Ezekiel 48:35: “All the way around shall be eighteen thousand cubits; and the name of the city from that day shall be: THE LORD IS THERE.”

October 11th, 2021 by Pastor Ed in devotional

The name of this future city reveals its most important characteristic: literally “YHWH Shammah” or “the LORD is there.” We saw in chapters 8–11 that the Lord was not in the old city of Jerusalem. The glory of God had departed the temple and the city itself. But here, in this vision of a future temple, we find that God’s tangible, visible presence will return and be THERE in the center of the area given over to God. In this future city, the numerous, unconditional promises God has made to Israel over the centuries will finally be fulfilled, including the covenant with Abraham in Genesis 12, the covenant with the Levites in Numbers 25, the covenant with David in 2 Samuel, and finally, the New Covenant found in Jeremiah 31.

Many have called this verse in Ezekiel the completion of Israel’s history, and it certainly is a dramatic one within the Old Testament. But it also has an important, personal application in each of our lives today. For every believer who has surrendered to God’s Lordship, it can be said, “The LORD is there” within them. The Apostle Paul said, “To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col. 1:27).

This truth, Christ in you, stretches the ability of the human mind to comprehend. We can only barely grasp that Jesus Christ, God the Son, actually takes up residence in human beings. This is the great secret of Christianity—Christ in you. Other religions tell people how to live but cannot give any practical power to succeed in living that way. It is only through Jesus Christ, who because of His great love for us, condescends to move into our hearts when we confess, repent, and surrender, that we are able to receive power to change and actually serve Him. “THE LORD IS THERE,” inside your heart, enabling you to be everything He wants you to be, starting on the inside and working to the outside!

“LORD, that You have chosen to live in us, when we consider our own lack of personal righteousness, continues to baffle and amaze us. Thank you that when we come in humility to the foot of the cross, You give us and clothe us in Your righteousness. Cleanse us and fill us again we ask, in Jesus’ name.”