We reap what we sow—when we plant bad seeds, we will harvest bad plants. Our actions have consequences related to those actions. If you eat too much, you will get fat. If you go to the beach without sunscreen, you will be sunburned. If you inhale smoke for decades, you will develop a lung condition.Continue reading “YOU REAP WHERE YOU SOW. Ezekiel 6:13.”
Author Archives: Steven Wales
Don’t Crush God’s Feelings. Ezekiel 6:9
Does God have feelings? How does God feel about our sin? I was crushed by their promiscuous hearts that turned away from Me and by their eyes that lusted after idols. Ezekiel 6:9 Your sin, your lust, hurts God. He is crushed by promiscuous hearts, by lust, by idolatry. Repent and confess your sins. (See?Continue reading “Don’t Crush God’s Feelings. Ezekiel 6:9”
STREET THEATER 2: THE HAIRCUT. Ezekiel 5:1-4; 6:9.
God’s message of judgment continues. Note the reason for judgment (I learned this great verse recently): “I was crushed by their promiscuous hearts that turned away from Me and by their eyes that lusted after idols.” Ezekiel 6:9 Imagine—your heart (not actions, but your HEART) can “crush” God. When our hearts stray into idolatry orContinue reading “STREET THEATER 2: THE HAIRCUT. Ezekiel 5:1-4; 6:9.”
Heaven’s Courtroom. Ezekiel 8:6-16.
We think of God as a Heavenly Judge, and that role belongs to Him and no one else. But if God is the judge, who is the prosecutor? Some think it’s the devil. Not only does Revelation 12:10 call Satan the “Accuser of the Brethren,” but the first two chapters of Job indicate Satan busiesContinue reading “Heaven’s Courtroom. Ezekiel 8:6-16.”
THE SCANDAL OF THE SERMON ILLUSTRATION. Ezekiel 1-4.
We have gotten carried away with sermon illustrations. One Sunday morning I turned on the television to discover that Woodlands, Texas, pastor Kerry Shook had had truckload after truckload of dirt hauled into his church and piled on the stage. Stage left bore a thirty-foot mound of dirt and stage right bore a thirty-foot moundContinue reading “THE SCANDAL OF THE SERMON ILLUSTRATION. Ezekiel 1-4.”
AN ACQUIRED TASTE. Ezekiel 3:2-3.
“Liver again? No!” “Keep eating it. It’s an acquired taste.” “…But radishes are too hot to put on salads.” “You’ll be fine. It’s an acquired taste.” “…How can anyone eat sardines? They smell awful.” “It’s an acquired taste.” Some things are good from the start. Babies love milk, whipped bananas, and apple sauce. But manyContinue reading “AN ACQUIRED TASTE. Ezekiel 3:2-3.”
STREET THEATER. Ezekiel 3:3; 4:1-17.
You’ve seen the guy painted silver who pretends to be a statue. And the juggler with bowling pins, the guy who “swallows” flaming swords, the magicians, drummers, and tap dancers in the French Quarter. Street theater is nothing like THEATER-theater. It’s not a play—there’s no script, and usually a cast of only one. Often there’sContinue reading “STREET THEATER. Ezekiel 3:3; 4:1-17.”
LOOKING UP FROM THE BOTTOM.
Remember Oscar the Grouch? He lived at the bottom of a trash can on Sesame Street–and somehow he was happy there. I always thought he had sunk about as low as anyone could. Have you reached the bottom? Different people have different bottoms. For one, a single failure in school or bad performance review on theContinue reading “LOOKING UP FROM THE BOTTOM.”
SCHOOL IS NOT PUNISHMENT.
I was unhappy in high school. And I was not the only one. Sharpstown High School had all the worst problems of American high schools, from drugs to riots to shootings. And for several months one year, someone phoned-in bomb threats nearly every day. The first time it happened it was funny and exciting, aContinue reading “SCHOOL IS NOT PUNISHMENT.”
TWO QUESTIONS. Lamentations 3:31-33.
QUESTION #1. Can you name this villain? To what cruel person do the following verses refer? “He is a bear waiting in ambush, a lion in hiding. He forced me off my way and tore me to pieces. He left me desolate. He strung his bow and set me as the target for his arrows.Continue reading “TWO QUESTIONS. Lamentations 3:31-33.”
Household Words: 