Rise Up!

I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none.

Ezekiel 22:30

Periodically, the President of the United States gives his State of the Union address. His national assessment might or might not be based upon facts. In Ezekiel 22, God gave a State of the Union address regarding Judah. God assessed the political leaders, priests, prophets, and people and declared them all to be corrupt! As always, God’s judgment was based upon truth. (Romans 2:2)

The corruption in Ezekiel’s day greatly parallels the corruption in our nation today. However, these words were addressed to God’s people. Does God see this same corruption in His church today? What would God’s State of His Kingdom on Earth address include?

About the false prophets God said, They say, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says’—when the LORD has not spoken (Ezekiel 22:28). Today many false teachers put words in God’s mouth that contradict His inspired Word. They tickle the ears of their audience with that which is pleasing or politically correct.

God said about the priests, …they do not distinguish between the holy and the common… (Ezekiel 22:26). Think about those words. As God’s priest (1 Peter 2:9), what are you treating as common that God has declared holy? His name, His Word, your worship… To be holy is to be set apart. So believer, how set apart are you from the common practices of the world?

God searched Judah and found no one to build up the wall (to believe His Word and act upon it). He found no one to stand in the gap before Him (to intercede for the nation). There’s a gap in the wall of truth today, and God is searching.

Rise up O church of God, have done with lesser things…

Now is the time to build up God’s truth by proclaiming it. Now is the time to pray for the holiness of God’s people!

Jan Burkhart