God Cleanses Hearts by Exposing False Leaders

False leaders who act spiritual while being utterly bankrupt inside is one of the great scourges on the faith from ancient times to this day. The world has no shortage of those who would venture to speak for God without a true and right relationship with Him. In Ezekiel's day, the elders practiced spirituality to impress the crowds, but they did not fool the Lord. 

Ezekiel 14:1–3 (ESV) Then certain of the elders of Israel came to me and sat before me. 2 And the word of the LORD came to me: 3 “Son of man, these men have taken their idols into their hearts, and set the stumbling block of their iniquity before their faces. Should I indeed let myself be consulted by them?

Notice the description. The leaders of Israel had idols in their hearts. An idol is any object or person we love instead of the Lord. More than that, notice the phrase, "set the stumbling block of their iniquity before their faces." What does that mean? The New Living Translation has it:
Ezekiel 14:3 (NLT) They have embraced things that will make them fall into sin. Why should I listen to their requests?

These false teachers were setting up the idols of their heart before the eyes of the people and leading others into sin. A church is a reflection of whatever is in the heart of their leader. If that leader loves sin, the church will love it. If that leader is passionate for the Lord, the church will be. Every leader must watch his heart lest he intentionally or by his own nature cause the people to fall into sin and idolatry. 

The message to these idol worshippers who feigned spirituality? REPENT!
Ezekiel 14:6 (ESV) “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: Repent and turn away from your idols, and turn away your faces from all your abominations.

What is the Lord's word? Look away from the things that get into your heart. The believer's eyes must be guarded. The look leads to lust. "The woman saw the fruit was good" (Genesis 3:6)—we know the rest of the story. Jesus was shown the kingdoms of the world (Matthew 4). He rebuked the devil and sent him packing. Guard what you watch; your heart is at stake!

The Lord says He set His face against those who seek to be spiritual and yet take idols into their heart. 
Ezekiel 14:8 (ESV) And I will set my face against that man; I will make him a sign and a byword and cut him off from the midst of my people, and you shall know that I am the LORD.

Notice what Ezekiel is saying! God will cut off false leaders to help His true people know Him! sometimes, when a false leader is exposed, we fear for the health of the church. That exposing is mercy for the Church! God is not giving up on them. The people will benefit because they will no longer follow the delusions and lies they have been fed. 

Ezekiel 14:9 (ESV) And if the prophet is deceived and speaks a word, I, the LORD, have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand against him and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel.

We don't think of the Lord in the "deception" business, but what I believe Ezekiel reveals is that God's truth will deceive those who stand falsely before Him and appear spiritual in the eyes of people. For they do not truly know the Lord. Just as Pharaoh's heart was hardened by the truth that he was not, in fact, "god" or the son of God, so too false prophets are deceived by the Lord in their rejection of His truth for their own imaginative lies. The plumb line is straight, and all the crooked are revealed by its presence. 

All this will be done, the Lord says, for the sake of His people.
Ezekiel 14:10–11 (ESV) And they shall bear their punishment—the punishment of the prophet and the punishment of the inquirer shall be alike— 11 that the house of Israel may no more go astray from me, nor defile themselves anymore with all their transgressions, but that they may be my people and I may be their God, declares the Lord GOD.”

The Lord's chastization is for our good, that we might learn righteous living and fear Him, that we might not defile (make dirty) our souls. The inward cleansing we desperately need comes only from Him. The good news is that He loves us strongly enough to bleach it out in painful and powerful ways. 

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