Ezekiel | Week 2 | Bill Bush | Full Service

Big Idea

Quoting the message: Who you are with matters more than where you are, end quote. — and being truly with God requires repentance, not just religion.

Drawing from Ezekiel 5, this sermon confronts the ancient and ongoing temptation to claim God's blessings while refusing His lordship. The Israelites believed their temple attendance and covenant status kept them safe, but God called out their idolatry and spiritual adultery. The same danger exists today: treating faith as a transaction to get God on our side, rather than surrendering to His side. True belonging to the remnant is proved by genuine repentance — not just stopping sin, but turning toward what God has called us to do.

Key points

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1Who you are with matters more than where you are — the Israelites were in Babylon but the real problem was they were not truly with God.
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2God's jealous anger is covenantal, not temperamental — He is the faithful husband whose people have continually cheated on Him through idolatry.
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3Idolatry is making anything — even a good thing — into a 'god thing,' including the blessings God Himself has given.
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4God does not take sides — He is a side, and Jesus died so we can get back on His side.
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5The remnant is always marked by repentance — a full 180-degree turn away from sin and toward what God calls us to do.
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6Repentance is not only turning away from wrong actions but also turning toward right ones — including serving, giving, and loving neighbors.
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7God brings divine discipline out of love — like a father drawing a line — to get our attention and call us back before we reach destruction.

Application

The pastor's challenge is direct and personal: stop asking God to get on your side and decide to get on His. That starts with honest self-examination — asking, 'In what area of my life am I at war with God?' From there, repentance is the path forward, and repentance means more than feeling bad or stopping a sinful habit. It means a full 180-degree turn: away from idols and toward active faithfulness — serving in your church with the gifts the Spirit has given you, honoring God with your finances, and using your story to love and reach people around you. The remnant has always been marked by those who will turn back. The question is whether you will be one of them.

Take it into your week

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Scripture in this message

From the transcript
“We're gonna be looking at Ezekiel five, but Ezekiel four and five are a section that that I think what we're gonna see is is what was happening to these these these Israelites that have been taken into captivity”
From the transcript
“go read Joshua chapter five. I'm not gonna turn there, but the book of Joshua. You know Joshua, Moses has died. There's a whole generation of people wouldn't trust God”
From the transcript
“In chapter four, look what he says in verse three and four. For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears wanna hear”
From the transcript
“down in verse 10, he talks about a guy that served with him named Demas. And he says, Timothy, Demas has deserted me because he loves the things of this life. So he's gone to Thessalonica”
From the transcript
“Matthew seven twenty one says it clearly. It says not everyone who calls out to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my father in heaven will enter”
From the transcript
“even in chapter five, right in the beginning of this chapter, there's the hope. Verse three, keep just a bit of the hair and tie it up in your robe. How is that a hope? He said that's the remnant”
From the transcript
“First John one nine says this, but if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness”

Made by Rewind AI from the sermon transcript. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

There's no devotional for this message.

Small-group discussion guide

For leading a group conversation about this message.

Open

This message takes a hard look at a surprisingly common habit — treating faith as a way to get God on our side rather than genuinely being on His. Before we dig in, what's one image or phrase from the message that stuck with you?

Discussion questions

1
In Ezekiel 5:5-17, God tells the Israelites that being physically located in Jerusalem — at the center of the nations, near the temple — wasn't enough. What does that suggest about the difference between being in the right place religiously and actually being with God?
2
The message described God's anger in Ezekiel 5:13 as covenantal rather than temperamental — like a faithful husband whose spouse has repeatedly been unfaithful. How does framing it that way change how we hear God's response to Israel's idolatry?
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The message made the point that idolatry isn't only about obvious false gods — it can happen when even a good thing, including a blessing God Himself gave, becomes a 'god thing.' How might people today recognize that shift happening in their own thinking or priorities?
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In Matthew 7:21, Jesus says that not everyone who calls Him 'Lord' will enter the kingdom — doing the will of the Father is what marks genuine belonging. How does that connect to what Ezekiel shows us about Israel assuming their covenant status kept them safe?
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The message drew a distinction between repentance as stopping a sinful habit and repentance as a full 180-degree turn — away from idols and toward active faithfulness. What does that fuller picture of repentance look like when it's lived out in a community like ours?
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The pastor challenged us to stop asking God to get on our side and instead decide to get on His. What would it look like — practically, in the way a community of people lives together — to orient life around that posture rather than the other way around?

Pray together

Honest hearts turning toward God — away from whatever competes with His lordship, and toward the life He's calling us into

Made by Rewind AI from the sermon transcript. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

Ezekiel | Week 2 | Bill Bush | Full Service

Big Idea

Key points

Application

Take it into your week

Scripture in this message

Small-group discussion guide

Open

Discussion questions

Pray together

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