of despair. He must have felt separated from God. He must have felt abandoned and alone and afraid. That’s when God shows up.
It’s a striking vision. One that has inspired all kinds of fantastical art throughout the centuries. Ezekiel sees a vision of God on His throne coming to be with His people in exile. And as stunning as the creatures are with their multiple heads and wheels within wheels, what would have struck Ezekiel the most is God’s faithfulness. After all, Ezekiel had been trained from birth that God’s dwelling place was in the Temple. The Temple was holy ground. The Holy of Holies in the Temple is where God’s glory dwelled. There was no precedent for God leaving the Temple. No historical record of God coming and going from the most holy place. All of Israel assumed that if one wanted to meet with God, one had to show up physically at the Temple and have the priest intercede for them. But now Ezekiel is in the worst possible place in the world. If you haven’t been to one, refugee camps are some of the worst places on earth. He’s living in abject poverty on the brink of starvation. There is nothing holy about his condition. No sacred ground for him to stand on. And yet, God is willing to meet him there.
Now think about Jesus. God could have sent Jesus to be born of a virgin in a palace in Jerusalem. God could have sent Jesus to emerge bodily from the Holy of Holies at the Temple. God could have done any number of things to reveal Himself to His people but what did God do? He came to a poor couple living in a backwater town in rural Israel. He met them in a common home and his first crib was manger among the animals. His attendants were shepherds from the fields. Despite what you may have been taught, the wise men didn’t show up for a couple of years. In Christ, God was willing to meet us in the midst of everyday life in the most ordinary of circumstances.
Now think about your life. If your life is anything like mine, God often shows up in the most unlikely of places. He comes at the most unexpected of times. Just when I think I’ve reached my limit or hit rock bottom, I find Him there waiting for me. I don’t have to go to some special place nor do I have to touch some sacred relic to find communion with Him. I simply open my heart to Him. I open His Word and He speaks. I obey His commands and I sense His abiding presence.
Readings for tomorrow: Ezekiel 5-8, Psalms 32