Ezekiel 22:1

Ezekiel 22:1 says, Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,  As with Ezekiel, as followers of Christ, God’s word should never stop coming to us.   

Verse two adds, Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? yea, thou shalt shew her all her abominations.  God asked if Ezekiel would be a judge over Jerusalem, which is referred to as a bloody city, and show them their abominations.  He wasn’t to judge people based on who he was or who they were but was to judge them as one God had called to point out their sins to them.  We are not called to judge people based on where they were born but are called on to judge their actions if they are not in accordance with God’s word for the purpose of calling them to salvation.   

Verse three continues, Then say thou, Thus saith the Lord God, The city sheddeth blood in the midst of it, that her time may come, and maketh idols against herself to defile herself.  Ezekiel was to make it clear that it was God’s judgment that he was proclaiming and that it was based on their sinful actions.  These people were still Israelites in name, but they were not Israelites spiritually.  We may be Christians in name, but still not have a spiritual relationship with God, and if that is true, our actions will show it.   

Verse four states, Thou art become guilty in thy blood that thou hast shed; and hast defiled thyself in thine idols which thou hast made; and thou hast caused thy days to draw near, and art come even unto thy years: therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the heathen, and a mocking to all countries.  God said that the sins of the people of Israel, who were shedding innocent blood and worshipping idols instead of worshipping Him and living by their covenant relationship with Him had become a laughingstock to the people who did not believe in Him.  As followers of Christ, we need to live our lives in obedience to God’s commandments and if we don't, we may become a laughingstock to the unsaved people of the world.  

Verse five adds, Those that be near, and those that be far from thee, shall mock thee, which art infamous and much vexed.  God said people everywhere, those close and those far off, would mock the people of Israel because of their disobedience to Him.  If we are professed Christians who are not obeying God’s law, those who live in the same country that we do and those around the world may mock us and by implication, God as well.  We may have heard people say based on the way we act in the world that if that is what it means to be a Christian, I don’t want to be one, and we need to make sure if they say that it is not based on how we personally are acting in relationship to other people.