“Then I said, “Sovereign Lord, they are saying of me, ‘Isn’t he just telling parables?’”.
Everyone can recall the story of the boy who cried “Wolf.” In this story, a young boy attending to sheep started to wonder if, when he was in trouble, anyone would come out and save him. He knew that wolves were a threat, so he decided to cry “Wolf” loudly so the people would think he was in danger. They came out, saw that it was a trick and there was no wolf, scolded the boy, and went back to town. This happened many times until the people no longer trusted the boy. Then a real wolf came, and the boy cried “Wolf” again, but no one came.
Ezekiel was not crying wolf. He was speaking the words the Lord told him to speak. Not a new message, but the same message the Lord had been speaking to His people for decades: “Turn from your sin and follow the Lord.” This chapter is long, but it starts out with the leaders of Israel coming to Ezekiel for a word from the Lord. Forty-eight verses reviewing the history of the Israelites’ disobedience are spelled out, and we come to our verses of the day. They thought he was telling parables or stories. In other words, no one was really listening.
Oftentimes we, as Christians, get chances to tell what God has done in our lives. Revelation 12:11 says that they overcame by the blood of the Lamb, Jesus, and the word of their testimony. That verse says they overcame, meaning that the ones telling the testimony overcame, not necessarily the people they were speaking to. Our faith gets exercised every time we tell what God has done in our lives. When Jesus asked His disciples in Matthew 16, “Who do men say that I am?” and Peter said that He was the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus responded, “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.”
Our job as Christ followers is to tell people the good news of the gospel, Jesus and His sacrifice. Our job is not to convince them to follow Jesus with our vast understanding of the Bible. If that were true, then all the religious ruling class in Israel should have recognized who Jesus was, but they did not. All the knowledge of the Bible will not save you.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians that he speaks of the hidden mystery and wisdom of God. This “wisdom” is only revealed to us by God through the Holy Spirit. The leaders of Israel who were talking to Ezekiel had wicked hearts and therefore did not receive the wisdom of God that day, they called it parables or riddles. 2 Corinthians 4:4 tells us, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”
Today, pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal the wisdom of God through the Bible to you. Just like the boy who cried wolf, the reality was that he never truly trusted the people of the town to come when he needed them. Who do you put your trust in? Have you committed your whole heart, or are you just playing games, going to church and looking the part, when deep down you are dry men’s bones, as Jesus called the religious leaders of the day? Exercise your faith by telling someone what God has done for you.
Prayer: Father, help us to recognize Your hand in our everyday life. I pray that we spend time with You every day and not just on Sundays. I pray that we would keep proclaiming what Jesus means to us and how He changed our lives. I pray for boldness and direction to proclaim our testimony in the right setting, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. But most of all, Lord, I pray that we never forget You are with us always, even in our darkest hours when things are not going our way. I pray that You would give us Your peace. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Let It Go 
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