Ezekiel 1-3; John 1
The ministry of Ezekiel is similar to that of the prophet Jeremiah. God calls him to proclaim His Word to the people already in Babylonian captivity (by the river Kebar). The book begins with a description of a vision of God's glory. This difficult-to-describe being resembles special angels expressing the Lord's glory, greatness, omniscience, and omnipresence. God reveals Himself to Ezekiel to send him on a challenging mission—to proclaim His revelation to the people who continued to resist God even in captivity—"And He said to me: Son of man! I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against Me to this very day" (Ezek. 2:3).
God immediately warns the prophet that the people will not listen to him because they are "obstinate and stubborn" (Ezek. 2:4). Nevertheless, Ezekiel is told not to fear them—"But you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are rebellious" (Ezek. 2:6).
To enable the prophet to speak His revelation, God commands him to eat a scroll with His words—"And He said to me: Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it. So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth" (Ezek. 3:3). This is an important condition for ministry: to proclaim God's Word, one must first thoroughly internalize it.
At the end of the third chapter, there is an important warning. The task of God's messengers is to proclaim God's Word, whether the people listen to it or not.
John 1
The presentation of Jesus Christ's divinity. He is directly called God (John 1:1-3). His incarnation clearly states: "The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14).
In the second half of the chapter, there is testimony about the divinity and messiahship of Jesus Christ, given by John the Baptist—"Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29), as well as the calling of the first disciples and their confession of Him as the Messiah and the Son of God—"Nathanael answered Him, 'Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel'" (John 1:49).
God immediately warns the prophet that the people will not listen to him because they are "obstinate and stubborn" (Ezek. 2:4). Nevertheless, Ezekiel is told not to fear them—"But you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are rebellious" (Ezek. 2:6).
To enable the prophet to speak His revelation, God commands him to eat a scroll with His words—"And He said to me: Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it. So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth" (Ezek. 3:3). This is an important condition for ministry: to proclaim God's Word, one must first thoroughly internalize it.
At the end of the third chapter, there is an important warning. The task of God's messengers is to proclaim God's Word, whether the people listen to it or not.
John 1
The presentation of Jesus Christ's divinity. He is directly called God (John 1:1-3). His incarnation clearly states: "The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14).
In the second half of the chapter, there is testimony about the divinity and messiahship of Jesus Christ, given by John the Baptist—"Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29), as well as the calling of the first disciples and their confession of Him as the Messiah and the Son of God—"Nathanael answered Him, 'Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel'" (John 1:49).
Posted in Reading Bible Together