Worship Preparation - February 2, 2025
Read the sermon text: Ezekiel 34
Read the sermon summary: Last Sunday we considered the first thirty-three chapters of Ezekiel. We saw why God judged the Israelites, namely, because they broke the covenant. Beginning in chapter 34, the author turns to themes of hope and restoration. Ezekiel envisions a time in the future when God himself would gather and restore his people, placing his servant David over them as shepherd and prince. Interestingly, at least six times in the judgment chapters, God says "And they shall know that I am the Lord." Here, in this chapter, we see something slightly different emphasizing the nearness of God to his people in this new covenant of peace: "And they shall know that I am the Lord their God with them" (v. 30).
Read the following song lyrics in relation to the sermon:
Christ Our Hope In Life And Death
Verse 1
What is our hope in life and death
Christ alone Christ alone
What is our only confidence
That our souls to Him belong
Who holds our days within His hand
What comes apart from His command
And what will keep us to the end
The love of Christ in which we stand
Chorus
O sing hallelujah
Our hope springs eternal
O sing hallelujah
Now and ever we confess
Christ our hope in life and death
Verse 2
What truth can calm the troubled soul
God is good God is good
Where is His grace and goodness known
In our great Redeemer's blood
Who holds our faith when fears arise
Who stands above the stormy trial
Who sends the waves that bring us nigh
Unto the shore the rock of Christ
Verse 3
Unto the grave what will we sing
Christ He lives Christ He lives
And what reward will heaven bring
Everlasting life with Him
There we will rise to meet the Lord
Then sin and death will be destroyed
And we will feast in endless joy
When Christ is ours forevermore
CCLI Song #7147502
Jordan Kauflin | Keith Getty | Matt Boswell | Matt Papa | Matthew Merker
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