Ezekiel 34-36

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ezekiel%2034-36&version=ESV

Ezekiel 36:24-27 "24 I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. ²⁵ I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. ²⁶And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. ²⁷ And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules."

The above is a beautiful picture of what the new birth looks like. Its is what it means to be born again.

Please read John 3:1-15.

When Jesus tells Nicodemus in verse 5,

"Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God."

He is undoubtedly referring to these verses. Nicodemus, who was a Pharisee, and knew the Old Testament well, did not understand Jesus.

He did not understand Him and the truth of the new birth, because first and foremost he was not yet born again. He did not have the Holy Spirit indwelling in him.

The Holy Spirit is truly a gift to us. Not only is He the one who is actively involved in our regeneration, or new birth, but He is also actively involved in our sanctification, or spiritual growth.

I love when the Lord tells Ezekiel that He will remove the heart of stone from our flesh and replace it with a heart of flesh.

How great that is!!! I can only tell you that since I have been born again, that the things of the Lord have become more and more precious to me.

That is a sign that you are born again. That you begin to yearn after the things of the Lord. You want to read His Word, you want to pray, you want to be holy, and you want to obey Him.

Friends, the sanctification or spiritual growth in each of us, happens differently, and each of us progresses in our Christian life at different rates. But the important thing is to be progressing. To be growing in our walk with Christ.

I would like to end with some verses from 1 Peter and 2 Peter.

The first tells us about how we should yearn for God's truths. And the second tells us that although we should grow in knowledge about the Lord, we also need to grow in our relationship with Him, and we should strive to act more Christlike each and every day that the Lord has blessed us with on this earth.

1 Peter 2:2-3

"2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— ³ if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. "

2 Peter 3:18

"¹⁸ But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen."

Soli Deo Gloria.

Today's post was submitted by Russ Shellhamer.