Apostasy takes time.

1
Apostasy takes time.

• It takes time for the faith of one generation to
  be rejected by another generation.

2
Apostasy takes time.

• It takes time for the faith of one generation to
  be rejected by another generation.
• Satan works through dishonest ways and will
  deceive you as to his real intent. His most
  powerful weapons are found within the fellowship
  of Gods people.

3
Apostasy takes time.

• Someone may have a family history and a personal
  history of being a leader among the people of God
  but in reality is something else. (2 Cor 1113-15)

4
Apostasy takes time.

• 2 Corinthians 1113-15 - For such are false
  apostles, deceitful workers, transforming
  themselves into apostles of Christ. 14 And no
  wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into
  an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great
  thing if his ministers also transform themselves
  into ministers of righteousness, whose end will
  be according to their works.

5
Apostasy takes time.

• Many parents would have had no idea what thoughts
  and attitudes were being introduced to their
  children and relatives in the background. (2 Pt
  21-2)

6
Apostasy takes time.

• 2 Peter 21-2 - But there were also false
  prophets among the people, even as there will be
  false teachers among you, who will secretly bring
  in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord
  who bought them, and bring on themselves swift
  destruction. 2 And many will follow their
  destructive ways, because of whom the way of
  truth will be blasphemed.

7
Apostasy takes time.

• A combination of bitterness and pride are
  commonly found in dishonest leaders.

8
Apostasy takes time.

• A combination of bitterness and pride are
  commonly found in dishonest leaders.
• The reaction of one to the Gods word reveals the
  kind of heart he has. (Ex 71-4)

9
Apostasy takes time.

• Exodus 71-4 - So the LORD said to Moses "See, I
  have made you as God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your
  brother shall be your prophet. 2 "You shall
  speak all that I command you. And Aaron your
  brother shall speak to Pharaoh to send the
  children of Israel out of his land.

10
Apostasy takes time.

• 3 "And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and
  multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of
  Egypt. 4 "But Pharaoh will not heed you, so that
  I may lay My hand on Egypt and bring My armies
  and My people, the children of Israel, out of the
  land of Egypt by great judgments.

11
Apostasy takes time.

• Men who are self-willed become bitter over time
  at sound teachers and those who stand with them.

12
Apostasy takes time.

• Their hardness of heart will often be revealed by
  looking to share bitterness with others.
  From Korah to Absalom false leaders can motivate
  others through inflaming passions over the
  unfairness of traditional brethren. (Num 163-7)

13
Apostasy takes time.

• Numbers 163-7 - They gathered together against
  Moses and Aaron, and said to them, "You take too
  much upon yourselves, for all the congregation is
  holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among
  them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the
  assembly of the LORD?" 4 So when Moses heard it,
  he fell on his face

14
Apostasy takes time.

• 5 and he spoke to Korah and all his company,
  saying, "Tomorrow morning the LORD will show who
  is His and who is holy, and will cause him to
  come near to Him. That one whom He chooses He
  will cause to come near to Him.

15
Apostasy takes time.

• 6 "Do this Take censers, Korah and all your
  company 7 "put fire in them and put incense in
  them before the LORD tomorrow, and it shall be
  that the man whom the LORD chooses is the holy
  one. You take too much upon yourselves, you sons
  of Levi!"

16
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• God intervened in a meeting of Ezekiel and the
  elders of Israel. (Ezk 81)

17
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• Ezekiel 81 - And it came to pass in the sixth
  year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the
  month, as I sat in my house with the elders of
  Judah sitting before me, that the hand of the
  Lord GOD fell upon me there.

18
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• They looked and dressed like good men. Ezekiel is
  about to see as God does.

19
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• They looked and dressed like good men. Ezekiel is
  about to see as God does.
• Jesus knew men for who they really were. (Jn
  223-25)

20
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• John 223-25 - Now when He was in Jerusalem at
  the Passover, during the feast, many believed in
  His name when they saw the signs which He did.
  24 But Jesus did not commit Himself to them,
  because He knew all men, 25 and had no need that
  anyone should testify of man, for He knew what
  was in man.

21
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• Ezekiel comes into the presence of God. (Ezk
  82-5)

22
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• Ezekiel 82-5 - Then I looked, and there was a
  likeness, like the appearance of fire -- from the
  appearance of His waist and downward, fire and
  from His waist and upward, like the appearance of
  brightness, like the color of amber.

23
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• 3 He stretched out the form of a hand, and took
  me by a lock of my hair and the Spirit lifted me
  up between earth and heaven, and brought me in
  visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the
  north gate of the inner court, where the seat of
  the image of jealousy was, which provokes to
  jealousy.

24
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• 4 And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was
  there, like the vision that I saw in the plain.
  5 Then He said to me, "Son of man, lift your eyes
  now toward the north." So I lifted my eyes toward
  the north, and there, north of the altar gate,
  was this image of jealousy in the entrance.

25
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• God wants us to know His nature. Our God is fire
  and light! (Ezek 1638 2325)

26
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• Ezekiel 1638 - "And I will judge you as women
  who break wedlock or shed blood are judged I
  will bring blood upon you in fury and jealousy.

27
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• Ezekiel 2325 - I will set My jealousy against
  you, And they shall deal furiously with you They
  shall remove your nose and your ears, And your
  remnant shall fall by the sword They shall take
  your sons and your daughters, And your remnant
  shall be devoured by fire.

28
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• No sin is in Him or can abide in His presence. (1
  Jn 15-6)

29
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• 1 John 15-6 - This is the message which we have
  heard from Him and declare to you, that God is
  light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we
  say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in
  darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.

30
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• God now allows Ezekiel to bear a burden, he will
  see these men as God does!

31
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• God now allows Ezekiel to bear a burden, he will
  see these men as God does!
• Gods people need honest, mature shepherds that
  trust in God!

32
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• A shepherd knows the sheep. (John 103-5)

33
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• John 103-5 - "To him the doorkeeper opens, and
  the sheep hear his voice and he calls his own
  sheep by name and leads them out. 4 "And when he
  brings out his own sheep, he goes before them
  and the sheep follow him, for they know his
  voice. 5 "Yet they will by no means follow a
  stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not
  know the voice of strangers.

34
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• A leader is concerned for the real welfare of the
  sheep. What comes first? (Jn 1011-12)

35
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• John 1011-12 - "I am the good shepherd. The good
  shepherd gives His life for the sheep. 12 "But a
  hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who
  does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and
  leaves the sheep and flees and the wolf catches
  the sheep and scatters them.

36
The Leaders of Israel spoke and looked like
spiritual men

• A leader will lead by principle and not by
  convenience.

37
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• Ezekiel was able to see what went on behind
  closed doors. (Ezk 86-12)

38
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• Ezekiel 86-12 - Furthermore He said to me, "Son
  of man, do you see what they are doing, the great
  abominations that the house of Israel commits
  here, to make Me go far away from My sanctuary?
  Now turn again, you will see greater
  abominations."

39
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• 7 So He brought me to the door of the court and
  when I looked, there was a hole in the wall. 8
  Then He said to me, "Son of man, dig into the
  wall" and when I dug into the wall, there was a
  door. 9 And He said to me, "Go in, and see the
  wicked abominations which they are doing there."

40
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• 10 So I went in and saw, and there -- every sort
  of creeping thing, abominable beasts, and all the
  idols of the house of Israel, portrayed all
  around on the walls. 11 And there stood before
  them seventy men of the elders of the house of
  Israel, and in their midst stood Jaazaniah the
  son of Shaphan. Each man had a censer in his
  hand, and a thick cloud of incense went up.

41
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• 12 Then He said to me, "Son of man, have you seen
  what the elders of the house of Israel do in the
  dark, every man in the room of his idols? For
  they say, 'The LORD does not see us, the LORD has
  forsaken the land.'

42
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• The vision is almost like a science fiction movie
  where he is able to go through walls and see
  things that the elders did not others to see.

43
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• They had separated themselves from the people and
  likely despised them for their ignorant
  following of traditions. They were the
  enlightened ones!

44
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• These Elders had developed a secret fellowship.

45
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• This room was off limits except to the priests.
  The Elders used it because the
  people could not see them.

46
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• Can you imagine this scene? A room filled with
  idols, the walls covered with idols, and secret
  worship to idols by the leaders of Gods people?

47
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• Can you imagine this scene? A room filled with
  idols, the walls covered with idols, and secret
  worship to idols by the leaders of Gods people?
• The most incredible statement is made about their
  thoughts about the nature of God!
  They did not develop these views overnight.

48
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• These men had lost the ability to be honest. They
  had become dishonest politicians only interested
  in retaining power.

49
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• These men had lost the ability to be honest. They
  had become dishonest politicians only interested
  in retaining power.
• Can you imagine how much they hated Jeremiah for
  his preaching? (Jer 191-4, 14-15)

50
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• Jeremiah 191-4 - Thus says the LORD "Go and get
  a potter's earthen flask, and take some of the
  elders of the people and some of the elders of
  the priests. 2 "And go out to the Valley of the
  Son of Hinnom, which is by the entry of the
  Potsherd Gate and proclaim there the words that
  I will tell you,

51
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• 3 "and say, 'Hear the word of the LORD, O kings
  of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem. Thus says
  the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel "Behold, I
  will bring such a catastrophe on this place, that
  whoever hears of it, his ears will tingle.

52
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• 4 " Because they have forsaken Me and made this
  an alien place, because they have burned incense
  in it to other gods whom neither they, their
  fathers, nor the kings of Judah have known, and
  have filled this place with the blood of the
  innocents

53
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• Jeremiah 1914-15 - Then Jeremiah came from
  Tophet, where the LORD had sent him to prophesy
  and he stood in the court of the Lord's house and
  said to all the people, 15 "Thus says the LORD
  of hosts, the God of Israel 'Behold, I will
  bring on this city and on all her towns all the
  doom that I have pronounced against it, because
  they have stiffened their necks that they might
  not hear My words.

54
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• There is no harder audience to teach than those
  who are raised in the church but have hardened
  their hearts to really listen. (Ezk 35-11)

55
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• Ezekiel 35-11 - "For you are not sent to a
  people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language,
  but to the house of Israel, 6 "not to many
  people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language,
  whose words you cannot understand. Surely, had I
  sent you to them, they would have listened to
  you.

56
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• 7 "But the house of Israel will not listen to
  you, because they will not listen to Me for all
  the house of Israel are impudent and
  hard-hearted. 8 "Behold, I have made your face
  strong against their faces, and your forehead
  strong against their foreheads.

57
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• 9 "Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have
  made your forehead do not be afraid of them, nor
  be dismayed at their looks, though they are a
  rebellious house." 10 Moreover He said to me
  "Son of man, receive into your heart all My words
  that I speak to you, and hear with your ears.

58
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• 11 "And go, get to the captives, to the children
  of your people, and speak to them and tell them,
  'Thus says the Lord GOD,' whether they hear, or
  whether they refuse.

59
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• They tried to silence Jeremiah by intimidation
  and finally physical torture. (Jer 384-6)

60
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• Jeremiah 384-6 - Therefore the princes said to
  the king, "Please, let this man be put to death,
  for thus he weakens the hands of the men of war
  who remain in this city, and the hands of all the
  people, by speaking such words to them. For this
  man does not seek the welfare of this people, but
  their harm."

61
The Leaders of Israel had a different agenda than
what they professed

• 5 Then Zedekiah the king said, "Look, he is in
  your hand. For the king can do nothing against
  you." 6 So they took Jeremiah and cast him into
  the dungeon of Malchiah the king's son, which was
  in the court of the prison, and they let Jeremiah
  down with ropes. And in the dungeon there was no
  water, but mire. So Jeremiah sank in the mire.

62
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Hypocrites think that their actions only affect
  them.

63
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Hypocrites think that their actions only affect
  them.
• Ask anyone who has had a relationship with one
  like this can bear witness.

64
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Hypocrites think that their actions only affect
  them.
• Ask anyone who has had a relationship with one
  like this can bear witness.
• Satan knows there will be fruit that will abound
  in others. (Rom 217-24)

65
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Romans 217-24 - Indeed you are called a Jew, and
  rest on the law, and make your boast in God, 18
  and know His will, and approve the things that
  are excellent, being instructed out of the law,
  19 and are confident that you yourself are a
  guide to the blind, a light to those who are in
  darkness,

66
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of
  babes, having the form of knowledge and truth in
  the law. 21 You, therefore, who teach another,
  do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a
  man should not steal, do you steal? 22 You who
  say, "Do not commit adultery," do you commit
  adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob
  temples?

67
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• 23 You who make your boast in the law, do you
  dishonor God through breaking the law? 24 For
  "the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles
  because of you," as it is written.

68
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Consider the deep commitment that many under
  these Elders had made to Satan. They did not know
  God! (Ezk 812)

69
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Ezekiel 812 - Then He said to me, "Son of man,
  have you seen what the elders of the house of
  Israel do in the dark, every man in the room of
  his idols? For they say, 'The LORD does not see
  us, the LORD has forsaken the land.'

70
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Jesus knew that this kind of religion can be
  taught and shared.

71
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Imagine the stern warning of Jesus himself. (Lk
  121-3)

72
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Luke 121-3 - In the meantime, when an
  innumerable multitude of people had gathered
  together, so that they trampled one another, He
  began to say to His disciples first of all,
  "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is
  hypocrisy. 2 "For there is nothing covered that
  will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be
  known.

73
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• 3 "Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark
  will be heard in the light, and what you have
  spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be
  proclaimed on the housetops.

74
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• The temptation to become a hypocrite is great. It
  is not hard to be one.

75
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• The temptation to become a hypocrite is great. It
  is not hard to be one.
• The Pharisees were very successful in
  duplicating their character. (Mt 2315, 27-28)

76
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Matthew 2315 - "Woe to you, scribes and
  Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and
  sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you
  make him twice as much a son of hell as
  yourselves.

77
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Matthew 2327-28 - "Woe to you, scribes and
  Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like
  whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful
  outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's
  bones and all uncleanness. 28 "Even so you also
  outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you
  are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

78
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• How did all of the Elders fall in line to these
  things?

79
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Likely there were some who knew the truth but
  were too weak and cowardly to stand up to the
  non-traditional paths advocated by some.

80
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Likely there were some who knew the truth but
  were too weak and cowardly to stand up to the
  non-traditional paths advocated by some.
• They may have made some courageous stands like
  Pilate and openly stated the truth. Words alone
  do not constitute a stand! (Mt 2723-25)

81
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Matthew 2723-25 - Then the governor said, "Why,
  what evil has He done?" But they cried out all
  the more, saying, "Let Him be crucified!" 24
  When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all,
  but rather that a tumult was rising, he took
  water and washed his hands before the multitude,
  saying, "I am innocent of the blood of this just
  Person. You see to it."

82
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• 25 And all the people answered and said, "His
  blood be on us and on our children.

83
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• The people had given into an emotion based
  worship of idols. (Ezk 813-16)

84
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Ezekiel 813-16 - And He said to me, "Turn again,
  and you will see greater abominations that they
  are doing." 14 So He brought me to the door of
  the north gate of the LORD's house and to my
  dismay, women were sitting there weeping for
  Tammuz.

85
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• 15 Then He said to me, "Have you seen this, O son
  of man? Turn again, you will see greater
  abominations than these." 16 So He brought me
  into the inner court of the LORD's house and
  there, at the door of the temple of the LORD,
  between the porch and the altar, were about
  twenty-five men with their backs toward the
  temple of the LORD and their faces toward the
  east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the
  east.

86
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• After experiencing the deeply personal and
  emotional weeping for Tammuz can you
  imagine how offensive the name-calling preaching
  of Jeremiah was to them?

87
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• After experiencing the deeply personal and
  emotional weeping for Tammuz can you
  imagine how offensive the name-calling preaching
  of Jeremiah was to them?
• They likened this new worship as trivial
  changes in their more mature understanding of
  the freedoms that they claimed God gave them.
  (Ezk 816-17)

88
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• Ezekiel 816-17 - So He brought me into the inner
  court of the LORD's house and there, at the door
  of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and
  the altar, were about twenty-five men with their
  backs toward the temple of the LORD and their
  faces toward the east, and they were worshiping
  the sun toward the east.

89
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• 17 And He said to me, "Have you seen this, O son
  of man? Is it a trivial thing to the house of
  Judah to commit the abominations which they
  commit here? For they have filled the land with
  violence then they have returned to provoke Me
  to anger. Indeed they put the branch to their
  nose.

90
The hypocrisy of these Elders caused many to
openly practice what they did in secret

• The common man might say, the Priest and the
  Elders who have studied the scriptures more
  than I have must know what they are doing! After
  all, these things are done in the temple of God.

91
What message could reach such a people?

• God had Jeremiah preach the perfect message for
  this people. (Jer 616-19)

92
What message could reach such a people?

• Jeremiah 616-19 - Thus says the LORD "Stand in
  the ways and see, And ask for the old paths,
  where the good way is, And walk in it Then you
  will find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We
  will not walk in it.' 17 Also, I set watchmen
  over you, saying, 'Listen to the sound of the
  trumpet!' But they said, 'We will not listen.'

93
What message could reach such a people?

• 18 Therefore hear, you nations, And know, O
  congregation, what is among them. 19 Hear, O
  earth! Behold, I will certainly bring calamity on
  this people -- The fruit of their thoughts,
  Because they have not heeded My words, Nor My
  law, but rejected it.

94
What message could reach such a people?

• The people rejected this legalistic message for
  their own thoughts. God then gave them the fruit
  of their thoughts.

95
What message could reach such a people?

• Questions to Consider

96
What message could reach such a people?

• Questions to Consider
• 1. How can you know if a leader(s) is corrupt?

97
What message could reach such a people?

• Questions to Consider
• 1. How can you know if a leader(s) is corrupt?
• 2. Why is it difficult for the people of God to
  rise above its leadership? (Jer 531)

98
What message could reach such a people?

• Jeremiah 531 - The prophets prophesy falsely,
  And the priests rule by their own power And My
  people love to have it so. But what will you do
  in the end?

99
What message could reach such a people?

• 3. Why does the kind of preaching that God
  demands become unpopular?

100
What message could reach such a people?

• 3. Why does the kind of preaching that God
  demands become unpopular?
• 4. What makes the worship of God distinct from
  false worship?

101
What message could reach such a people?

• 3. Why does the kind of preaching that God
  demands become unpopular?
• 4. What makes the worship of God distinct from
  false worship?
• 5. Why would it have been difficult for the
  common man to see the problems in Israel?