The Sword of the Lord

THE SWORD OF THE LORD

WHEN OUR SWORD BECOMES OUR CROSS

Or

Our Cross Becomes Our Sword

Preached by:  Carolyn Sissom at Little White Church

Ezekiel 21

October 29, 2006

Through divine guidance, the Lord led me to purchase a contemporary painting that looks like a sword, but could be a cross.  He showed me the painting a week ago, but woke me up on Saturday morning about 1:00a.m.  He began stirring this sermon in me.  When the shop was open, I went over and purchased the painting for the Lord.  Earlier in the week, I saw a beautiful gold crown with a cross on it.  I purchased this prior to the Lord moving on me to buy the oil painting, or moving on me by the Holy Ghost to preach this message.   I placed the crown at the foot of the cross for the Sunday morning service.

 This is the message.  Some of the study quotes are from Kelly Varner, PPT; the message is direct from Jesus Christ of Nazareth.  Also, there is a quote from Matthew Henry. 

“This chapter speaks more prominently and fully of the Sword of the Lord than any other chapter of the Bible.  The Sword is mentioned 79 times in the Book of Ezekiel and 14 times in this chapter.  Fourteen is the Bible number of salvation and deliverance.”

“The Sword is The Word.  The Word is a Person”

“It has been called the Sword Song or the prophecy of the Sword.  In the Hebrew text, 10: 45-49 is joined to this chapter.”  In view of the present fire storms in California, I will include those verses in this study.

Verse 47:  “Say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the Lord; Thus says the Lord God; Behold I will kindle a fire in you and it shall devour every green tree in you, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.  And all flesh shall see that I the Lord have kindled it: it shall not be quenched.  Then said I, Ah Lord God! They say of me, does he not speak parables?

“Here the elders of Israel came to Ezekiel to inquire of the Lord (Ez.20:1).  Since they had not first repented, God ignored the purpose for which they had come and then remonstrated with them for their abominations.  In an effort to avoid the application of Ezekiel’s messages to themselves because of its unwelcome implications,  they slandered his message as being to hard to

understand.  This was an excuse for hardening their hearts against remonstrance’s which need no explanation.  Like the hearers of Jesus (Jn. 6:60), the hearers of Ezekiel claimed inability to understand as an excuse for hardening their hearts, which was an attempt to escape responsibility of responding to the truth.” (K.V. PPT)

In Chapter 21, The Sword is the Word of God.  “For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.  Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight; but all things are naked and opened to Him with whom we have to do.”(Heb. 4:12-13)

The Word of God is a Person. “”In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  The Same was in the beginning with God.  All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made.  In Him was life; and the life was the light of men.

“THERE IS A SWORD COMPANY OF OVERCOMERS.  IT IS JESUS CHRIST AND HIS CHURCH.  This is seen is the Messianic promise of Ezekiel 21:27”:  “I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it and it shall be no more until He comes whose right it is; and I will give it to Him.

“Note the triple overturning of the Day of the Lord.  This is a shaking in three realms, the body, the soul and the Spirit. (1 Thess. 5:23)” “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole Spirit, Soul and Body be preserved blameless to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

21: 1-7  “And the Word of the Lord came to me saying, :Son of Man set your face toward Jerusalem and drop your word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel, and say to the land of Israel, Thus says the Lord; Behold I am against you, and will draw forth My sword out of its sheath, and will but off from you the righteous and the wicked.  Therefore shall My sword go forth out of its sheath against all flesh from the south to the north.  That all flesh may know that I the Lord have drawn forth MY SWORD out of its sheath: it shall not return any more.  Sigh, therefore, you son of man with the breaking of your loins; and with bitterness sign before there eyes.  And it shall be, when they say to you, Why sigh you?  That you shall answer, For the tidings, because it comes: and every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be feeble, and every spirit shall fain, and all knees shall be weak as water: behold, it comes and shall be brought to pass, says the Lord.

We are still speaking here of the work of the Word of God.  This sword shall not return until the mission is accomplished. 

Bill Britton says, “People are trying to come into perfection without the death of the old Adam man.  They are trying to come into the Kingdom without going to the cross.  As a result, we’re finding people saying, “we are already perfected.  We already have Divine order,  We’re already behind the veil.  We already have everything.  There are people who are trying to come into their individual kingship...doing it by the power of the carnal mind.., the psychic force… self-projecting in the Kingdom of God.”

 This word of the Sword of the Lord or the Word of God that is quick and powerful and sharp will cleanse, purify and sanctify the Body, Soul and Spirit that we may walk in the Kingly anointing.  This is when the Sword of the Word of God becomes  our  Cross.

When we are so full of the Word of  God that the Word divides asunder the soul, the spirit and the marrow of the bones, we will suffer rejection, persecution, scorn, and mocking because the Word will either convict people to repentance or they will run from the presence of the Lord in rebellion. 

These are the Christians who will follow Him to the river, but they won’t follow Him to the Cross. 

21:8-17  “Again the word of the Lord came to me saying, “Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord; Say, A Sword, a Sword is sharpened, and also furbished:  It sharpened to make a sore slaughter; it is furbished that it may glitter: should we then make mirth? It contempts the rod of My son as every tree.  And he has given it to be furbished, that it may be handled: this sword is sharpened, and it is furbished, to give it into the hand of the slayer.  Cry and how, son of man: for it shall be upon My people, it shall be upon all the princes of Israel; terrors by reason of the sword shall be upon My people: smite therefore upon your thigh.  Because it is a trial, and what if the sword contempt even the rod? And it shall be no more,”

This is when the Word of God is a correction that brings us in to repentance.  The Sword is a person.  He shall not forget the errand on which He is sent.  It is a trial, and it is no more than a trial.  It is a matter of comfort to the people of God, when his judgments are in the land that when “they are tried, they shall come forth as gold.”. “In the midst of the trial, the proving of our faith will be the improving of it.” (Matthew Henry)

The prophet must not study for fine words, “a sword a sword and verse 14, let the sword be doubled.:  (Note the two crosses: (1) the painting, (2) the cross on the wall.)

Ezekiel 21: 18-27:  …appoint you two ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon may come to Rabbath (a metropolis)  of the Ammonites (principle of fleshly mixture), and to Judah in Jerusalem the defenced.  For the king of Babylon stood ….to use divination; (his occultism), he made his arrows bright.” (Belomacy, the tossing of arrows with names of enemies on them and hepatoscopy, examining the liver of animals for omen, was highly developed in Babylon).  And it shall be to them as false divination…You shall be taken with the hand wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come….remove the diadem, (the dominion of Adam and Satan)  and take off the crown, this shall not be same; exalt him that is low , and abase him that is high.  I will overturn, overturn, overturn it; and it shall be no more, until He (Jesus Christ of Nazareth) whose right it is, and I will give it to him.  The diadem of the Priest and the Crown of the King is given to Jesus Christ and His church.  This is the King-Priest ministry after the order of Melchizedek!”

(I took the Crown and placed it at the foot of the Sword/Cross)

The Lord is raising  up a Sword Company,  in whom the Word of God is sharpened, furbished and glitters.  “For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.