Condemning the church in Thyatira for their sexual
immorality Jesus says in Revelation 2:23, “I am He who searches mind and heart, and
I will give to each of you according to your works.” God is
constantly “tuned in” to the unseen reality of our lives and we will be held
ACCOUNTABLE for what God finds in our MINDS! God is searching deep into our
minds to find thoughts of evil and sin. In
Ezekiel chapters 8-11God gives the prophet
Ezekiel a view of “reality” in the house of Judah. The cameras of God’s omniscience were
rolling, and in a vision (not a tele-vision), God shows Ezekiel a “lowlight”
film of sin that was going on in Jerusalem.
READ: Ezekiel 8:1-3a
God searches with JEALOUSY over our sin (Ez. 8:3b-6) – Jealousy is a pretty familiar storyline
in reality television, most evident in “The Bachelor”. 26 women compete for the affection of 1
man. If that is not a recipe for some
pretty intense jealousy I don’t know what is!
We experience jealousy when time, attention, and affection that is
intended for us is given to another! God
desires the first and best of who we are and when it is given to someone or
something else He is jealous (Exodus 20:1-5). The Bible calls anything that we give more
time, attention and affection to than God an idol. When we worship idols it is an abomination to
God and He is rightfully upset as a result of our unfaithfulness to Him.
God searches and SEES the sin we commit in the DARK (Ez. 8:7-12) – “Survivor” is a reality show
where contestants are isolated in the wild and try to survive while trying to
avoid getting voted off. It is common
for participants to secretly scheme and plot in an attempt to eliminate others. Because the cameras a rolling, we get to see
the evil that is being planned with whispering in “the dark”. When we act in secret and try to keep certain
actions hidden we are living in darkness.
We think we are getting away with it because others don’t see us and we
avoid getting caught. But don’t be
mistaken, God is ever-present and He sees our actions just as clearly in the
dark. We must not love places of
darkness, instead we must come to the light where there is forgiveness. Make no mistake, if we do not admit our own
sin, it WILL be exposed by Jesus Christ (Luke
12:2-3; John 3:19-21; Rom. 2:16 ; 1 Cor. 4:5)!
God searches for those who SIGH and GROAN over sin (Ez. 9:1-6) – We don’t see too much sorrow and
sadness over sin in reality television, and yet this is exactly the quality
that God is searching our minds for. God
is merciful toward those who mourn over their sin (Mt.
5:4). It is important to realize that God is
NOT just looking for someone to destroy!
He is just as passionate about defending and upholding those who express
sorrow over their sin as He is aggressively opposed to those who tolerate and
willingly participate in sin.
God searches and KNOWS the things that come into our
MINDS (Ez. 11:5-6) – “Big Brother” is a reality show which follows house guests living together 24 hours a day, isolated from the outside world but under constant surveillance with no privacy for three months. House guests go to a “Diary Room” and talk to the camera and explain what is on their mind to the viewers. God does not need surveillance
cameras to know what is going on in our life or inside our head. Our lives are like an unedited, uncensored
reality television show continually before our holy God. God is fully aware of every thought, intention,
and motivation that goes through our mind.
We may think that our mind is off limits, but in reality, . . . God
knows!
CONCLUSION
Through Ezekiel’s experience of seeing into the inner lives
of the nation of Israel we can see the importance losing our unaccountable
mind. We are responsible and will one
day be held accountable what is on inside of our minds. And just like the rest of God’s law, it
reveals to us our desperate NEED for a Savior (Ps.
26:2). Are
you ready and willing to be held accountable for the “REALITY” of your heart
and mind?
