All of the "I's" are God!

As we go through this passage, it's very important to understand that every “I” represents God.

God is dealing with Israel as they are scattered among the different nations. Going through Israel’s history, there are reasons like battles, wars, and their direction is more important than following God!
These moments pushed them away from Israel, their home.

The horrible thing is that they need to be cleaned and made new! Because so many things we do are wrong. They were not representing the Kingdom of God well, and neither do we. 

This is why God sends us Jesus and gives us the grace and hope that we desperately need.

This is FORGIVENESS!

The other important part is showing that the Holy Spirit is very clear in the Old Testament.

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God.

God realizes the people of Israel could not follow Him without the Spirit of God being in them.
 
That is the same today!
We need the spirit of God in us!

To Clean us from sin! To remember how amazing God always is, by giving us His Spirit to live in a way that honors God.
 
Ezekiel 36: 22-27 reveals this truth to us!

22 “Therefore, give the people of Israel this message from the Sovereign Lord: I am bringing you back, but not because you deserve it. I am doing it to protect my holy name, on which you brought shame while you were scattered among the nations. 

• God... Is bringing them back home. Instead of their decisions dividing them from God. He wants to rebuild the nation of Israel.
• God is stepping in to correct the dangerous ways they are living.
• Does this sound like today? And scarily, not much has changed!

 
23 I will show how holy my great name is—the name on which you brought shame among the nations. And when I reveal my holiness through you before their very eyes, says the Sovereign Lord, then the nations will know that I am the Lord. 

• God wants us to see how amazing He is. How holy is His name!
  • Defining what holiness is for God is very important. The holiness of God is often described as this complete separation from sin, perfect purity, and absolute moral goodness. It is the bedrock of theology, the study of God. It shows how God is worthy of reference in all. Calling people to be set apart, a moral and spiritual calling for believers. (AI Statement)

 
24 For I will gather you up from all the nations and bring you home again to your land.

• God’s statement here is so important! God will gather us up, as we are scattered everywhere in the world, but still lost, still not representing God well. And showing us who we are meant to be, we are God’s children.
• No matter how lost we are, or what we have done that is wrong, we are meant to be with God!

 
25 “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols.

• God wants to make us clean again. This means he's taking all the junk, all the sin, and making us new.
• This is what the large word “sanctification” is all about. We are set aside for a Holy Purpose when it comes to walking with God!

No one rides the bench...
God never gives up on us…
BECAUSE WE ARE GOD’S CHILDREN!
 
26 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you.
God gives us a new heart. Seriously, this is unbelievable. He doesn't leave us where we are, and in this state we have become; He makes us new and set apart for a Holy Purpose.
 
I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. 

• We go from a stormy and stubborn heart, and God gives us a new heart!
• That is beyond my understanding, how God rebuilds us… no matter how ugly our lives have become… God heals us, sets us aside for a holy purpose, and makes us new.

This is salvation!
 
27 And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.

• As God speaks this into our hearts, he is talking about the Holy Spirit.
• God's reason is to help us know who God is and how to serve Him out of the heart of being forgiven.

 
We don't follow God because He's forcing us to take these steps.
We follow God because God loves us!
 
 All of the "I's" are God!