24 “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. 25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. 28 Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God. 29 I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you. 30 I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine.
Ezekiel 36:24-30 (NIV)
If you watch HGTV you know there are a lot of restoration and renovation shows. In the prior type of show, there is an emphasis on retaining many elements of the house on object. The goal is to restore the original beauty and characteristics. The former type of show demolishes and reconfigures the elements to create an improved, and in some cases more functional, structure or object. Either situation brings about a revitalization for future use.
The passage from Ezekiel recounts for us a time when Israel had gone into exile. The people had worshipped idols and chosen not to follow God so foreign nations were allowed to defeat the Israelites in battles, capture or kill the people, and take the survivors back to the country of the conquerors as slaves. Here God is telling the people that this is not a permanent situation. God makes the promise to restore Israel. The people will be gathered from all nations and God will sprinkle water on them to cleanse them from all impurities. The Lord will remove their hearts of stone then place a heart of flesh in them. The Spirit will be put on them. The land will produce plenty. Israel will be fully restored as improved and functional people of God.
We may not be physically exiled and made slaves to serve others but we still are exiled and in need of restoration. Our sin exiles us from God and the fullness of life available to us. We need our Lord to restore us. This promise of restoration has already been fulfilled in the saving acts of Jesus Christ. Let the Lord restore you and you will be an improved, functional child of God.
A Faith Understanding 