What Is Your Purpose?

Close Your eyes and repeat after me.

Say, “Lord you are welcome in this place.”

Now say it like you mean it.

Let's put the bad things from our week at the door to His house

Grab your bible and say this with me;

This is my Bible

I am what is says I am

I have what it says I have

Today I will be taught more of the Word of God

I boldly confess My Mind is alert

My heart is receptive. I will never be the same.

I am about to receive the incorruptible, Indestructible

ever-living seed of the Word of God

I will never be the same

I'll never be the same, In Jesus Name.

What is your primary purpose?

What is your purpose in life?

Why were you born?

God has a purpose...........

God equips those who He creates to have a relationship with Him.

Here is a story for you.

Some miners and settlers in British Columbia were stripping Fort Alcan

of lumber, electrical appliances and plumbing when they made a amazing

discovery. While dismantling the jail they found that the mighty locks were

attached to the heavy doors and 2 inch steel bars covered the windows, but

the walls of the prison were only wallboard made of clay and paper, painted

to look like iron. A good heave against the wall by a man would have burst

the wall down. Nobody ever tried because nobody thought it was possible.

Many Christians are prisoners of fear that are nothing when they are pushed up against them.

Satan can do nothing against a son of God, but he loves to put barriers of papier mache in the path of a believer to make him think he is stopped in his life.”

When God calls us to do difficult tasks for him like He did with

Ezekiel-- He calls us to face it with courage. We cannot be afraid of what

God has already overcome. To Joshua, the Lord said, “Be strong and

courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

To Isaiah the Lord said, “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be

dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will

uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

I think that’s why God appeared to Ezekiel in the first chapter the way

He did. Ezekiel needed to remember how big God is. He needed to

remember that the God who calls him could protect and provide for his needs.

Ezekiel is going into the exile camp with an unpopular message.

I don’t know if you’ve ever had to give someone bad news. The message is unpopular and will hurt those you care about. There is nothing fun about giving bad news.

You can become unpopular in a hurry. People may cross the street to avoid

you. People will stop associating with you. It can feel very alone sometimes.

Ezekiel had an unpopular message of repentance and judgment and the people he went to could not have been less receptive to his words.

But, we see in this passage that:

1. God equipped Ezekiel with courage v.6-7; 3:8-9. He gives him the

courage to face the people each day. He gives him the courage to say “So

says the Lord.” The Lord used two verbs to describe the people of God in

this passage “rebelled” which means to refuse allegiance to, to rise up

against, a sovereign and “revolt” which means to violate covenant duties,

breach covenant relations”. The people of God were in open rebellion

against God, but God still loved them enough to want to warn them, to speak to them about their sins.

2. God encourages Ezekiel to be a man of integrity. We cannot speak with

authority against a sin if we are involved in it. 2:8 God calls his people to be

sanctified, to be holy, to be different. The witness we have among people in

our community or with our loved ones is who people see. It gives us credibility. or it robs us of it.

I heard a story about two preachers who lived in the days before

automobiles. The two of them met in a certain town for lunch every Monday.

The first asked the second how he was doing. “Furious!” replied the second. “Someone has stolen my bicycle and I think it’s one of my church members! I don’t know what to do.”

The first preacher said: “Here’s what I’d do. I’d preach a message about the Ten Commandments this Sunday and when I got to “Thou shall not steal” I’d