Not Put into Practice

by Zeke Flores

How many times have we heard a sermon, yawned, and went on our way unchanged?

For the Israelites, it's not like they didn't hear the words; they just weren't listening with their hearts. They knew what God expected yet didn't do anything about it. And they paid a heavy price for it.

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Sometimes, we "listen" as though we're watching a performance. "He's easy to listen to," someone might say. "He's got a good delivery," says someone else. But when the lesson is over and the final "Amen" is said, there's no surrender to God's will and certainly no intention of making changes in life. Like the old saying about words going in one ear and out the other, there's no absorption of the message.

The next time you're zoning out in worship, remember God's words to Ezekiel about the Israelites and make sure they're not true about you.

Or you, too, may pay a heavy price.

"My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to hear your words, but they do not put them into practice. Their mouths speak of love, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain. Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice" (Ezekiel 33:31-32).