Eze.43:1-12, I will restore my glory

Eze.43:1-12, I will restore my glory

 Ezekiel was a priest taken captive to Babylon in the early 6th century BC. For him, the Temple in Jerusalem was his entire life, and for the Israelites, it was a holy place symbolizing God's presence. However, the Temple was destroyed due to their sins, and even more tragically, God's glory left it. At the very end of despair, when all hope seemed lost, God gave Ezekiel a remarkable vision of hope. This is the passage we read today in chapter 43. This is the climax of the Book of Ezekiel and a great message of hope for the exiled people. Through this passage, we will see God's grace and plan of salvation for us today, and apply Jesus and the kingdom of God us

1. Why did God's glory leave the Temple? (Chs. 8-11)
 What was God's temple originally like? This is the passage from v.6 onward. “6.While I was listening to what was being said to me in the temple, a man stood beside me. 7.He said to me, ‘Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the soles of my feet, where I will dwell among the people of Israel forever...’” The temple of the Lord is the place of God’s throne, the place of God’s feet, and the place where God will dwell among the people of Israel(God’s people) forever. God is especially present in the temple. Of course, God is everywhere. At the same time, God chooses certain places to carry out His will, speak His word, and move and inspire His people(see Is.66:1-2). There, the saints gather together to worship and experience God’s presence. Therefore, this place must be a holy and reverent place for God.  However, due to the people’s idolatry, sin, and injustice, God’s glory left the temple in Jerusalem. 10:18-19, "The glory of the LORD departed from the threshold of the temple and stood above the cherubim. The cherubim lifted up their wings and ascended from the earth before my eyes. As they went out, the wheels were beside them. They came to rest at the entrance to the temple of the LORD toward the east, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them." 11:22-23, "Then the cherubim lifted their wings, and the wheels beside them, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them. Then the glory of the LORD rose from the midst of the city and stood on the mountain east of the city." He then went to Babylon and became a sanctuary for the exiles.
  What happens when God's glory leaves the temple? The temple, God's holy house, is no longer a holy place. It is merely a secular place defiled by human greed and disobedience. The temple, a building, must be a place where God's saints can truly worship, study the Word, and pray. Otherwise, the glory of God will not be present in the temple.

2. God's Glory Returns(43:2,4-5)
V.1 begins, "Then he brought me to the east gate, the gate that faces east." This is the very gate from which God's glory departed. Surprisingly, v.2 declares, "The glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east." He returns the same way He departed east! God's voice(Word) was like "the sound of many waters," and the earth "shone with his glory." This was not a mere vision, but a shocking event that shook the entire earth and history. He was coming to dwell with His people forever. The darkness was driven away, and the light of God's glory was with Him.
 God's glory returned to the temple! What does this mean? First, God judges our sins, but at the same time, He promises our restoration. Second, it shows that God's presence can leave and then return. Our sin and disobedience can distance us from God, but when we repent and turn back, He returns to us(9-10).  Eze.43:2,4-5: "The glory of the God of Israel came from the east. His voice was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with His glory... The glory of the Lord entered the temple by the east gate. Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and I looked, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the temple."
  In his vision, Ezekiel sees God's glory reentering the temple through the east gate. This is not a simple restoration of the building. It is a promise from God that He will not abandon the Israelites but will dwell among them again. Jer.32:40,41: "I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them to do them good; I will put the fear of Me in their hearts, so that they will not turn away from Me. I will rejoice in doing them good and will plant them in this land with all My heart and with all My soul." These words gave great hope to the captives who were in despair. The return of God, who had turned away from them because of their sins, signifies the beginning of restoration and salvation.
 Ps.24:7-10, “Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. ...Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, the King of glory.” Ezekiel entered the inner court of the temple, guided by the Holy Spirit. The temple was filled with the glory of God(5). May we all repent and live as upright worshipers so that our church may become a blessed temple of God filled with the glory of the Lord.

3. God demands two things from His people(7-11)
1) First, He commands them to cast away their idols and the corpses of kings.
Vs.7-9, “...The house of Israel will never again profane my holy name with the filthy sexual immorality they and their kings have committed, with the dead bodies of their kings ... They also profaned my holy name by the abominations they committed. Therefore, I was angry and destroyed them. But now, remove far from me their filthy sexual immorality and the dead bodies of their kings, and I will dwell among them forever.”  He commands them to abandon filthy sexual immorality. This means abandoning spiritual adultery, that is, serving foreign gods and enjoying foreign culture. God withdrew his glory and presence from the temple because of idolatry. Therefore, he asks them, “Do not allow idols to dwell in this temple any more.” He also commands them twice(in 7:9), “Throw away the dead bodies of the kings.” This means 1) purifying them or 2) removing the monuments of the king from the temple—that is, refraining from human worship. God commands us not to defile God's holy name with these things, for the temple is a place where only God is worshipped and honored. The new temple demonstrates that God grants life. Receive this life and enjoy it.  God promises that if they abandon idols and corpses(human worship), He will dwell among them forever(9). This demonstrates the governing principles of God's kingdom. Where the kingdom of God comes, there must be no more sin or idolatry. Those who believe in Jesus and repent of their sins become God's temple through the Holy Spirit (1 Cor.6:19). Therefore, the church community and the lives of individual believers must become a new temple filled with God's glory. May they experience the blessing of God's eternal life. By showing the restored people the new temple, God causes them to feel ashamed of their sins and repent, to measure the new temple, and to live holy lives.

2) He also commands them to know the word and to keep it in practice (11). The Israelites disobeyed God's word and were destroyed. However, when they repented and rebuilt the temple, God's glory descended upon them again, and God commanded them to know His word and to keep it. Mt.28:20, Jesus' Great Commission, is similar: "Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Teach them to obey it. I will be with you to the very end. Amen.  The people had turned away from God's word, abandoned it, and disobeyed. At that time, God withdrew His glory and presence from the temple. Now, however, the Lord promises to reveal His glory and presence and commands them to teach His word and keep it. The condition for a life of fellowship with God, or enjoying His presence, is obedience to His word. Jn.14:23, "Jesus answered and said to him, 'If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.'" God is with those who obey His word. He also reveals His glory. Dear saints who love God, I bless you to become blessed saints who obey God's word, draw near to Him, and see His glory. Jesus is the glory of God who came among us (Jn.1:14). He is also the new temple that dwells among us (John 2:21). Through Jesus, God's presence dwells among us, and our relationship with God is restored through the blood of the cross.
Verses 10-11 tell us to teach the temple rules when the people are ashamed of their sins. What are the "idols" and "sins" in our lives that block God's glory and cause Him to turn away? Do you truly feel ashamed and repent of those sins? Jesus is the new temple, the glory of God incarnate. Do you accept Jesus as your "Lord" in your life? Do you receive forgiveness of sins through Jesus' cross and experience God's presence through Him? God promised, "I will dwell among the people of Israel forever" (7). As temples indwelt by the Holy Spirit, do our words, actions, hearts, and thoughts reveal God's holiness? May we be blessed to live our lives reflecting the glory of God.
  Ch.43 shows the temple being filled with God's glory and light. Are our churches and each of us filled solely with God's word, glory, and light, not with worldly values ​​or human desires? What efforts should we make to ensure that the church becomes a "new temple" that reveals God's holy presence in the world?
 Beloved believers, Ezekiel saw God's glory entering through the eastern gate. Jesus will return from the east. In this age in which we live, how should God's glory flow into the world through the lives of our churches and believers? I bless you to reveal God's glory to the world through the preaching of the gospel and service. Amen.